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Armed native protesters block Ontario highway, railway line
Warrant issued for leader
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=80f830b1-f459-4b54-a9d5-50d281784ec5
Published: Friday, June 29, 2007 Article tools
DESERONTO, Ont. -- The Ontario Provincial Police took action early this morning against Mohawk protesters with blockades at major provincial highways and a railway line by issuing an arrest warrant for the protest's leader.
A warrant was issued for Shawn Brant, 43, of the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, for mischief and breach of recognizance relating to blockades at Highways 401 and 2. Three Via Rail passenger trains were also turned away near Deseronto as part of a "national day of action."
Const. Sandra Barr said this morning that Brant was not in custody, and could not say when the warrant would be executed.
"We're assessing the situation continually, and if something new comes to light in regards to the warrant, it will be acted on," Barr told CanWest News Service. "Things to this point have been peaceful, which is appreciated both by us, and I'm sure, the demonstrators as well. We're hoping it will remain peaceful.
"We respect lawful, peaceful protests, but we're not going to tolerate criminal activity, and that's where the arrest warrant stems from," she said, noting the warrant was based on a bonfire at Highway 2.
Protesters warned they had guns at the ready as they blocked the highways and trains Thursday night.
Just before midnight, protesters dressed in army gear moved in on Highway 401, Canada's busiest highway that connects Montreal and Toronto, hours after nearby Highway 2 was also blocked.
Four lanes of Highway 401 - two eastbound and two westbound - were closed after police confirmed the protesters' intentions and addressed the situation.
"The 401 was shut down simultaneously between OPP and natives," Brant said.
"It was OPP who shut it down in a pre-emptive manner in anticipation of a move we were making towards the 401. We're the type of people who do what we're going to say and they took it seriously and decided to pre-empt that." Protesters also forced the three trains - two from Ottawa, one from Montreal - to stay in Kingston, Ont. All trains were en route to Toronto.
A Via Rail official said the Crown corporation was arranging buses to transport the more than 400 stranded passengers.
Via had already announced it was cancelling its Toronto-Montreal and Toronto-Ottawa routes today, affecting 5,000 passengers booked on 24 different trains.
Earlier Thursday, Brant headed the procession as members turned away traffic on Highway 2 - an alternate route to Highway 401.
Several men and women dressed in army gear, some with bandannas covering their faces, accompanied a white rusted-out school bus down the highway.
One angry motorist was confronted by several protesters as he turned around at the blockade. "Move your f---ing car," a protester yelled at the motorist through a loudspeaker.
"You won't see any photos of us waving guns around, but it's certainly something we have access to," said Brant.
The protests had been set to begin at midnight today, with OPP advising motorists throughout the early morning hours of road closures related to the protest in more rural areas of Wahta and Alderville.
The Assembly of First Nations' plea for public support will see more than 100 events planned from coast to coast.
The Tyendinaga Mohawk administration has not officially sanctioned the blockade. About 2,100 of the band's 7,600 members live on the reserve. Many protesters are expected from other First Nations communities and non-native organizations.
"It certainly won't be the overwhelming majority of our people," said R. Donald Maracle, chief of the Bay of Quinte Mohawks.
"There's the risk of backlash. The danger is there could be a lack of support for First Nations issues if the public is inconvenienced."
Maracle said he doesn't expect violence, expressing surprise at reports the blockade members plan to arm themselves for possible confrontations with police.
He added the council planned to distribute information pamphlets to re-routed highway traffic, detailing their disputes over claims and program funding.
Brant, meanwhile, said he expects to incur the wrath of angry motorists as the Mohawks block the two key highways on the first day of a long weekend.
But he pointed out the group's rotating series of protests targeting the economy do far more to raise awareness about poverty and the slow pace of land claims than rallies and marches.
"I'm not being cold and callous, but I think that this whole situation should be seen as a disgrace on the Canadian public, certainly over the past number of years. We actually have more (community) support than last time. We're excited about it."
The Canadian Pacific Railway has agreed to bring 300 trains to a stop for one minute at 2 p.m. ET today in a symbolic act of solidarity with First Nations.
Meanwhile, OPP commissioner Julian Fantino said native people have the constitutional right to protest and he doesn't want police actions to escalate demonstrations into confrontations.
"We're certainly in a position where we want to demonstrate goodwill," he said. "We certainly do not want to become the cause of conflict."
Fantino's conciliatory tone suggested, however, that the OPP is not about to storm any barricades to immediately attempt to dislodge demonstrators.
"There's always a time when enough is enough. We will certainly negotiate diligently, we'll talk to the extent that we can. But we will also deal with lawbreaking for what it is. It may not be immediate," said Fantino.
"We're very mindful of what can happen and so our response will be measured. It will be thought out. And it will be one that under the circumstances will be justifiable."
As Mohawks took a hard-line approach, Phil Fontaine, the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, pleaded for peaceful protests.
"The only way we can get the government to act in a responsible and appropriate way is to reach out to Canadians and we are trying to do it in the most respectful and peaceful way possible," Fontaine said earlier. "That is what June 29 is about.''
Fontaine met with RCMP officials prior to the demonstrations to sign a protocol intended to make sure things stayed calm during the protest. He said the pact would help keep a good relation between police and protesters.
"If they so wish to engage in civil disobedience, they can - as long as they are prepared to accept the consequences. I think we have to be very careful that those rights are not denied to one segment of the Canadian population.''
In April, tensions over unresolved land claim issues prompted Mohawk protesters to blockade one of Canada's busiest rail lines between Montreal and Toronto. Protesters parked an old school bus on a stretch of CN-owned rail, located near Deseronto, in the two-day standoff just west of Kingston.
The standoff paralyzed rail traffic between the country's two most populous cities, and resulted in a lawsuit worth millions filed by CN against the organizers.
The protest also disrupted thousands of weekend travellers driving on Highway 401, Ontario's busiest highway. The highway is also one of Canada's main trucking routes.
While the demonstrations were non-violent, event organizers hoped the economic consequences would force the provincial government to resolve ongoing land claims in the region. Mohawk tribes claim substantial parcels of land around Lake Ontario are their ancestral home lands. An ongoing dispute in nearby Caledonia, Ont., over a planned housing development erupted into violence between protesters and police late last year.
The OPP have closed the 401 between Highway 41 and Highway 37 in Napanee. Both east and westbound lanes are closed due to the blockade.
Travelers traveling westbound to Toronto are being directed by police to exit at Highway 41 north to Highway 7, west to Highway 37 and travel south.
Travelers eastbound to Montreal or Ottawa are being directed by police to exit at Highway 37 north to Highway 7 and south on Highway 41.
With files from the National Post, Winnipeg Free Press and Ottawa Citizen
Warrant issued for leader
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=80f830b1-f459-4b54-a9d5-50d281784ec5
Published: Friday, June 29, 2007 Article tools
DESERONTO, Ont. -- The Ontario Provincial Police took action early this morning against Mohawk protesters with blockades at major provincial highways and a railway line by issuing an arrest warrant for the protest's leader.
A warrant was issued for Shawn Brant, 43, of the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, for mischief and breach of recognizance relating to blockades at Highways 401 and 2. Three Via Rail passenger trains were also turned away near Deseronto as part of a "national day of action."
Const. Sandra Barr said this morning that Brant was not in custody, and could not say when the warrant would be executed.
"We're assessing the situation continually, and if something new comes to light in regards to the warrant, it will be acted on," Barr told CanWest News Service. "Things to this point have been peaceful, which is appreciated both by us, and I'm sure, the demonstrators as well. We're hoping it will remain peaceful.
"We respect lawful, peaceful protests, but we're not going to tolerate criminal activity, and that's where the arrest warrant stems from," she said, noting the warrant was based on a bonfire at Highway 2.
Protesters warned they had guns at the ready as they blocked the highways and trains Thursday night.
Just before midnight, protesters dressed in army gear moved in on Highway 401, Canada's busiest highway that connects Montreal and Toronto, hours after nearby Highway 2 was also blocked.
Four lanes of Highway 401 - two eastbound and two westbound - were closed after police confirmed the protesters' intentions and addressed the situation.
"The 401 was shut down simultaneously between OPP and natives," Brant said.
"It was OPP who shut it down in a pre-emptive manner in anticipation of a move we were making towards the 401. We're the type of people who do what we're going to say and they took it seriously and decided to pre-empt that." Protesters also forced the three trains - two from Ottawa, one from Montreal - to stay in Kingston, Ont. All trains were en route to Toronto.
A Via Rail official said the Crown corporation was arranging buses to transport the more than 400 stranded passengers.
Via had already announced it was cancelling its Toronto-Montreal and Toronto-Ottawa routes today, affecting 5,000 passengers booked on 24 different trains.
Earlier Thursday, Brant headed the procession as members turned away traffic on Highway 2 - an alternate route to Highway 401.
Several men and women dressed in army gear, some with bandannas covering their faces, accompanied a white rusted-out school bus down the highway.
One angry motorist was confronted by several protesters as he turned around at the blockade. "Move your f---ing car," a protester yelled at the motorist through a loudspeaker.
"You won't see any photos of us waving guns around, but it's certainly something we have access to," said Brant.
The protests had been set to begin at midnight today, with OPP advising motorists throughout the early morning hours of road closures related to the protest in more rural areas of Wahta and Alderville.
The Assembly of First Nations' plea for public support will see more than 100 events planned from coast to coast.
The Tyendinaga Mohawk administration has not officially sanctioned the blockade. About 2,100 of the band's 7,600 members live on the reserve. Many protesters are expected from other First Nations communities and non-native organizations.
"It certainly won't be the overwhelming majority of our people," said R. Donald Maracle, chief of the Bay of Quinte Mohawks.
"There's the risk of backlash. The danger is there could be a lack of support for First Nations issues if the public is inconvenienced."
Maracle said he doesn't expect violence, expressing surprise at reports the blockade members plan to arm themselves for possible confrontations with police.
He added the council planned to distribute information pamphlets to re-routed highway traffic, detailing their disputes over claims and program funding.
Brant, meanwhile, said he expects to incur the wrath of angry motorists as the Mohawks block the two key highways on the first day of a long weekend.
But he pointed out the group's rotating series of protests targeting the economy do far more to raise awareness about poverty and the slow pace of land claims than rallies and marches.
"I'm not being cold and callous, but I think that this whole situation should be seen as a disgrace on the Canadian public, certainly over the past number of years. We actually have more (community) support than last time. We're excited about it."
The Canadian Pacific Railway has agreed to bring 300 trains to a stop for one minute at 2 p.m. ET today in a symbolic act of solidarity with First Nations.
Meanwhile, OPP commissioner Julian Fantino said native people have the constitutional right to protest and he doesn't want police actions to escalate demonstrations into confrontations.
"We're certainly in a position where we want to demonstrate goodwill," he said. "We certainly do not want to become the cause of conflict."
Fantino's conciliatory tone suggested, however, that the OPP is not about to storm any barricades to immediately attempt to dislodge demonstrators.
"There's always a time when enough is enough. We will certainly negotiate diligently, we'll talk to the extent that we can. But we will also deal with lawbreaking for what it is. It may not be immediate," said Fantino.
"We're very mindful of what can happen and so our response will be measured. It will be thought out. And it will be one that under the circumstances will be justifiable."
As Mohawks took a hard-line approach, Phil Fontaine, the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, pleaded for peaceful protests.
"The only way we can get the government to act in a responsible and appropriate way is to reach out to Canadians and we are trying to do it in the most respectful and peaceful way possible," Fontaine said earlier. "That is what June 29 is about.''
Fontaine met with RCMP officials prior to the demonstrations to sign a protocol intended to make sure things stayed calm during the protest. He said the pact would help keep a good relation between police and protesters.
"If they so wish to engage in civil disobedience, they can - as long as they are prepared to accept the consequences. I think we have to be very careful that those rights are not denied to one segment of the Canadian population.''
In April, tensions over unresolved land claim issues prompted Mohawk protesters to blockade one of Canada's busiest rail lines between Montreal and Toronto. Protesters parked an old school bus on a stretch of CN-owned rail, located near Deseronto, in the two-day standoff just west of Kingston.
The standoff paralyzed rail traffic between the country's two most populous cities, and resulted in a lawsuit worth millions filed by CN against the organizers.
The protest also disrupted thousands of weekend travellers driving on Highway 401, Ontario's busiest highway. The highway is also one of Canada's main trucking routes.
While the demonstrations were non-violent, event organizers hoped the economic consequences would force the provincial government to resolve ongoing land claims in the region. Mohawk tribes claim substantial parcels of land around Lake Ontario are their ancestral home lands. An ongoing dispute in nearby Caledonia, Ont., over a planned housing development erupted into violence between protesters and police late last year.
The OPP have closed the 401 between Highway 41 and Highway 37 in Napanee. Both east and westbound lanes are closed due to the blockade.
Travelers traveling westbound to Toronto are being directed by police to exit at Highway 41 north to Highway 7, west to Highway 37 and travel south.
Travelers eastbound to Montreal or Ottawa are being directed by police to exit at Highway 37 north to Highway 7 and south on Highway 41.
With files from the National Post, Winnipeg Free Press and Ottawa Citizen
Wow, way to show the terrorist your serious Fantino. Pathetic!
