You have to hand it to Dalton McGuinty's Liberals; they could turn the rape of the Sabines into a political opportunity. The nearly four month-old dispute with aboriginals of the Six Nations Reserve near Caledonia over a piece of property that natives claim is theirs has reached a fevered pitch of violence on several occasions without much reaction from the Ontario Provincial Police at the scene. The OPP has apparently been told to avoid the possibility of another Ipperwash, so they aren't taking any chances.
as my colleague art Weinreb wrote earlier this week, there have been a number of serious crimes committed at the Caledonia blockade, which native protesters set up Feb. 28, including assault and attempt murder.
But, hey, something as trivial as trying to run down an OPP officer or bashing a newsman's head in isn't all that bad, when you consider the importance of keeping a politically correct face on things and avoiding the appearance of being extra tough on Indians. Besides, if one of the protesters were to get hurt, we'd never hear the end of it through public inquiries and lawsuits.
Former Premier David Peterson has been appointed by McGuinty as the chief negotiator with the protesters and he had some interesting comments to make on Toronto's aM 640's "Stafford Show". During the interview he kept referring to the "undesirable elements" that had turned out in Caledonia, referring not to the protesters who had blocked off Highway 6, stolen vehicles, beat up newsmen, tried to kill a cop, burned tires and damaged the roadway with a backhoe. He was referring to some of the townspeople who wanted their town back.
David Peterson would have you think that all those nasty little people who dutifully pay their taxes all their lives were "undesirable" in wanting to get their town back from the native protesters. To Stafford's credit, he didn't let Peterson get away with too much, challenging him on the lack of action by the OPP. Stafford asked Peterson if OPP stood for "Ontario Political Police". Peterson attempted to downplay the inaction on the part of the cops and praise McGuinty for his leadership.
Peterson claimed the Premier showed true and fearless leadership in "the way he's (McGuinty) handled this, compared to the way some people handled Ipperwash." Of course his reference to Ipperwash was just a cheap shot at how Mike Harris and his Conservative government handled the 1995 occupation of Ipperwash Provincial Park in a land claim dispute with aboriginals. During confrontations with the police, Dudley George, an unarmed aboriginal protester was shot and killed by an OPP officer on the scene.
While I do not condone the killing of unarmed protesters, I think the Harris government showed true leadership in enforcing the laws of this country evenhandedly. The McGuinty government, on the other hand, recognizes that while we are all equal under the laws of Canada, some of us are more equal than others and as such is cutting the Caledonia protesters a lot more slack than they would cut, oh say, a group of Orangemen wanting to lay claim to a Catholic church.
Peterson seemed totally sympathetic and supportive toward the native protesters in their illegal occupation, making very sure during the interview not to criticize, judge or condemn their tactics. Despite the fact that there have been three separate judicial orders for the protester to disband or be removed, as of this writing they still occupy the disputed lands.
That alone speak volumes about the McGuinty government and its priorities. If you work hard and pay taxes all your life, good for you. But, if you're a member of an aggrieved "victim" class, then there is implicit abundance of leeway, even if you're in criminal breach of the law. That's politics in Dalton McGuinty's Ontario.
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