Greetings,
I am unsure if you are aware of the labour movements concern about the current land dispute. I recently heard Buzz Hargrove of the Canadian Auto Workers letter to the current governments and press release in support of the Six Nations People. Here is a very recent press release from the Public Service Alliance of Canada.
May 15, 2006
PSAC Stands in Solidarity with Six Nations Protesters
The recent standoff in Caledonia, Ontario is merely a symptom of a much greater problem – the disdainful manner by which elected governments address Aboriginal land claims. Aboriginal peoples in Canada have waited long enough for their treaty rights to be recognized and land claims dealt with. The Six Nations filed a claim to the land in 1995 and 10 years later, with the claim still unresolved, the Ontario government gave Henco Industries the go-ahead to begin development on the disputed land. It was this decision by the Ontario Government that prompted the Six Nations to reclaim the land on February 28, 2006. The members of the Six Nations remained on the land in peaceful protest for 51 days until the OPP escalated the tense situation by raiding the protester's camp in the early morning of April 20, 2006, only one day after Premier McGuinty promised a peaceful resolution to this dispute. The protest is now in its 76th day.
The PSAC calls on the government to negotiate meaningfully and to peacefully resolve the Six Nations land claim as well as all current and future Aboriginal land claims. The PSAC feels that if this and other land claims were dealt with in a fair and timely manner, the most recent standoff in Caledonia, as well as the tragedies that occurred in Ipperwash, Oka, and Gustafsen Lake, could have been avoided. Members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada stand in solidarity with Aboriginal peoples seeking peaceful resolutions to Aborignal land claims in Canada.
Yous are not alone.
Wisdom, Love, Respect, Bravery, Honesty, Humility, Truth,
