So ... just who is terrorizing who?
In one week, Prime Minister Harper has finally grudgingly agreed:
- to pay some of the province's costs for Caledonia;
- to give his negotiators a mandate to actually negotiate;
- to allow the negotiators to negotiate with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy representatives, as chosen by the people and the elected Band Council.
At the same time, there have been severe intimidation tactics:
- a high tech low level surveillance plane circling the reclamation site every night, which must have 'high level' orders;
- a 'leaked' draft DND document identifying aboriginal groups legitimately pursuing justice on land and governance issues as "insurgents", for whom death is an accepted outcome;
- a Minister/MP raising resentment in Caledonia and at Six Nations by making plans to build a new facility on the reclamation site, which she would not be doing without Harper's approval because everyone knows there is only one voice in Ottawa these days.
Seems to me Harper doesn't really want to negotiate, but within the law of the Supreme Court rulings he has no choice, so he's doing everything in his power to create fear and anger and resentment, and sabotage the talks ... seems to me. Somebody should tell Harper that abiding by the 'rule of law' is necessary to keeping the peace in Canada ... but perhaps that is not his purpose??
Last spring, on April 16, the Six Nations elected Band Council voted to turn negotiations over to the Confederacy. On April 18, Harper refused to allow his team to negotiate with the Confederacy. On April 20, at the urging of a federally-appointed judge, the OPP violently attacked, arrested and convicted the women, men and youths on the site (except the non-aboriginal people). The only people with guns were the OPP. The whole community arrived and, led by the women, pushed the OPP back off the site. Then the Six Nations community secured themselves behind barricades prepared for the next attack.
I think it is extremely important for Canadians to understand everything that is going on so that if it blows up again, they will know why.
So ... just who IS terrorizing who?
