Protesters remove Caledonia barricade to ease fears

CBC News: http://www.cbc.ca/news
Last Updated: Wednesday, July 12, 2006 | 11:13 AM ET

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A barricade blocking access to a subdivision at the centre of a disputed land claim in Caledonia, Ont., has been removed in what protesters say is an attempt to alleviate residents' feelings of intimidation.

Protesters are still occupying the Douglas Creek Estates land development site, but early Tuesday they dragged away a metal hydro tower blocking the main driveway into the area.

Concrete blocks at the entrance to the road have been left there, but vehicles can drive onto the site.

Six Nations spokeswoman Janie Jamieson told the Hamilton Spectator that the barricade was removed to show protesters have nothing to hide and as a sign to town residents that there's no need to feel intimidated.

Some Caledonia residents said the tower's removal was likely more for the convenience of protesters accessing the site than a goodwill gesture.

"I guess the visual barricade has opened up but I wouldn't make a right turn down there and expect that we'd be welcome. I'm not about to test those waters," Ken Hewitt, a spokesman for the Caledonia Citizens Alliance, told the Spectator.

There have been recent complaints by residents in the neighbouring area that protesters have terrorized them by flashing lights into their homes and making noise. Some claimed shots have been fired at homes.

Those allegations were made during a recent hearing at a court in Cayuga. Key parties in the dispute have been asked to meet in court again on July 24 to discuss punishment for contempt of court after protesters failed to leave the site under a court injunction.

Protesters have occupied the site since Feb. 28 and claim the land was wrongly taken from them by the government.

With files from the Canadian Press