On behalf of my lovely wife Shastah and myself I want to take this moment to thank everyone who made our trip to the 24th annual George Orwell dinner in Victoria, B.C. a reality.

Travel from our relatively remote area of the province to the island is expensive and it was only due to the generosity of those who donated funds that we were able to attend this important gathering of free speech advocates from across Canada.

This was the second time that we were able to enjoy the fellowship of people on the front lines of those fighting to retain the right to speak out their truths in the face of a brutal and alarmingly dangerous force: the government of Canada and its bureaucratic agent known as the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC).

Due to time restrictions at the moment I cannot elaborate on the meeting but will do so over the next while.

Arthur Topham

Pub/Ed

RadicalPress.com

Photo credit: WCWC

BC’s Rivers: Is Anyone Listening?

by Arthur Topham

May 1, 2009

The Royal Canadian Legion in downtown Quesnel was likely the most popular spot in town on Thursday evening, April 30th and considering that the Canucks were playing at the same time it was little short of a miracle that so many local citizens would have taken the time to leave their homes.

What could possible draw a near full house of hockey enthusiasts away from the tube on a week day evening other than a national emergency? Well, as Joe Foy of the Western Canada Wilderness Committee so aptly put it, there’s another emergency happening right here in B.C. that may be as critical and important to all British Columbians as any other crisis that the nation as a whole has ever faced.

And what on earth could be so important? As Foy went on to explain to a rapt audience of concerned listeners, that biggest scam being pulled off on the people of the province; one engineered by the very people elected to represents the interests of electors of British Columbia, was what the Save Our Rivers Society was here to explain to people.

That “scam”, as former Social Credit Environment Minister, author and renowned Vancouver radio broadcaster Rafe Mair told the audience (in no uncertain terms), is the total selling off by the Liberal government of Premier Gordon Campbell of BC’s public ownership of the streams and rivers that are the lifeblood and, as Rafe summed up in his provocative talk, the “soul” of this province’s geographic and ecological treasures; ones which make British Columbia the most beautiful and prized piece of real estate on the face of the planet and upon which all our other economic and social assets, as well as the free flowing vitality of the natural ecosystems, depend for their existence.

The Save Our Rivers crew from Left: Joe Foy - Western Canada Wilderness Committee, Melissa Davis - B.C. Citizens for Public Power, Rafe Mair - Save Our Rivers Society, Mike Bruce, Union Rep & MC
Photo credit: Radical Press
____________________________________________________________________________

Rafe Mair, now retired from politics and broadcasting and into the 78th year of his earthly sojourn, sporting a light beard, a jolly belly and a trusty cane, has been leading a a series of public awareness meetings throughout the province to try and drum up public awareness and interest in what he feels is an upcoming provincial election whose outcome could have a devastatingly negative impact on all future generations in the province should the Liberal Campbell government be returned to power and be given free reign to fulfill their self-chosen, hidden mandate to sell off BC’s rivers to foreign corporate interests.

Over a decade ago Mair published a book called Canada: Is Anyone Listening? in which he presented his views on the state of the country. Today, he could just as easily write another one, were there enough time, titled “BC: Is Anyone Listening?” On this night in Quesnel there were people listening and to put it mildly they weren’t impressed with what they were hearing.

Representing a non-profit, publicly funded organization called the Save Our Rivers Society, see http://www.SaveOurRivers.org , the former politician and broadcaster and now elder environmentalist and contributing writer to the online news site http://www.thetyee.ca , has been traveling around the province with an entourage of other public figures in a somewhat desperate attempt to alert voters to the real situation that exists regarding the state of our publicly owned utility known as BC Hydro and how it’s being hijacked by corporate interests and aided and abetted by the Campbell Liberal government in Victoria.

Accompanying Rafe with his traveling salvation show in favour of the salmon, the streams and the environment was Joe Foy, spokesperson for the BC based Western Canada Wilderness Committee, BC’s longstanding, dedicated and trusted environmental organization noted for numerous accomplishments in the way of protecting British Columbia’s eco systems and wildlife habitat from the devastating effects of overly zealous industrial logging and mining interests who tend, at times, to put the dollar and the interests of the corporate boardroom above the natural environment.

Also included in the list of speakers was Melissa Davis from BC Citizens for Public Power see http://www.citizensforpublicpower.ca who began the evening’s discussion with an introduction to her organization’s efforts over the past few years to draw public attention to the urgency of what has been taking place behind closed doors in Victoria with respect to the Liberal agenda for privatizing BC’s publicly owned natural resources.

Of particular note were Melissa’s comments regarding the broken Liberal promise in 2001 to “not sell or privatize BC Hydro’s dams, transmission lines, water resources, or other core assets” followed by a grim reminder that Bill 30 was brought in by the Liberals to usurp any democratic rights of local regional governments to enact rules for safeguarding their resources thus allowing foreign, corporate interests to prevail over indigenous decisions of local governments in their bid to gain control of all provincial rivers and streams.

Melissa Davis’s third point, one which the audience appeared to understand almost intuitively, was that the Liberal’s willing compromises to BC’s environment and its citizens by the relinquishment of the rights of public ownership of BC Hydro and introducing a private sector model of corporate control of public assets for stockholder’s profits over and above anything else, would automatically ensure that the price people are paying for their electrical needs would dramatically increase in the years ahead. Predictions went as high as a 25% increase in one’s power bill over the next 3 years, this on top of already substantial increases. Rather shocking to say the least! Melissa recommended going to the following website to view a map showing the rivers and proposed projects: http://www.ippwatch.com .

Rafe took to the podium after Melissa’s enlightening talk and opened his remarks with a rather choice anecdote. He had served as a cabinet minister in the Bill Bennett government of the 1970s, along with the Cariboo’s own Socred MLA of the time, the well respected Alex Fraser who had been Minister of Highways for many years and after whom the Alex Fraser bridge in the lower mainland is now named in fond remembrance.

Rafe told a little story about how when in cabinet meetings theywould try to guage public approval of their policies by media comments but that when Bill Bennett really wanted to know how the public were taking to their policies he’d always turn to Alex Fraser and say, “Alex, now what are the folks in “Queznelly” saying about all of this?” Alex would then inform them that they thought if was just a “bunch of bs” and that would settle the question then and there.

In some respects that is how Rafe proceeded in describing the selling out of the province’s rivers and streams and the people’s collective ownership of public utilities such as BC Hydro. He dispensed with all the bs that CanWest media, the Liberal government and the pseudo-”green” organizations are telling the people of the province and got down to the nuts and bolts of what is really taking place. It wasn’t a pretty picture.

“The massive destruction of our environment and the slow but sure death of BC Hydro have been planned and are being implemented without any opportunity for the public to be heard.”

“Why the lack of real consultation?”

“Where’s the proof that we need more power and, if we do, are there alternatives?”

“Experts tell us — so does BC Hydro, for that matter — that with conservation, upgrading present facilities and adding generators on existing dams plus taking back the power we’re entitled to under the Columbia River Treaty, we have no need for many years for more power. So why are going down the privatization route?”

“Why is BC Hydro not permitted to create any new power?”

“Why are we giving away to large corporations the hundreds of millions of dollars BC Hydro puts into the public purse every year to help with schools, hospitals and the like?”

“Why is BC Hydro forced by the government to enter contracts for energy with private producers which cost Hydro more than they can sell it for — buy high, sell low is a strange policy especially for a capitalist government!”

“Why are we approving intermittent power, which only can be produced during the spring run-off?”

“What will be the effect of NAFTA? Will it mean that any American company with rights on a river has all rights, including the right to export it?”

“Will it mean that as long as the American company uses the river, it can ignore the time limit in the lease? The answer to each is probably “yes.””

“Why are we disabling BC Hydro so that it must go broke under the proposed policy?”

All these explosive questions and more were given to the crowd of listeners who sat attentive throughout the whole presentation.

Photo credit: WCWC

The final speaker was Joe Foy of WCWC and he proceeded to pull the plug on privatization plans of the Liberal government. Speaking clearly and forcefully and with extreme knowledge and awareness of the various projects already on the go throughout the province, Joe assured the audience that these so-called “little mom and pop” power projects as the government likes to label them are anything but little and anything but benign when it comes to the extreme destruction of the natural environment and the fish and wildlife that will result from their construction. Using examples such as the Pitt River Project in the lower mainland Foy went on to explain how this environmentally friendly little private power venture would entail constructing close to 40 kilometers of pipelines and river and stream diversions which would reduce the levels of the free flowing waterways by up to 90% and that coupled with power lines and roadways criss-crossing throughout what is now virtually pristine wilderness areas.

In graphic detail and in cogent, convincing arguments Joe went on to expose the absolute insanity and irresponsibility of the Liberal government in determining in secret, private discussions with corporate interests this monumental scheme to steal from under the nose of an otherwise ill- and mis-informed public, the fundamental sources of the province’s wealth and future. When he was finished speaking the audience acknowledged his efforts with a rousing round of sustained applause.

Following the speakers’ presentations there was ample time given over to questions from the audience. One of the first persons to speak was a Chief from the Chilcotin who used the occasion of the meeting to further enlighten listeners as to the problems the First Nations people of the Nemaiah Valley were facing with a similar project by Taseko Mines which was threatening to destroy Fish Lake one of the water bodies the water in their indigenous territories. While it was slightly off topic in terms of the purpose of the meeting the speakers listened attentively to what the Chief had to say and were in full support of his position. To the credit of the Western Canada Wilderness Committee Joe Foy publicly stated, “We’d love to join you at Fish Lake.” He told the Chief that all they had to do was invite WCWC to lend their support and the environmental group would be there within days fully committed to helping the Chilcotin people in any way possible.

Another inquisitive listen asked Rafe Mair why it was that so many of the public were unaware of the issue and how come the mainstream media wasn’t drawing more attention to the subject. That brought a rather grimaced grin to the face of the elder Mair and he proceeded to give the Asper-controlled CanWest corporation a well-deserved tongue lashing pointing out that they have done nothing in terms of bringing this issue to the public’s attention and in fact everything to keep it hush hush or else misinformed by only presenting the government and corporate propaganda and those so-called “green” environmental lobbyists who have sold out and are now capitalizing on the issue by giving their tacit consent to the Liberal’s scheme. With the Province, the Vancouver Sun and the Victoria Times-Colonist all mum on the subject of selling off BCs public resources there’s little way for the public to know what is truly being implemented. That said, Rafe went on to tell the audience that they should visit the websites of those non-profit groups who were giving the rest of the story on this issue and also that they should write letters to their editors and to their MLAs and send information out to whatever lists and groups that people might be connected to on the internet. If the mainstream wasn’t going to cover the whole story then the alternative media and the people themselves could spread the word via the net.

The meeting ended at 9 pm as scheduled and the audience gave the presenters a long and hearty round of applause for having empowered them with new and vital information with which to deal with the problem. The final bonus of course for all of those who had sacrificed their time and left their televisions to attend the meeting was the announcement that the Canucks had been victorious!

Such is life in the Cariboo!
————

Arthur Topham is the publisher and editor of http://www.radicalpress.com an alternative, online news site located in central BC and in operation since 1998. He can be reached at radical@radicalpress.com .

Digging Up Trouble:
“Prosperity” Gold and the ongoing struggle to stop open pit mining in traditional Chilcotin territories.

This Notice once stood at the entrance into Nemiah Territory just after crossing the Chilcotin River.
______________________________________________________________________

[Editor’s Note: It seems like only yesterday that I recall putting together a two page article on the issue covered in this post but as I look back through the archives of The Radical, my once hard copy newspaper which first carried the story, I realize that it came out September of 1998 in Vol. 1, No.4. The headlines for the story originally read:

DIGGING UP TROUBLE
There’s something fishy going on in Nemiah Territory

In my introduction to the article I had written, “There is an area of rugged beauty and grandeur that exists in the Chilcotin region of British Columbia which Terry Glavin, in his book, Nemiah, referred to as “The Unconquered Country”. It is the traditional territory of the first people who inhabited the lands surrounding Chilko Lake, one of the most pristine and sacred spots left upon this ravaged planet. They are known in their own tongue as the Tsilhqot’in People of Xeni and to the rest of the world as as the Nemiah Valley Indian Band.

In August of 1989 the People of Xeni had published a document called The Nemiah Declaration. It contained eight Articles stating that within their defined territory known as the Nemiah Aboriginal Wilderness Preserve:

1.    There shall be no commercial logging. Only local cutting of trees for our own needs, i.e. firewood, housing, fencing, native uses, etc.

2.    There shall be no mining or mining explorations.

3.    There shall be no commercial road building.

4.    All-terrain vehicles and skidoos shall only be permitted for trapping purposes.

5.    There shall be no flooding or dam construction on Chilko, Taseko and Tatlayoko Lakes.

6.    This is the spiritual and economic homeland of our people. We will continue in perpetuity: a) to have and exercise our traditional rights of hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, and natural resources; b) to carry on our traditional ranching way of life; c) to practice our traditional native medicine, religion, sacred and spiritual ways.

7.    That we are prepared to SHARE our Nemiah Aboriginal Wilderness Preserve with non-natives in the following ways: a) with our permission visitors may come and view and photograph our beautiful land; b) we will issue permits, subject to our conservation rules, for hunting and fishing within our Preserve; c) the respectful use of our Preserve by canoeists, hikers, light campers and other visitors is encouraged, subject to our system of permits.

8.    We are prepared to enforce and defend our Aboriginal rights in any way we are able.

Prior to and since this declaration was made, the Nemiah people have been constantly dealing with goverments and private interests who deem it to be their inalienable right to exploit the natural resources of this incredible territory for purposes of monetary gain. If it’s not the forest giants trying to clearcut the virgin old-growth timber then it’s the large mining consortiums eager to rip and tear the mountains apart in their unquenchable thirst for more gold.

It’s an old story, one that has many parallels…. I will assume readers will get the picture without repeating the whole original introduction.

This incident, which will be further explained in the introduction and article, sent to www.RadicalPress.com by Carmen Núñez and her husband Blaine will show that the battle to protect the sacred waters and land of the Tsilhqot’in Xeni is still not over even after 9 years of resistance. Please read through the thoughts and ideas presented by these two concerned people and do what you can to spread the word about what they are offering to the public. Ed.]

INTRODUCTION:

By Carmen Núñez

April 19, 2009

Hello everyone.  Respectful and well-meaning greetings to you all.

I have some texts to share.

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Splitting the Sky Arrested at Bush Protest in Calgary

___________________________________________

[Editor’s Note: I received an email from Splitting the Sky’s wife Sandra Bruderer on Tuesday, March 17th informing me that he had called her at 11:44 am to say he’d been arrested by Calgary police and was in jail. As Sandra said, “He was arrested this morning in Calgary for trying to break the police line and arrest former President George Bush for war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

He told his wife that the police could hold him for up to 24 hours.

She further stated, “There are people down there trying to get him released. One of them just called me to say that they have been told that Dac has been released but they don’t know where. They don’t see him and none of us have heard from him since. So we don’t believe that he has been released. The Calgary police is saying that he has been released but he hasn’t.

Tony [Hall] just called back to say that Dac is still in jail there as someone has been in to see him. He is being held till tomorrow and is being charged with assault. Dac’s lawyer Ramsey Clark has been notified. Dac said there were lots of cameras down there and something should be on the Calgary news tonight.

Arrest Bush!!”]

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Politics/2009/03/17/pf-8783241.html

March 17, 2009
Protesters greet Bush in Calgary
By THE CANADIAN PRESS

George W. Bush will discuss his eight years in the Oval Office when he visits Calgary, Alta., Tuesday

CALGARY — The rage on the man’s face was evident as he berated police officers preventing him from entering the building where former U.S. president George W. Bush was making a speech Tuesday.

“There is a war criminal upstairs that has committed murder,” screamed the man, who identified himself only as Splitting the Sky. “If I try to get in there you will arrest me. What is wrong with you?

“I am going in there and make a citizen’s arrest,” he said as he attempt to push past police. “Arrest George Bush. Arrest George Bush.”

A few minutes later he was handcuffed and hustled past a long line of Calgary’s business elite waiting to get inside the Telus Convention Centre.

An unflattering photo of Splitting the Sky attempting to break through police lines outside the Telus Convention Centre in Calgary Tuesday March 17th to make a citizens arrest of War Criminal George W. Bush. He was arrested soon after.

__________________________________________________________________________
Protest organizers say at least four demonstrators were arrested at Tuesday’s event.

About 60 Calgary police officers were on duty outside to control between 200 and 300 people carrying signs that read “No to U.S. Crimes Against Humanity,” “Indict Bush For War Crimes” and “Canada Is Not Bush Country.”

Another sign read “Shoe Him The Door” — a reference to the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoe at Bush during a news conference in Baghdad in December.

Two Calgary men showed up at the demonstration to support the former U.S. president. Their signs read “The World Is Safer Because of George W. Bush.”

“Thank you, George Bush. Thank you, George Bush,” they chanted.

“He doesn’t sit down and negotiate with terrorists,” shouted one of the men, who identified himself as Merle.

“Try doing this in Cuba,” he said as he pointed to the jeering protesters.

There were shoes everywhere during the protest. A young woman wearing a hood, orange jumpsuit and a name tag that said “Club Gitmo” was pulling a shoe cannon along with a target festooned with pictures of Bush.

An obviously amused police officer told her to leave.

Some of those opposed to Bush’s visit have said he should be arrested as a war criminal because of alleged torture at military prisons in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay.

A protester chants slogans outside the venue where former U.S. President

George Bush was invited to speak to a crowd of Calgary business people on

Tuesday, March 17, 2009. (Jeff McIntosh / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

_____________________________________________________
Tuesday’s speech was one of the first public appearances Bush has made since leaving the presidency in January with a dismal approval rating and much of the blame for his country’s collapsing economy. The speech was closed to the media.

“It’s not too late to turn back. Walk away,” the demonstrators yelled to some of the 1,500 guests invited to hear Bush speak to the Calgary Chamber of Commerce.

A couple of hundred people lined up early to go through a special security screening room before entering the hall where Bush was speaking.

A few said the former president has to take some of the responsibility for what has happened in the United States, but also has the right to talk about his administration.

————————–

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090317/Bush_calgary_090317/20090317?hub=TopStories
Protesters greet George Bush in Calgary

Tue. Mar. 17 2009 8:08 PM ET

The Canadian Press

CALGARY – George W. Bush wooed a packed crowd at a private luncheon in Calgary with his trademark folksy charm, while hundreds of protesters outside hurled insults and shoes at the former U.S. president’s image.

Former U.S. president George W. Bush, left, speaks with former Canadian

ambassador to the United States Frank McKenna at an invitation-only event

on Tuesday, March 17, 2009 in Calgary. (AP / TinePublic, Ewan Nicholson)

______________________________________________________
Four demonstrators were arrested outside the downtown Calgary convention centre where Bush spoke for one of the first times since leaving office in January. At the time, he had a dismal approval rating and was blamed for his country’s collapsing economy.

“There is a war criminal upstairs that has committed murder,” screamed one man, who identified himself only as Splits the Sky. “If I try to get in there you will arrest me. What is wrong with you?”

Bush’s affable public persona, subdued by widespread criticism of his administration near the end of his time as president, was front and centre as he explained his eight years in the Oval Office.

In his 35-minute speech, he drew ties between his childhood in rural Texas and life in rural Alberta, including the common binds of community and family.

Bush poked fun at himself, but also grew serious when talking about Canada’s role in providing the U.S. with a secure source of energy.

He also admitted his administration spent its final days “bailing water” trying to deal with the financial crisis, and said while there’s no easy answer going forward, more government involvement is not the solution.

The event was closed to the media, but many of the 1,500 people who paid $400 a ticket to hear Bush speak stopped to offer their impressions. Few seemed annoyed by the fact the event started an hour and a half late due to tight security screening.

“He was very, very candid. He was witty and witty in a way that you would have to be intelligent to be that witty,” said Calgary Tory MP Lee Richardson.

“He seemed to have a remarkable grasp of events and issues that just didn’t come through as president.”

Brenda Kenny, president of the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association, said Bush emphasized the interconnected, open markets that tie Canada and the U.S. together.

Peter Yates, a lawyer who has dual citizenship and voted against Bush in 2004, admitted the former president is very personable and gave an entertaining speech.

“My feelings are still the same — he’s a folksy affable guy but I don’t agree with his policies.”

Most of the 400 protesters waiting outside showed their negative feelings for Bush.

Some of those opposed to Bush’s visit have suggested he should be arrested as a war criminal because of alleged torture at military prisons in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay. Many yelled at police officers for not arresting Bush on the spot.

Signs read “No to U.S. Crimes Against Humanity,” “Indict Bush For War Crimes” and “Canada Is Not Bush Country, as well as “Shoe Him The Door” — a reference to the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoe at Bush during a news conference in Baghdad in December.

A Protest sign that should have read: “Go To Jail Bush!!!”

___________________________________________________________
Two men showed up to support Bush, however. Their signs read “The World Is Safer Because of George W. Bush.”

“Thank you, George Bush. Thank you, George Bush,” they chanted.

The former president’s speech almost exactly marks six years since the invasion of Iraq, said organizer Peggy Askin, and it’s not OK to forget what happened in the ensuing years.

“He shouldn’t be able to go anywhere in the world and just present himself as a private citizen,” she said. “We do not have any use for bringing war criminals into this country. It’s an affront.”

One businessman in the audience said Bush implied he had some regrets from his time in office, although he didn’t give specifics.

“He admitted that maybe there were some things he could have done differently, but overall he made some sense with the reasons for doing it,” said George Fink, CEO of Bonterra Oil and Gas.

The 43rd president of the United States defended his reasons for military action in Iraq and Afghanistan, Fink said.

“He said if we were in his boots in 9-11, a short time after he got in, there was a big demand to do something, and he had to react and he reacted.”

Kenny said Bush seemed eager to explain his views, and he said he plans to write a book to show what happened during eight very challenging years.

“I wouldn’t say apologetic, I would say acknowledging that there was not always agreement and, frankly, just accepting that as a fact.”

The Globe and Mail reported on its website that besides defending his decision to invade Iraq, Bush said “risk takers,” not government, will solve the world recession and that he had positive things to say about current president Barack Obama.

“I love my country more than politics,” Bush said.

“He deserves my silence and if he wants my help he can pick up the phone and call me.”

On the economy, Bush even though he is a “free market guy,” he had to step in with a bail-out package in the waning days of his administration.

But he said the government can’t do it alone.

“It’s the risk takers, not the government, that is going to pull us out of this recession,” he said.

In a question and answer session, Bush defended the invasion of Iraq and the toppling of Saddam Hussein.

“The world is better off and the Iraqi people are better off without Saddam, no ifs, ands or buts,” he said.

There were shoes everywhere during the protest. A young woman wearing a hood, orange jumpsuit and a name tag that said “Club Gitmo” was pulling a shoe cannon along with a target festooned with pictures of Bush.

Protesters flung projectile footwear from the device at the massive photo of a smiling Bush, while others jeered and tossed sandals and boots by hand.

One of the arrested protesters was ticketed and released, said police. Three others were charged with more serious offences — one with breach of the peace and two with obstructing a police officer and resisting arrest.

Seventy-nine police officers were involved, but that included traffic members who closed off intersections for the president’s motorcade.

———–

THE ARROW LAKES INDIANS ARE RECOVERING FROM EXTINCTION

New Book Tells of a People Who Were Forgotten Until Their Ancestors Were Taken Away

Local author and artist Cliff Woffenden’s latest book is now published. The title Ghost Peoples is the story of the Arrow Lakes Indians. Cliff wrote this book to clear up the many misunderstandings about these people and their place in local and Canadian history.

In 1956 the Canadian government declared the Arrow Lakes Indian Band extinct. There was only one problem - they were still alive. But the government was about to begin negotiations with the USA for the Columbia River Treaty that would dam the Columbia and create a reservoir stretching from Castlegar in the south to Revelstoke in the north. This two hundred kilometer long lake would eventually wipe out all archaeological traces of a culture that had endured for over five thousand years.

To complicate matters, just when the last visible vestiges of their culture were disappearing from the landscape, the people came back to their home to request the return of the remains of their ancestors that were dug up by archaeologists and carted off to museums.

An interesting dilemma for the government. A rediscovery of a peoples’ identity. A clash between two worldviews. The return of the Sinixt Peoples has caused both elation and fear among members of the dominant society. Their return signals the end to the vacuum in our history and on our landscape. It also brings up the insecurities of a society that seems to fear the truth.

Ghost Peoples is the story of the Sinixt: their origins, their culture, their history and their present situation. This story is not one of blame but one that hopes to shine a light on a darkness that pervades our history so that it can be reconciled. Our story is not complete without the truth of our prehistory; our landscape is barren without its original inhabitants.

Ghost Peoples is published by Howling Moon Productions of Nakusp, B.C. CANADA

CLIFF WOFFENDEN - AUTHOR/ARTIST

_________________________________

Contact information: Cliff Woffenden

91 4th Ave NW,

Box 214, Nakusp, B.C. V0G 1R0

250-265-0122

woffend@telus.net
———–

Cliff has been researching the story of the Sinixt people for two decades and lives in Nakusp, B.C. He is available for comment at 250-265-0122 or woffend@telus.net

http://www.mohawknationnews.com/news/singlenews.php?en=en&layout=mnn&newsnr=679&backurl=%2Fnews%2Fnews3.php%3Flang%3Den%26layout%3Dmnn%26sortorder%3D0&srcscript=/news/news3.php  
Canada’s obscene part in Gaza atrocities
THE RULE OF WHAT LAW? – WEAPONS NEED TO BE BURIED
January 8, 2009

MNN. Jan 7, 2008. How many Palestinian infants, toddlers, children and schools have been bombed by the criminals in charge of Israeli forces in the last few days? What law are they following? An eye for an eye! A tooth for a tooth! This is primitive barbarity. The Israelis claim if they kill enough Palestinians, Hamas will stop sending in rockets. Conveniently overlooked is the fact that Israelis have built a wall around Gaza to control every Palestinian and everything that comes in and out of the ghetto to deliberately force the people into desperation. Also forgotten is that parts of the new smart bomb, GBU 39, designed for urban warfare, is made in Canadian facilities with the help of government tax breaks and Canada Pension Plan investments. This is obscene!

Gaza is occupied Palestinian territory. The Israelis and Americans toppled the democratically elected Hamas government because it couldn’t control them. The war is being waged on civilians who have no arms nor anywhere to hide. How noble is it for heavily armed Israelis to shoot fish in a rain barrel? The Palestinians have a right to live. They can only lob their homemade rockets into Israel. The Israelis attack them with illegal weapons. All weapons are illegal. Manufacturers should be prosecuted. The weapons collected and buried.

The United Nations is looking more like a bogus organization that serves the interests of a handful of war mongers who are trying to profit by setting up a New World Order. This is where the bankers and war mongers are the bosses and we are supposed to be their slaves. We fear the UN is setting up an “international department of Indian affairs” to control all indigenous peoples and resources worldwide.

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BEWARE “RAHNATAKIAS” –  CURE FOR OBAMA FEVER IS “INDIAN” HISTORY

MNN.  Jan. 21, 2009.  U.S. President Barack Obama slipped a subtle comment into his inaugural “mind control” speech on January 20th.   When Obama defined America as a nation of “Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus and non-believers”, he deliberately left out Indigenous peoples.  We have our value systems.  We have our knowledge.  He sneaked in the intention to ignore us when he said that “the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve”.  To Americans the word “tribe” means the Ongwehonwe.  We are the caretakers and trustees of the lands and resources of the world which the New World Order NWO or One World “Government” must steal to control the world.  Our role puts us squarely in the path of this grand scheme of a few bankers, the governments they control and their deadly enforcement agencies.

Colonial “band or tribal councils” will be put in charge of indigenous people where possible such as Iraq and Afghanistan.  Other Indigenous peoples will be “eliminated” or ignored.  It looks like this program will be run by the United Nations “International Department of Indian Affairs” on behalf of the NWO war mongers.

Obama’s main message is, “If you don’t do it the American way, we will crush you”.  It is all the more “devious” because it’s coming in this velvet glove that claims that it’s being done in a spirit of cooperation.  The real message is, “we will defeat you”.  A new disease is being spread called “Obama fever”.  The symptoms are flag waving, millions gathering and clapping like a bunch of trained seals and hypnotic sectarian rapping.  O-Ba-Ma, O-Ba-Ma!  The following are comments by “Native Pride” and MNN Mohawk Nation News:

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[Editor’s Note: A word of explanation as to why this article is now being posted on the site. It was a feature article that first appeared in the Jan/Feb 2001 edition of Canadian Dimension, a “left” magazine located in Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada. The reason for re-publishing it now is because it is relevant to an understanding of how the so-called political “Left” in Canada is controlled by the very same Zionist forces who are also in control of the Canada’s political “Right” wing parties in this country.

On one hand (or claw, if you prefer ) we have the Harper Conservatives and on the other the Zionist Jew Ignatieff Liberals along with their supposedly “socialist”, crypto-Zionist NDP and Bloc appendages.

By all outward appearances we have an ideological dichotomy but in actuality we have but two arms or tentacles stretching forth from the cephalopod source of all our discontent – political Zionism.

In order to show how this scenario unfolds in Canada it will be necessary to use this article as an example of how the Zionists infiltrate and eventually subordinate each and every movement in Canada that shows tendencies challenging to the Zionist ideology or critical of the ’state’ of Israel.

The article in question cannot be found by googling it and one cannot find it on the Canadian Dimension website. It’s fallen into the sink-hole of non-history because it no longer is useful to those who originally wrote and published it.  I have it here mainly for reference as it will be useful in further discussions.]

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DRY ROT: The Far Right Targets the Left

by Will Offley

Jan/Fed 2001 Vol. 35 No. 1
Canadian Dimension Magazine

Like most huge events in history, the fall of the Berlin Wall shook our world. In doing so it also changed the ground rules of politics.

Whether you call it paradigm shift or merely the temporary triumph of neoliberalism, the dust from the Wall’s collapse has clouded our vision for nearly a decade. Without exception, currents of the Left around the world have found themselves disoriented and scrambling to create a new vision and a new political framework within which to organize and to fight. This has not only been true for the traditional Communist parties, but for the non-Stalinist and anti-Stalinist Left as well.

The left has not yet been able to reconstitute a coherent vision of the new world we want to see issue from the ashes of the old, nor have we articulated the strategy or programme or organizations necessary to make that happen.  As a result, radical left politics have remained largely confined to “anti” politics for a decade or more: anticorporate, anti-globalization, anticapitalist.  We have remained locked down behind the relatively easy bulwark of what we’re against, rather than venturing out into the exposed and more dangerous terrain of defining what we’re for.  In addition, in some sectors there have been marked tendencies to view the capitalist system through the lens of conspiracism and irrationality, where plots and conspiracies replace class interests and mass politics as the motor forces of human society.

This weakening of its culture, institutions and politics have rendered some sectors of the broad left vulnerable to the conscious and organized predation being carried out in Canada by a specific current of the far right. In the U.S. this dates back as far as the Gulf War, where neo-fascist currents like the Larouche organization and Spotlight sought to attach themselves to the movement against the war.

Is the Canadian left immune from this sort of targeting?  No.

Is the situation any different now, a decade later?  Yes and no.

Yes, because Seattle has led to Washington, and from there to Philadelphia and L.A. and Windsor and Prague.  Quebec will be next, and it won’t be the end.  The rise of the struggle in the streets against globalization marks the end of ten years of demoralization and confusion.

There is a new dynamism and a new optimism, and if the path ahead is only partially visible, at least we’re collectively underway again.

However, one has only to look at Seattle to see that the growth of far right currents within and alongside the left and progressive movements has increased visibly over the decade.  There are also indicators that point to a change – during the Gulf War, the far right was active on the fringes, but by Seattle it seemed to be active at the very centre of things.  While the young militants faced down the cops and the gas in downtown Seattle, on a leadership level elements of that movement were being increasingly compromised politically by a de facto convergence between Ralph Nader and the most important far-right leader in the United States, the semi-fascist Pat Buchanan.  Five months later during the April 16th mobilizations in Washington, Buchanan shared a stage with Teamster leader Jimmy Hoffa Jr. as an invited guest of the AFL-CIO.

Antiglobalist politics are not the exclusive preserve of the left. Though it springs from different roots, Buchanan’s opposition to globalization and free trade is as genuine as ours.  He just takes it in a direction diametrically opposed to everything else we stand for – protectionism, racism, exclusion.  Not only that, there have been plenty of examples this century to show the far right can be anti-corporate too.

Throughout the 1920’s Hitler’s Nazi Party contained a minority current led by Gregor and Otto Strasser that was inalterably opposed to the German trusts… as well as the Jews, the Communists, Social Democrats, gays and lesbians, unions, etc.

Nor is the far right confined solely to the hardcore neo-Nazism of the Heritage Front or the Northern Hammerskins.  It’s relatively easy to ward off the interventions of groups that put swastikas on their literature. It’s considerably more difficult when the politics of the groups in question are cloaked in progressive rhetoric and hidden behind coded language. Between Wolfgang Droege and Stockwell Day there is a whole swamp of currents and organizations – conspiracist, anti-Semitic, some with hidden fascist agendas, some totalitarian, some merely far right.

Some of these are targeting the left.  There is reason to be concerned.
Made for Each Other

Although they’re based at different ends of the country, they seem to be made for each other.

The Radical is a monthly tabloid published in Quesnel, B.C. since June 1998 by Arthur Topham, a self-described anarchist who regards himself as “a natural, sovereign and unique critter who doesn’t need any centralized forms of authority telling me how to run my life.”

Discourse and Disclosure is a more irregularly-published bimonthly, also a tabloid.  It has been put out by editor Sue Potvin since May 1996. Potvin, formerly a resident of Ottawa, now resides in Greenwood, Nova Scotia. Potvin is considerably less forthcoming about herself than is Topham.

Both publications share common positions on many different issues.  Both are opposed to globalization, the WTO, the MAI, NAFTA, the World Bank, the IMF, and now to the FTAA.  Both are opposed to the increasing corporate domination of the economy and most other sectors of everyday life.  Both have editorially supported the mobilizations against globalization, from Seattle to Prague.  Both have condemned NATO, and the West’s aggression against Yugoslavia.  Both oppose clearcutting and support many environmental causes.  Both are strongly supportive of Canadian nationalism.  Both have even run articles endorsing gay and lesbian rights, and have been outspoken in support of native struggles from Ipperwash to Gustafsen Lake. When you realize that each has survived hand-to-mouth for years, with very shaky finances, the announcement in the November 2000 issues of each publication that they were moving towards appearing as a joint publication makes a whole lot of sense.  The Radical is distributed widely throughout the hinterland of B.C; Discourse and Disclosure appears to have a broader national distribution.  Both share a number of regular contributors.  To move toward joint publication is a completely logical step in extending the reach of two papers which have essentially identical editorial approaches.

In fact, the similarities go far deeper, but this requires you to get out a fine-tooth comb and start a much closer examination of both publications.  Both papers are riddled with conspiracy theorists.  Both have supported the politics of David Icke, the new age anti-Semite who argues the world is being run by a conspiracy of blood-drinking lizards. Both regularly feature and support the activities of the far-right Detax movement.  Both exhibit numerous links to various prominent anti-Semites, militia supporters and white supremacists.  And because of these similarities both have become important vehicles in English Canada for the politics of the third position current of Canada’s far right, third position because this current of the right rejects capitalism AND Marxism.

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[Editor’s Note: This article is dated and appears here simply because the forum on which it was originally posted was destroyed by the malicious machinations of the Zionist B’nai Brith Canada censors. I’m posting it here for posterity and for future reference.]

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The Gitxsan: Betrayal of a Nation
by Arthur Topham
Jan. 27/2004

“We know that justice and generosity can flourish only in an atmosphere of trust. For if individuals and minorities do not feel protected against the possibility of the tyranny of the majority, if French-speaking Canadians or native peoples or new Canadians do not feel they will be treated with justice, it is useless to ask them to open their hearts and minds to their fellow Canadians.” - Pierre Trudeau, April 17, 1982

The irony contained in the Globe & Mail’s January 27, 04 front page story “PM’s Throne Speech has native focus”, I’m sure was not lost on the 50 Hereditary Chiefs of the Gitxsan Nation and their 5000 band members living in the north-western region of central British Columbia.

Just weeks ago, on the 14th of January, this same group of frustrated, disillusioned, yet determined people, filed a lengthy and controversial Complaint to the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) and the federal Minister of Justice, Mr. Irwin Cotler citing a shocking list of grievances against an array of highly prominent B.C. judges, lawyers, law firms, politicians and corporations all linked to a host of crimes ranging from misconduct to deceit, bribery, corruption, obstruction of justice and complicity, the sum of which has devastated and endangered the 33,000 square kilometre area of their traditional lands.

First and foremost of the complaints is the conduct of B.C.’s Supreme Court Chief Justice Donald J. Brenner while presiding over the “restructuring” proceedings related to a large forest products company in Prince Rupert, B.C.; one in which the provincial government held controlling interest and declining revenues. That initial example, shown in great detail within the lengthy submission, exemplified at the onset the serious nature of the many other accusations of fault contained within the document, illustrating once again the seemingly endless challenges which have plagued the treaty process in B.C. for decades.

Readers may recall that it was this same First Nation that captured headlines across the country during the latter part of the Mulroney era when what the Claimants describe as “arguably the most important case in Canadian jurisprudence” the Gitxsan Wet’suwet’en land claims trial, known as Delgamuukw, finally concluded with judgment on March 8, 1991, after 374 protracted court days stretching over a three year period.

According to Ron Jackson and Robert Jackson, the two signatories of the Complaint representing the 50 Hereditary Gitxsan Chiefs and their people, the original Delgamuukw trial was a staggeringly complex and insidious deception that saw figures from all levels of government, the judiciary, industry and the media conspiring to foist upon the general public, and specifically the Gitxsan people themselves, a horrendous ‘legal’ hoax which would allow the B.C. government to further augment its power over the traditional territories of the Gitxsan Wet’suwet’en for the benefit of all vested interests except the indigenous inhabitants of the region themselves.
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An Alaska Native speaks out on Palin, Oil, and Alaska*

By Evon Peter
evonpeter@mac. com
Sept. 9, 2008
My name is Evon Peter; I am a former Chief of the Neetsaii Gwich’in tribe from Arctic Village, Alaska and the current Executive Director of Native Movement. My organization provides culturally based leadership development through offices in Alaska and Arizona. My wife, who is Navajo, and I have been based out of Flagstaff, Arizona for the past few years, although I travel home to Alaska in support of our initiatives there as well. It is interesting to me that my wife and I find ourselves as Indigenous people from the two states where McCain and Palin originate in their leadership.

I am writing this letter to raise awareness about the ongoing colonization and violation of human rights being carried out against Alaska Native peoples in the name of unsustainable progress, with a particular emphasis on the role of Sarah Palin and the Republican leadership. My hope is that it helps to elevate truth about the nature of Alaskan politics in relation to Alaska Native peoples and that it lays a framework for our path to justice.

Ever since the Russian claim to Alaska and the subsequent sale to the United States through the Treaty of Cession in 1867, the attitude and treatment towards Alaska Native peoples has been fairly consistent. We were initially referred to as less than human “uncivilized tribes”, so we were excluded from any dialogues and decisions regarding our lands, lives, and status. The dominating attitude within the Unites States at the time was called Manifest Destiny; that God had given Americans this great land to take from the Indians because they were non-Christian and incapable of self-government. Over the years since that time, this framework for relating to Alaska Native peoples has become entrenched in the United States legislative and legal systems in an ongoing direct violation of our human rights.

What does this mean? Allow me to share an analogy. If a group of people were to arrive in your city and tell you their people had made laws, among which were:

1. What were once your home and land now belong to them (although you could live in the garage or backyard)

2. Forced you to send your children to boarding schools to learn their language and be acculturated into their ways with leaders who touted “Kill the American, save the man” (based on the original statement made by US Captain Richard H. Pratt in regards to Native American education “Kill the Indian, save the man.”)

3. Supported missionaries and government agents to forcefully (for example, with poisons placed on the tongues of your children and withheld vaccines) convince you that your Jesus, Buddha, Torah, or Mohammed was actually an agent of evil and that salvation in the afterlife could only be found through believing otherwise

4. Made it illegal for you to continue to do your job to support your family, except under strict oversight and through extensive regulation

5. Made it illegal for you to own any land or run a business as an individual and did not allow you to participate in any form of their government, which controlled your life (voting or otherwise)

How would this make you feel? What if you also knew that if you were to retaliate, that you would be swiftly killed or incarcerated? How long do you think it would take for you to forget or would you be sure to share this history with your children with the hope that justice could one day prevail for your descendents? And most importantly to our conversation, how American does this sound to you?

To put this into perspective, my grandfather who helped to raise me in Arctic Village was born in 1904, just thirty-seven years after the United States laid claim to Alaska. If my grandfather had unjustly stolen your grandfathers home and I was still living in the house and watching you live outdoors, would you feel a change was in order? Congress unilaterally passed most of the major US legislation that affect our people in my grandfathers’ lifetime. There has never been a Treaty between Alaska Native Peoples and the United States over these injustices. Each time that Alaska Native people stand up for our rights, the US responds with token shifts in its laws and policies to appease the building discontent, yet avoiding the underlying injustice that I believe can be resolved if leadership in the United States would be willing to acknowledge the underlying injustice of its control over Alaska Native peoples, our lands, and our ways of life.

United States legal history in relation to Alaska Natives has been based on one major platform - minimize the potential for Alaska Native people to regain control of their lives, lands, and resources and maximize benefit to the Unites States government and its corporations. While the rest of the world, following World War II, was seeking to return African and European Nations to their rightful owners, the United States pushed in the opposite direction by pulling the then Territory of Alaska out of the United Nations dialogues and pushing for Statehood into the Union. Why is it that Alaska Native Nations are still perceived as being incapable of governing our own lands, lives, and resources differently than African, Asian, and European nations?

Let me get specific about what is at stake and how this relates to Palin and the Republican leadership in Alaska and across this country. To this day, Alaska Native peoples are among the only Indigenous peoples in all of North America whose Indigenous Hunting and Fishing Rights have been extinguished by federal legislation and yet we are the most dependent people on this way of life. Most of our villages have no roads that connect them to cities; many live with poverty level incomes, and all rely to varying degrees on traditional hunting, fishing, and harvesting for survival. This has become known as the debate on Alaska Native Subsistence.

As Alaska Governor, Palin has continued the path of her predecessor Frank Murkowski in challenging attempts by Alaska Native people to regain their human right to their traditional way of life through subsistence.

The same piece of unilateral federal legislation, known as the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) of 1971, that extinguished our hunting and fishing rights, also extinguished all federal Alaska Native land claims and my Tribe’s reservation status. In the continental United States, this sort of legislation is referred to as ‘termination legislation’ because it takes the rights of self-government away from Tribes. It is based in the same age-old idea that we are not capable of governing our people, lands, and resources. To justify these terminations, ANCSA also created Alaska Native led for profit corporations (which were provided the remaining lands not taken by the government and a one time payment the equivalent of about 1/20th of the annual profits made by corporations in Alaska each year) with a mission of exploiting the land in partnership with the US government and outside corporations. It was a brilliant piece of legislation for the legal termination and cultural assimilation of Alaska Natives under the guise of progress.

Since the passage of ANCSA, political leaders in Alaska, with a few exceptions, have maintained that, as stated by indicted Senator Ted Stevens, “Tribes have never existed in Alaska.” They maintain this position out of fear that the real injustice being carried out upon Alaska Natives may break into mainstream awareness and lead to a re-opening of due treaty dialogues between Alaska Native leaders and the federal government. At the same time the federal government chose to list Alaska Native tribes in the list of federally recognized tribes in 1993. Governor Palin maintains that tribes were federally recognized but that they do not have the same rights as the tribes in the continental United States to sovereignty and self-governance, even to the extent of legally challenging our Tribes rights pursuant to the Indian Child Welfare Act. What good are governments that can’t make decisions concerning their own land and people?

The colonial mentality in and towards Alaska is to exploit the land and resources for profits and power, at the expense of Alaska Native people. Governor Palin reflects this attitude and perspective in her words and leadership. She comes from an area within Alaska that was settled by relocated agricultural families from the continental United States in the second half of the last century. It is striking that a leader from that particular area feels she has a right, considering all of the injustices to Alaska Native people, to offer Alaskan oil and resources in an attempt to solve the national energy crisis at the Republican Convention. Palin also chose not to mention the connection between oil development and global warming, which is wreaking havoc on Alaska Native villages, forcing some to begin the process of relocation at a cost sure to reach into the hundreds of millions.

Our tribes depend on healthy and abundant land and animals for our survival. For example, my people depend on the Porcupine Caribou herd, which migrates into the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge each spring to birth their young. Any disruption and contamination will directly impact the health and capacity for my people to continue to live in a homeland we have been blessed to live in for over 10,000 years. This is the sacrifice Palin offered to the nation. The worst part of it is that there are viable alternatives to addressing the energy crisis in the United States, yet Palin chooses options that very well may result in the extinguishment of some of the last remaining intact ecosystems and original cultures in all of North America. Palin is also promoting off shore oil drilling and increased mining in sensitive areas of Alaska, all of which would have a lifespan of far fewer years than my grandfather walked on this earth and which would not even make a smidgen of an impact on national consumption rates or longer term sustainability. McCain was once a champion of protecting the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and it is sad to see, that with Palin on board, he is no longer vocal and perhaps even giving up on what he believes in to satisfy Palin’s position.

While I have much more to say, this is my current offering to elevate the conversation about what is at stake in Alaska and for Alaska Native peoples. Please share this offering with others and help us to make this an election that brings out honest dialogue. We have an opportunity to bring lasting change, but only if we can be open to hearing the truth about our situations and facing the challenges that arise.

Many thanks to all those who are taking stands for a just and sustainable future for all of our future generations.

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*This essay is a personal reflection and should not be attributed to my tribe or organization.

http://www.mohawknationnews.com

© MNN: Mohawk Nation News. Subscribe–Be Informed–Be Aware
05.03.2008 16:24:43
HOT FLASH! The Infinite “Red-X” discovers “Secret Instruction Manual:Advanced Strategies on Stealing Indigenous Resources”

– TWO DIRTY COLONIAL REPTILES – CHRIS “ODB” REID AND ROBIN “ROTTEN EGG” AITKEN CITED AS SLIMEY “AUTHORITIES”
MNN. Mar. 4, 2008. “All the tricks of the colonists are now revealed”, sayeth the infamous Indigenous sage, Red-X. “It’s a manual on how to cash in on our land and resources”. It was used at Dehcho and it looks like they’re using it at Sharbot Lake too. Here are some of the key hints on their dirty tricks and how to counter them.

Colonial Dirty Trick #1. Call it “democracy” and make sure you keep control. Invite the Indigenous to conferences on “self-governance”. Make sure they go to lots of fancy cocktail parties with open bars, with colonial big-wigs like Michaelle Jean and other “heavies. Give them tiaras to try on and a taste of “life in the fast lane”. Lead them down the garden path. Make sure they’re too drunk to notice they’ve sold out their people.

Colonial Dirty Trick #2. Make sure we are outnumbered three to one at every meeting. Red-X says, “Don’t go to Ottawa , Vancouver or Kingston or any big city. Hold them meetings at home in your tipi, longhouse or your condemned Indian Affairs bungalow with the cracked window panes and asbestos contaminated floors and walls”.

Colonial Dirty Trick #3. Put out colonial law as if it’s Indigenous law. Announce that Canada recognizes the rule of law and affirms “aboriginal” tradition. But ignore Indigenous legal processes. Only look at what counts according to the colonial Supreme Court.

The Red-X says, “Let’s take a look at how two colonial reptiles played out the “life and death” game against our people of the Northwest Territories”. Red-X goes on to reveal the “Colonial Cheat Sheet” used to try to pull the wool over our eyes.

CDT #4. Information is power – the colonists have two control strategies: collect, horde and keep it to themselves. When necessary they make it disappear. The other option is to put out a whole lot of lies, like false history and myth making.

CDT #5. Put some “heavies” at the table. The bigger the title, the longer the resume, the fatter, the better. At the talks with our Dehcho brothers and sisters, the “heavy”, Minister of Indian Affairs, Robert Nault, said, “The signing of these agreements is an acknowledgment of a new relationship between the Deh Cho, Canada and the GNWT”. What he really said was, “I hope I confused you because I’m f—king confused myself.”
Michael Nadli, a sell-out band councillor, said, “We look forward to Phase II to begin substantive negotiations on the more fundamental elements of Deh Cho Governance.” Translation: “I’m being played. They’re making me read a script I don’t understand”.

CDT #6. They try to use hierarchical colonial criteria with them sitting at the top seeing themselves with guns and money in hand. We are supposed to be down there somewhere out of sight. They never come right out. They always beat around the bush.

CDT #7. They design an extreme “offer-concession strategy” to bowl us over if we start kicking up a fuss or raise awkward questions, like, “How’re you gonna clean up your filthy mess?” That’s when they throw the chair back and pull away from the table. We can stop these sleazes even when they threaten to take the “bribe” money with them.

CDT #8. They will walk out if they lose “control”. That’s when you know the whole is falling. Translation: “We ain’t playing with you bad ‘Injuns’ anymore!”

CDT #9. Look for weaknesses. They may even use a “good cop” and a “bad cop” strategy to throw us off balance. We all know there’s no “good cop”. They’re all “bad”. They then threaten illegal injunctions, jail time and law suits. At the January 6, 2008 Kingston meeting “ODB” Reid’s pal, “Algonquin Would-be”, Robert Lovelace, was sent back in to talk to the Mohawks after the “carpetbaggers” walked out in a huff. Would- Be’s job was to side track the Mohawks with his “Cointelpro” charm. The next day these “air punching” carpetbaggers disappeared to a secret hideaway. The Mohawks found them and once again they slithered off into the darkness.

CDT #10. The carpetbaggers don’t like the people you bring along. They will suggest taking your sell-outs into another room to make a deal behind closed doors. ODB Reid was overheard telling “Need-to-be-Algonquin-to-settle-a-phony-land-claim” Lovelace, “The next time we should meet with George White of Frontenac Ventures alone with no lawyers”. They’re trying to make a deal on uranium mining on Haudenosaunee land at Sharbot Lake. When we tried to ask questions, they fled again with their coat tails flapping.

CDT #11. They want the same targets. In the 1990 Mohawk-Oka Crisis at Kanehsatake, we sent in different spokespeople every day. Alex Patterson and Bernard Roy, the negotiators for Quebec and Canada, got spitting mad. Their threats were ignored. They picked up their toys and left. Negotiations broke down.

CDT #12. “Don’t let the colonial agents stuff their side with ‘know-it-alls”. Warns the Red-X, “This does not intimidate us. We just have more foul smell to cut through. Just keep telling them this is all our land, we are sovereign and that they are trespassers”.

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http://thebirdman.org/Index/Jews/Jews-JWAG.html

The War That Dare Not Speak Its Name: The Jewish War Against Gentiles

By John “Birdman” Bryant

Tora! Tora! Tora! –The Japanese war cry during the WWII attack on Pearl Harbor

Torah and Talmud — The most sacred scriptures of Judaism, which are notable for their chauvinism and their many expressions of extreme hatred for gentiles

The last half-century has been witness to one of the most deadly wars in history — a war for the soul of Western civilization. It is deadly not because it is a shooting war — it isn’t, or at least not yet — but rather because it is a war whose purpose is the destruction of Western culture and the genocide of the white race. It is a war ostensibly being waged by the various racial, ethnic and sexual minorities of the planet which are overrunning national boundaries and cultural institutions and are outbreeding and downbreeding the white genome, but — while these groups may supply the front-line troops — the war is being directed and fueled by a single political minority, namely, the supporters of political liberalism, and more specifically by the ethnic group which — itself almost entirely liberal — funds and has significant control over this political minority, to wit, the Jews. This must be qualified, however, by saying that it is not the body of the Jewish people who are waging this war — most Jews, indeed, are probably not aware of it — but rather the ‘head’ which directs this body, namely, the Jewish establishment; that is, the worldwide collection of Jewish organizations which acts in concert to promote liberal/Jewish goals worldwide.

The unique thing about this war — what I shall call the Jewish War Against Gentiles, or JWAG for short — is that it is rarely recognized; and in the few cases where it is recognized, it is rarely spoken of for fear of encountering the ‘usual epithets’ (’racist’, antisemite’, ‘bigot’, etc) and other similar forms of condemnation normally reserved for flat-earthers, conspiracy theorists, pedophiles and other outcasts. This is not really surprising, however — after all, it is the ‘Jewsmedia’ which controls what is regarded as true or false, good or bad, hip or halt; and it is not in the Jewish interest that the war be named (much less discussed), because as long as gentiles cannot name it, they cannot fight back.

But there is another reason the gentiles cannot name this war, and that is because its battles are presented to us as morality plays, with white- hatted Jewish-fueled liberalism contending — not against the white race or Western civilization directly — but rather indirectly against ‘bigotry’, ‘racism’, ‘antisemitism’, ’sexism’, ‘discrimination’, ‘homophobia’, ‘xenophobia’, ‘handicappism’, ‘lookism’, ‘weightism’, and other similar isms, tions, and phobias which represent one of the most amazing collections of alleged evils ever assembled, not merely because no one ever thought of opposing them until recently, but because anyone seriously thinking of championing an opposition to them before the present day would have been regarded as out of his mind.

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[Editor’s Note: First they came for the radical shit-disturbing hippies and then they came for the native sovereigntists and everyone sat on their proverbial asses and said, “I ain’t one of those them!” Then they came for all the rest of the sleeping, apathetic sheep and all they could do was bleeeeeeet until they’d been shoarn and sent to the slaughterhouse. It’s time to get our act together folks and start doing something besides watching and moaning. Write ol’ Ernie an email and ask him what the hell is going on. I’m sure he’d have an answer for you. If you do get one please let us know here at Radical Press. Thanks.]

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Wednesday, January 30, 2008

WHO “CRASHED” MNN WEBSITE? WAS IT HURT FEEEELINGS OVER “NICKNAMES”

Kahentinetha Horn
“orakwa” orakwa@paulcomm.ca

MNNN. Jan. 30, 2008. The gross corruption revealed in “Access to Information” documents from Public Security and Emergency Preparedness Canada and Indian Affairs has not made the front pages of the corporate media. [Dossier No. 1336-A-2006-0034]. Instead they’ve temporarily sabotaged MNN. It appears to now be owned by 1599754 Ontario Limited!! How could this happen? How could we lose ownership of our website without our knowledge or consent. Ernie Hilts, the website host, at 705-429-4792 email ernie@9thdegree.biz won’t answer our calls or emails, that I never gave up ownership of my website. We can’t think of anyone who would have a motivation for doing this.

[“Canada’s ‘Indian Affairs’ financed war machine to attack Mohawks on Jan. 12, 2004” – Jan. 27, 2008].

We know that the Canadian government is riddled with corruption. They aren’t as careful to cover their tracks because they don’t see us as people. They think we are powerless, have no voice and are blind. They have secret meeting about us. We have no rights. They can plan to deprive us or even kill us.

The people written about are objecting to the nicknames we gave them, such as “ambulance chaser” and “turn coat”. They are not denying the factual substance of the information found in the documents we reviewed. None have expressed any concern for those who are suffering from poverty, poor health, inferior education and unemployment because they are withholding or diverting our funds.

None have called for an investigation. No criminal charges have been laid. This proves that Canada does not live by the rule of law. To them, as long as something is authorized by someone higher up, it’s legal even if it’s in blatant violation of their legal mandate set out for them by the laws passed by Parliament.

Back in 1978 when I was working for Indian Affairs in Ottawa, the Assistant Deputy Minister, Cam Mackie, had a Christmas party in his swank spacious office on the 21st floor. No Indians were invited. A fellow non-native employee invited me to go up there. Cam Mackie was walking around wearing a t-shirt with the message, “Let’s have an Indian Affair”. Honest to goodness! It was supposed to be a joke. Just reading it felt like a knife right in my gut. I was terrified for the future of my three little girls. How could I protect them as a single mother and a native woman?

“You are disgusting”, I said and went home to protect my little ones. My fear was real. Indigenous women are still being victimized. 500 are missing and not investigated. Everyone knew that it was open season on young native girls like Betty Osborne who had been raped and killed by four non-native young men. Everyone in the community knew. Nobody did a thing. It went unpunished for almost 20 years.

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[Editor’s Note: When John Graham first was arrested by Canadian authorities I knew that he didn’t have a hope in hell of receiving any justice from Canada’s court system. This so-called cheap imitation of a real justice system is nothing but a clone of the US system which has been infiltrated and controlled by traitorous Zionist elements for countless decades. Canada’s supreme court is no different. It contains at least 50% Zionists in its make up and behind the scenes lay numerous other Zionist lobbyists who ensure that THEIR agenda (i.e. that of the pseudo-American one) is ALWAYS met.

It was my contention from the start that the lawyers for John Graham should have brought the issue of this phony extradition legislation to the forefront of Graham’s defense strategy. They could have, with some honest effort, shown that this legislation was enacted purposefully in order to undermine Canada’s justice system. It’s the Zionist way of destroying a nation’s sovereignty and throwing its legal system into confusion and disrepute. Now we see the results of this infamy. But will people now stand up and turn their attention toward the real culprits in this melodrama? It’s high time we rid our courts of Zionist-traitors and put the independence of our nation back on track and working for Canadians rather than foreign elements.]

———-

The Canadian Supreme Court of Canada has denied the extradition appeal made by John Graham. On Thursday morning, John was moved from the North Fraser Pre-trial Centre in Port Coquitlam BC, to Rapid City South Dakota, where he has been indicted for first degree murder of Anna Mae Pictou-Aquash. Her body was found in 1976, in South Dakota.

On December 1, 2003, John was arrested in Vancouver, for indictments for the first degree murder of Anna Mae Pictou-Aquash. In January 2004 he began living under house arrest in Vancouver during his legal struggle against the extradition. In 2005 the BC Supreme court approved John’s extradition to South Dakota, based on positive identification of his photos, despite discrepancies in his height, weight and race. The Canadian/US Extradition Treaty does not challenge the evidence provided by the country seeking extradition. Despite the fact that 3 of the 4 testimonies the US provided proved faulty, this was not taken into consideration by the Canadian court. The fact that the US has no legal jurisdiction over indigenous nations, especially one currently occupied by British Columbia, was never brought up in court.

On June 26 2007, the BC Supreme Court dismissed his appeal and John Graham turned himself in. He was transferred to North Fraser Pretrial, a high
security facility where he waited for the appeal decision on the Supreme Court of Canada. We, his family, were granted one hour daily visits separated by glass. While in the pretrial center he was treated as though he’d already been convicted. He was not allowed to receive any books or put up pictures.

We were not contacted when John was transferred from North Fraser Pretrial to the airport and extradited to Rapid City SD. We were lead to believe the John Graham would receive a personal message and be able to set up a visit with the family before extradition. The family was not able to see John before he was taken away. We were not allowed to say our good byes or even give him his personal belongings.
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[Editor’s Note: I met Crystal Clear yesterday at the Quesnel Tillicum Native Friendship Center. She read me the following letter and said that she was sending it off to the R.C.M.P. Complaints Commission in Vancouver. She was not a happy camper. Her letter explains why.]

———–

To:
Commission for Public Complaints the R.C.M.P
102 – 7337 – 137 Street
Surrey, B.C. V3W 1A4
1-604-501-4080
Toll Free 1-800-665-6878

Welcome to our 74 Sherry tent. We have 74 sherry, 35 sherry, Lysol and Listerine. YOUR PREFERENCE; WE ALSO SUPPLY BAGS for when you feel like pinching THE HELL out of somebody! This will eliminate black eyes and broken bones and if you pass out, you can fall to the moss in our 74 Sherry tent. Our safe house would provide the big bad R.C.M.P.  more time to deal with the real problems other than picking us drunks up off the streets and sidewalks in Prince George, Dawson Creek, Fort McMurray, Edmonton and Quesnel. We drunks are everywhere and you will not stop US! GOOD LUCK.

Rather than throwing us in the drunk tank, tasering  and pepper-spraying us why don’t they tranquilize us like they do the animals? Do animals deserve better treatment than we do?

The R.C.M.P. loses our personal belongings such as identification, jewelry, clothing, prescription glasses, money – LOST or STOLEN?
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An open letter to the Shuswap, Okanagan & Ktunaxa nations,

I would like to introduce myself to your people. To clarify my intention, I would like to share with you who I am and why I am writing this. My name is Cliff Woffenden. I am originally from Montreal and am of British decent. In the 1970’s I left my job as an engineer to live in the wilderness of northern British Columbia. My daily contact with the wild creatures of the forest made me aware of a huge hole in my education.

This motivated me to look closely at the traditional spiritual ways of the original peoples of this land. My journey eventually led me to the presence of a Cree elder, Albert (Buffalo Child) Lightning, of Hobema Alberta who became my teacher. This amazing being was not only the spiritual leader of his people he was one of the most respected spiritual leaders on Turtle Island.

Among the many things Albert taught me was respect for the cultural laws of the land. That is why, upon my arrival in the Slocan Valley, I was obligated to make contact with the original people of this area. Their obvious lack of presence made me curious and I set out to find out why. I studied the archeological and historical records. I traveled to Vancouver and Victoria to investigate the disappearance of a people from their landscape.

My studies led me to the Colville reservation and the descendents of the Sinixt. It was my cultural duty to ask their permission to live on their land. In 1989 I was hired by the BC government to care take the Vallican Heritage site to protect it from vandals. Shortly after, I went to the Colville reservation with another person of British ancestry, to apprise the Sinixt of the intention of the government to build a road dangerously close to their sacred burial grounds at Vallican and to ask them to return home to help protect it.

I lived with these people through this very traumatic event. I shared their tears and their joy. Their story and determination has been a major motivating factor in my life ever since. So it was with great sorrow that I saw the deliberate attempt by the government to continue the genocide of the Sinixt by asking the Ktunaxa, Shuswap and West Bank aboriginals to claim Sinixt land. Watching this so-called treaty process has been very frustrating because it goes against all I have been taught to respect about aboriginal culture.
One of the traditional laws of the land has always been that if a person or group moved to the territory of another nation, they integrated and became members of the host nation. That is why I am an associate member of the Sinixt nation.

So when the Sinixt, for example, were dispersed by persecution by White miners, settlers and disease in the 1800s, they went to live among their neighbours. Some went to the Okanagan, some to Ktunaxa territory. Some ended up as far away as the Queen Charlotte Islands. Those that live among the Ktunaxa have become Ktunaxa. Those who went to live among the Shuswap became Shuswap.

This is also why the Ktunaxa, Shuswap and the West Bank band have living memory of having cultural ties to Sinixt territory. This is why it pains me to see these nations claim Sinixt territory as theirs. It is against cultural law. Those among these nations who are of Sinixt ancestry should be standing in solidarity with the Sinixt against the genocide of their people. Instead they entered into negotiations with the government to steal Sinixt land. This is not the way of the people. I can’t imagine the magnitude of the pain the Sinixt feel at this betrayal.

We are entering a new era in human consciousness where separation has no place. We are all brothers and sisters of the same Mother, Mother Earth. We can no longer stand alone against the Juggernaut of capitalistic interests. The governments of Canada and British Columbia have intentionally designed this so-called treaty process to divide and conquer the aboriginal peoples – to pit one against the other. It is time to make peace among the nations. It is time to bury the hatchet.

Someone has to make the first move, to break the ice. Negotiate among yourselves before making deals with Canada or BC. I suggested to one of our elders, Ganishka Silver Fox of Nakusp, that perhaps she should try to use her wisdom to find a way to bring the local nations together to smoke for peace and understanding of their shared brother/sisterhood.
Respect each other. Respect your Mother. We are all one under Father Sky.

All my relations,

Cliff Woffenden,
Sinixt territory
———–

Cliff Woffenden is an artist, writer and spiritual seeker now living in the Nukusp area of Sinixt territory. He can be contacted at: cliffwoffenden@canada.com

[Editor’s Comment: While most people will dismiss the accusation it is my opinion that the Canadian court system is under full control of the Zionist Jews just as the U.S. system is and that is why whatever Canadian citizens do or attempt to do in order to obtain justice, falls upon deaf ears. It was a foregone conclusion that John would lose this appeal. If the Canadian justice system was in truth “Canadian” and independent and in possession of any integrity and courage and honesty it would have told the US government to fuck off the minute it tried to proceed with extradition hearings in John’s case. Their evidence was fraught with discrepancies and outright lies and still the Canadian courts bent over and submitted to their unreasonable and obviously prejudiced reports and accusations. This can only happen when the two are controlled by the same hidden hand. That hand is the Zionist Jews who control the U.S. government and the judiciary. That is also why I refer to the legal system as the “Jewdiciary”. Go figure!]
———-

————A TRAVESTY CONTINUES AS JOHN’S APPEAL IS DISMISSED————

June 26, 2007

The BC Supreme Court in Vancouver dismissed the extradition appeal by John Graham today, demonstrating the Canadian government’s weak-kneed response to the United States.

Following the announcement by the panel of three judges, a wave of emotion went through the courtroom. John’s bail was revoked and he will remain incarcerated during the 30 day period in which an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada may be submitted. However, given the three judges’ unanimous decision, the chances appear to be slim that such an appeal would be heard.

The impending extradition to South Dakota could take place shortly following the 30 day appeal period.

It is ironic that June 26 was also a turning point 32 years ago in 1975 when the shoot-out took place on Pine Ridge that ended in the deaths of three young men, FBI Agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams and Native man Joe Stuntz. This tragic event eventually led to the murder of Anna Mae Aquash.

Our hearts ache for John and his family as preparations commence for the legal battle ahead. We remain confident that John’s informed testimony will surely turn an uncomfortable and illuminating light on the actions of the FBI and their COINTELPRO activities against Native American people and culture. This is a bloody tale of racism, oppression, systematic murder, and justice un-served.

We thank you most sincerely for your continuing and unwavering support in this dark hour, and will keep in touch as developments occur.

All our relations,
Matthew Lien and the John Graham Defense Committee
www.grahamdefense.org

MNN Update
Click here for more information.
© MNN: Mohawk Nation News. Subscribe–Be Informed–Be Aware
24.06.2007 09:38:25

Australian government imposes military-police regime on Aborigines

Alarm! Is this the reason for the June 29th “Phil Fontaine Day”? Are Prime Minister Steven Harper and the corporate powers trying to set us up to impose martial rule on us? This ratcheting up of violence against Aborigines and Indigenous people is erupting at the very moment when courts in Australia and Canada are beginning to acknowledge and demand respect for our land and “jurisdictional rights”. It’s another land grab. The Howards and Harpers want to turn even the most peaceful and prosperous parts of the world into another Middle East. Sexual abuse was a colonial tactic. It began with the colonists who treated us like animals. Australians, we’d like to hear from you. Everyone should read this and send objections to Australia and the UN. This is a crime! Posted by MNN Mohawk Nation News.

Australian government imposes military-police regime on Aborigines
By the Socialist Equality Party (Australia)
23 June 2007

Use this version to print | Send this link by email | Email the author harper.s@parl.gc.ca
Under the cynical guise of protecting indigenous children from sexual abuse, the Howard government announced on Thursday a “national emergency” plan to take control of dozens of Aboriginal communities throughout the Northern Territory and impose virtual martial law conditions. Over coming weeks, police and troops will flood into as many as 60 towns and camps to enforce a series of draconian measures.

Welfare and family payments will be halved, with the seized portions transferred to food and clothing vouchers. All payments will be cut off if children fail to attend school, or are considered “at risk”. Forced labour will be imposed, via “work for the dole” programs, to “clean up” communities.

In “prescribed” zones across the Northern Territory, all children under the age of 16 will be subjected to compulsory medical checks for sexual abuse. Alcohol and X-rated pornography will be banned, with individuals as well as suppliers facing imprisonment.

At the same time, the existing permit system, which allows indigenous communities to restrict access to their lands, will be scrapped. Business managers—so-called “tsars”—will take charge of all public housing and government enterprises. These people will function as modern-day versions of the “administrators” and “protectors” who exercised complete authority over Aboriginal reservations in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
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————JUDGES TO ANNOUNCE DECISION JUNE 26, 2007————

Update from the John Graham Defense Committee
http://www.grahamdefense.org

The panel of three Judges that heard the appeal on May 27th will announce their decision on Tuesday, June 26th at 9:30 a.m. at the BC Supreme Court, 800 Smythe St., Vancouver, B.C.

John must arrive at the court by 9:00 a.m.

John’s family will holding a prayer circle Tuesday morning June 26th at 8:00 a.m. (in private) and ask that all supporters join in prayer in their own way, wherever they may be, at the same time.

All supporters able to be present in the court room to hear the decision are urged to attend.
———————-

FriendsofBettys@pasteur.backboneservers.com

May 17, 2007

Stand Up for Harriet Nahanee!

People across the province were shocked by the 14 day jail sentence handed down to 71 year old native Elder Harriet Nahanee in January, 2007 for peacefully protesting while inside an injunction zone at Eagleridge Bluffs. Harriet served 9 days in prison at a maximum security pre-trial facility. She had filed an appeal, but became gravely ill and died shortly after being released from prison.

A petition that raises specific concerns surrounding Harriet Nahanee s sentencing is in circulation. It demands that our elected officials call an immediate public inquiry into the handling of this case. The petition is now available online.

Please honour a very courageous native elder by reading the petition, signing it and passing the link on to others on your contact lists. The Supreme Court of BC must be held accountable for their actions in this case. It is the duty of our elected officials to ensure that a full and public inquiry is held.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/489201922?ltl=1179368711

FREE BETTY shirts available now available! All proceeds to Betty’s court appeal.

For info on how to order, please email
monika@greendreams.com

© MNN: Mohawk Nation News.
Subscribe–Be Informed–Be Aware
April 13, 2007

MNN. April 13, 2007. “The Candian Army was itching to kill us in 1990”, said a young Mohawk, referring to the Crisis at Kanehsatake. That’s when the army surrounded us for 78 days. We didn’t want the nearby town of Oka to put a golf course over our burial and ceremonial site. We saw Indigenous faces sticking out of the tanks and standing around with their fingers on the trigger ready to kill us. It was sickening! Now Denis Coderre, Liberal Defence critic in Ottawa, wants Canada to build a special Canadian Forces base to train native soldiers.

What’s going on? Are they planning to send native soldiers against us like they did in the past? This announcement comes right after Canada put out the National Defense training manual calling us “domestic insurgents”, with tactics on how to attack unarmed Indigenous civilians. They categorized us as “Taliban”, “Tamil Tigers” and “Al Queda”. They are, in all reality, “freedom fighters”. The Mohawk Warrior Society are not criminals. They are standing for the rule of law and for colonial states to obey the laws.

Is this how Canada tries to deal with recent worldwide criticism over their continued genocide of our people? The idea came up because natives are crossing the border to join the U.S. armed forces. There is no border for us. It is an imaginary colonial line.
(more…)

“TERRORIST INVASION” OF DEH CHO INDIGENOUS TERRITORY - CANADA ARMED FORCES “GUNS FOR HIRE” BY MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS

MNN. April 14, 2007. Indigenous people everywhere - watch out! Is this more of Canada’s “might is right” mentality. Or have the military, police, RCMP, secret service and government bureaucrats become “guns for hire” by the multinational corporations? Are they all under the same corruption that is going on in the RCMP?

Canadian armed forces plan to ignore indigenous sovereignty by invading Deh Cho territory. The crime is planned for Monday April 16th. It’s at Norman Wells and Ft. Simpson, Northwest Territory.

“Operation Narwhal” is being conducted despite the expressed opposition to this operation and to the McKenzie Valley Pipeline that Canada wants to build through their land. The Deh Cho never agreed to become part of Canada though they are willing to work with Canada. They want the colonial power to implement their “Land Use Plan”, in keeping with their rights as interpreted by the Supreme Court of canada and under international law. Canada rejected the Plan. The Deh Cho insist the pipeline cannot cross their land without their approval.

The Deh Cho want to stop the environmental destruction by corporations and their government and military puppets that are bent on removing all “restraints” to “business”. This pipeline is part of a massive exploitation of land across all of Turtle Island [North America]. The “slash” and “pollute” mentality will affect everyrone living on it as well as the environment worldwide.

Let’s not kid ourselves, this is really an end-run around the Dene opposition. (more…)

“TERRORIST INVASION” OF DEH CHO INDIGENOUS TERRITORY - CANADA ARMED FORCES “GUNS FOR HIRE” BY MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS

MNN. April 14, 2007. Indigenous people everywhere - watch out! Is this more of Canada’s “might is right” mentality. Or have the military, police, RCMP, secret service and government bureaucrats become “guns for hire” by the multinational corporations? Are they all under the same corruption that is going on in the RCMP?

Canadian armed forces plan to ignore indigenous sovereignty by invading Deh Cho territory. The crime is planned for Monday April 16th. It’s at Norman Wells and Ft. Simpson, Northwest Territory.

“Operation Narwhal” is being conducted despite the expressed opposition to this operation and to the McKenzie Valley Pipeline that Canada wants to build through their land. The Deh Cho never agreed to become part of Canada though they are willing to work with Canada. They want the colonial power to implement their “Land Use Plan”, in keeping with their rights as interpreted by the Supreme Court of canada and under international law. Canada rejected the Plan. The Deh Cho insist the pipeline cannot cross their land without their approval.

The Deh Cho want to stop the environmental destruction by corporations and their government and military puppets that are bent on removing all “restraints” to “business”. This pipeline is part of a massive exploitation of land across all of Turtle Island [North America]. The “slash” and “pollute” mentality will affect everyrone living on it as well as the environment worldwide.

Let’s not kid ourselves, this is really an end-run around the Dene opposition. The Canadian govenrment press release says that 40 Joint Task Force North military personnel will take over the airport from April 16-27 from imaginary “terrorists” as part of “a sovereignty operation for the military”. Another 240 troops will be stationed at Norman Wells. They claim these two places are “possible terrorist sites” because of their location on the pipeline route.

Despite leaving the Deh Cho out of the loop, “Imperial Oil” and “Enbridge Gas”, two of Canada’s largest energy companies, are in the thick of the action. More than 200 soldiers will mass to practice their response to their fantasized terrorist attack. Lt.-Col. Kevin “TNT” Tyler of the Yellowknife-based JTF North said there will be a fictional “al Qaeda” sleeper cell from Edmonton. “This is supposed to be a small cell of two terrorists who have explosire devices to disrupt the flow of oil.

Are they hitchhiking up there? Is there a road? Why are the troops in the middle of a town? Why not in the middle of nowhere? Is it because the troops need to be close to a bar?

After the attack at Norman Wells the RCMP will call in the military for help to protect Imperial Oil fields west of Great Bear Lake along the MacKenzie River. It is served by the 870-kilometer Enbridge pipeline designed to carry up to 30,000 barrels of oil a day.

The operation will bring in 150 reservists from the Maritimes. Aurora surveillance aircraft, Griffon helicopters and Twin Otter airplanes based in Yellowknife will bring in 140 staff and air crew. The RCMP, Emergency Preparedness, Imperial Oil and Enbridge areall part of the gang. Of course, it will all be under U.S. command.

These video maniacs are all looking forward to having a lot of fun. It sounds like a big party at the expense of the Dene, the Canadian taxpayers, the people and the environment.

The military was never known for its intelligence. Soldiers will be armed, without live ammunition. Does this make sense? In a real life situation will a gun be of any help? Are they going to shoot the bomb? Hope they bring enough ‘duct tape’ for the holes they’re bound to make in the pipeline.

Sgt. Larry “Obey” O’Brien in Yellow knife said RCMP officers that are not in Ottawa testifying about ocrruption will be consulting with military officials.

This is simulated warfare to simulate their “phony baloney” sovereignty on our land. But the assault on our land is real. Three years ago the military had an exercise in the waters off Pangnirtung, an Indigenous nunavut community on southeast Baffin island. They pretended that a “foreign” country was trying to retrieve a satellite that had fallen into Davis Strait. The question is why do they have to fight over that? Everyone knows that the U.S. is the main bully falsely claiming our Arctic waters.

Recently Canada claimed sovereignty up there by taking a shipload of Inuit, the real owners, on a cruise through Arctic waters. In their heart of hearts, they know they are in Inuit space.

The Deh Cho won’t give the invading troops a warm welcome, like moccasins for their frozen feet. It’s just one colony telling another how to click its heels. The Deh Cho are not intimidated by foreign troops being sent in using imaginary “terrorism” as an excuse to hoist their flag on our land.

The Deh Cho think their plans for oil are completely insane! This follows on the heels of the recent military training manual flap where they referred to Indigenous people as “insurgents”.

The Deh Cho are asking for support. Canada is conducting an illegal invasion. The title holders have not been consulted nor gave their consent. Are Canadian forces planning to stay until Canada breaks down Deh Cho opposition to their pipeline, or until it finishes building it to take gas to the U.S.? It’s the same trampling over our rights as ever before. Can somebody help get a court injunction?
————–

Contact:
DEHCHO FIRST NATIONS
BOX 89, FORT SIMPSON,
N.W.T. X0E 0N0
TEL: 867-695-2355
FAX 867-695-2038
dcfn@dehchofirstnations.com
or mstainsby@resist.ca

Kahentinetha Horn - MNN Mohawk Nation News
kahentientha2@yahoo.com & katenies20@yahoo.com
for updates, workshops, speakers, to sign up, go to
www.mohawknationnews.com
Sight Women Title Holders petititon.
Coming soon online books on Mohawk issues.

[Editor’s Note: The following letter by Robin Mathews to the Chief Justice of the B.C. Supreme Court is a courageous and finely worded challenge to the person in charge of justice for all British Columbians. It’s essential that the questions which Mr. Mathews asks of the Chief Justice are forwarded to as many citizens as possible throughout this province to insure that the courts are made aware of the extent of the general dissatisfaction with the questionable processes and decisions that Mr. Mathews alludes to in his letter. Please pass this letter on to as many of your associates as you possibly can. For the sake of those still living in prison under false charges i.e. Betty Krawczyk and for justice concerning the unnecessary death of Harriet Nahanee consider this request of an urgent nature. Thank you. Arthur Topham, Editor and Publisher, The Radical Press]
—————–

My Lord:

Law Officer of the Supreme Court of British Columbia H.L. McBride, replying (March 30) to a letter of mine to Madam Justice Elizabeth Bennett concerning “public access to documents filed” in the Basi, Basi, and Virk matter, repeated the objectionable terms of the general restriction of documents from public examination imposed by Associate Chief Justice Patrick Dohm - obviously imposed with the approval or consent of judges involved and with your support. That so-called “Practice Direction” has been explained as a device employed to insure the protection of the accused. In my own experience the substance of such documents does not bear negatively upon the accused; rather the denial of those public documents to the public appears to protect those who may be corrupt members of the present and past Gordon Campbell government and other highly placed people possessing political power in the province.

With respect, I submit to you that the so-called “Practice Direction” - which is in fact an illegitimate universal gag order - is intolerable and is a violation of the freedoms of Canadians to know. I believe an address to the Supreme Court of Canada would see the so-called “Practice Direction” struck down as illegitimate. I believe a process by writ of mandamus might have the same effect. With respect, I believe that any fair-minded person concerned with justice and the freedoms of Canadians would see the present so-called “Practice Direction” as an intolerable, dictatorial, and repressive invasion of the freedoms and the tranquility of Canadians. If you do not see it as that, would you explain to me why you do not?
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[Editor’s Note: The following interview with Frank Martin and Helen Michell aka Telquaa took place back in June of 2001 and ran in Vol. 3 No. 10 of The Radical, Canada’s Activist Monthly Newspaper. Frank and Helen are still very much active in their ongoing struggles with the State, the Judicial system and the police and it is in their interest and that of public awareness that I am running this interview once again.]
———————

By Arthur Topham
Radical Reporter
June, 2001

(Original Editor’s Note: Frank Martin and Helen Michell first appeared in The Radical in conjunction with the Ed John scandal which, to date, still remains unresolved. They were two of many native people who had given sworn testimony during the UN-sponsored Tribunal into Residential School abuse which was held in June of 1998 in Vancouver, B.C. I was able to connect up with them while in Vancouver for the “Hearing That Wasn’t” - a phony court set-up designed to slap an injunction on The Radical and six others in order to prevent us from speaking about the issue of Ed John and Ujjal Dosanjh and the Pedophile/Drug Ring cover-up that they are alleged to have been a part of. Frank and Helen were two of the Defendants named in that lawsuit. The interview took place at their home in east Vancouver on Friday, May 11, 2001.)

Frank Martin, Telquaa (Helen) Michell and their family have been in the forefront of the struggle by indigenous peoples of BC to have the issue of treaty rights addressed in a just and equitable manner. Unassociated with any of the government “approved” channels created by the Department of Indian Affairs, the Federal government of Canada and the B.C. Provincial government which have been set up in order to “handle” the land title issues has meant that Telquaa and her husband Frank Martin - great great grandson of famed totem carver Mungo Martin - have had to operate outside the frameworks that were arbitrarily put in place to insure the eventual loss of traditional unceded native territories.

Like renegades within their own homelands Telquaa, Frank, their family members have fought and died in order to achieve recognition of their inherent rights as the legal owners of this area of land now called B.C. Along with that struggle has been the call for justice to address the outrage, discrimination and police brutality that has dogged their trail for well over a decade now.

For the purpose of this talk we pick up on the ongoing collusion by the trinity of government, church and residential school “clones” who have conspired to steal the land base from Telquaa’s traditional territory known as Maxan Lake and located near Burns Lake in central BC. It’s only one of many areas within the unceded territories of this province where the DIA, the Feds and Provincial government, in association with Tribal Band Councils peopled by “Red Apples” i.e. groomed residential school victims willing to sell out to government officials for power, prestige and money, have forced her family off their traditional land base in order to reap the rewards of timber and other resource extraction and at the same time destroy their chances at reclaiming what is rightfully their traditional birthright.

Telquaa and Frank’s struggle against such formidable odds represents, both in a graphic and a microcosmic sense, the overall struggle of native peoples everywhere around the world who are facing the same merciless onslaught by the dominant white culture to steal and exploit their traditional lands while at the same time destroying their ancient culture.

Throughout the turbulent, trying and incessantly violent challenges presented by DIA band councils, police and native “goon squads” that have overshadowed and tormented their lives Telquaa and Frank have remained resolute and fearless in their efforts to achieve justice for their people.

Working as they do, within a reality that the majority of British Columbians would find difficult to grasp, it’s not surprising that Telquaa and Frank’s story has gone unnoticed by the status quo, mainstream media. They challenge that status quo perception of native land claims just as the defenders at Gustafsen Lake challenged it in 1995 and the Sun Peaks protesters and the Melvin Creek protesters are challenging it today. And in a similar manner they have faced the harsh and brutal reactionary responses to their work by every segment of the dominant culture including segments of their own native people. Their story is not a romantic one nor is it a subject that decent white folk would wish to discuss around the evening supper table. It’s a story of survival and pain and endless struggle and it’s a story of courage and hope as well.

The Radical would like to thank Telquaa and Frank and their family for the opportunity to speak with them. It’s our hope that their voices, so often stifled and distorted amid the din and glare of bureaucratic red tape and the modern-day glitz that passes for mainstream reporting, can finally be heard.

Our talk begins with Telquaa showing me the marks on her wrists that she claims were a result of the handcuffs which the RCMP put on her two years ago when she and Frank and their family were returning to Canada after a chiefs conference in June of 1998. Telquaa said that the cuffs were purposely applied too tight and left that way for so long that she was left handicapped to the point where it took nearly two years to be able to use her hands properly for writing or doing her artwork.
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