Six Nations Activists Have Blocked Road Access to Provincially Owned D.C.E. (Kanonhstaton): So Who is in Charge?

After reading Christie Blatchford's recent article in the National Post (20 May 2014) entitled, Caledonia natives still calling the shots in land dispute (see here) I was left feeling unsettled.  Indeed, who is in charge? 

When I was at the Canadian Tire store and the adjacent Tim Hortons I noted in the distance that there were two new Mohawk Warrior flags installed on the twisted barricades composed of the Hydro One tower that had been vandalized and stolen by the occupiers in 2006.  After reading the article by Christie Blatchford, I realized that the HDI (Haudenosaunee Development Institute) were extremely agitated by the McHale "intrusion" and that they were likely to move quickly to assert their dominance and pretend ownership.

My short drive to the site shocked and angered me.  As can be seen in the photo below (taken today), the two pieces of the Hydro One tower that flanked Surrey Street, the entrance to DCE from Argyle Street, have been moved to form a single unit.  Very large concrete blocks (requiring heavy equipment to move) have been placed across the road and the shoulders arching along to the ditch - ensuring that no car or such motorized vehicle will be able to enter DCE from the main entranceway.  This would appear to be the handiwork of the HDI, the most radical group to emerge from the Hereditary Confederacy Chiefs Council.  It would appear that they have gotten a jump start on those things they have threatened to do - meaning placing a fence around the entire perimeter of DCE, and turning the DCE into a "gated community".  The property is known as Kanonhstaton - The Protected Place - to the radicals who "reclaimed" these lands which were and are legally in the possession of the those named in the Ontario Land Registry for the parcel of land.



Entrance Road to DCE Kanonhstaton Now Completely Blocked and Barricaded



 The map below provides a geographical orientation, with the Grand River off the map to the north (top), and the junction of the 6th Line and old Highway 6 (Argyle Street) to the south (bottom).


The Entrance to DCE is via Argyle Street and Surrey Street (the latter completely blocked)



More on the specifics of the most recent development later, but first some review and background.

Legally the Province of Ontario owns the land (after purchasing it from the developers, Henco for $15 million), and it is registered in the Ontario Land Registry system.  However as noted in my two recent postings, Gary McHale challenged the status quo by the simple act of  walking on the public access road, Surrey Street, which belongs to the Province.  This is a perfectly legal act.  However he was confronted by the lone occupant (Six Nations member) of the single building on the site that has not been trashed and demolished, was assaulted by this "land protector", resulting in the arrest of the latter by the OPP.

Certain Six Nations members were livid - particularly those affiliated with the Hereditary Confederacy Chief's Council (HCCC) and its enforcement arm, the Haudenosaunee Development Institutue (HDI) which is well known for strong arming developers into paying an "application fee" to ensure that no "unpleasantness" would occur on the site being developed.  Some would term this extortion, and in fact members of the HDI and other activists have been fined for ignoring Court injunctions to cease and desist from interfering with the right of developers to develop their land.  Via rulings of the Ontario Superior Court, a substantial fine of over $800,000 was levied, later reduced to $350,000 and via a plea deal reduced further to about $125,000.  The HDI claims the land at DCE for the HCCC - although if anyone at Six Nations were to have legal rights in the matter it would be the Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC).  Despite the fact that the land has not been turned over to anyone or any group by the Province, the HDI are insisting that the DCE property is theirs to do with as they wish - including the planting of trees, and the erection of a perimeter fence. 

As I have noted on numerous occasions, the various levels of government are acting as enablers since no one will state the legal realities to Six Nations and the world at large - it is Provincially owned land!  Not only that but the entire premise of the Six Nations having a stake in the property is based on a false premise since the land was surrendered 170 years ago.  As of 1844 and ratified in 1845, the land was surrendered to the Crown - end of story - or at least it should have been if evidence and ethics mean anything. 

See here for the evidence relative to the surrender of Six Nations lands including the property where the DCE is situated (Report by Joan Holmes & Associates to the Corporation of the City of Brantford).  The most relevant section is page 8 (stamped "16" in upper right corner), Six Nations Chiefs in Council meetings 17 & 18 September 1845, signed by 66 Six Nations Chiefs.  See here for Garry Horsnell's chronology and analysis of these and related events.  Below is a map of Oneida Township showing the "tier of lots" to the east of the Plank Road (Argyle Street), with what is today Oneida Road being the boundary described at the junction of the tier of lots and the Reserve requested by the Chiefs in Council:


Oneida Township 1879 with the Plank Road Leading Diagonally North to South from Caledonia to Hagersville and Oneida Road Heading Along the Present Reserve Boundary to Include the 6 Lots in Concessions 1 to 6 plus the River Range Traversing a Straight North to South Route

See here for the evidence that the Superior Court of Ontario, as represented by Justice Harrison Arrell, views Six Nations land claims as resting on the weakest possible foundation.  Unless Six Nations can come up with some hard evidence that will counter the above solid evidence, they are beat - at least in the legal sense.  I doubt very much that they will give up their irrational beliefs.  Many times I have personally heard a certain Six Nations activist, known for her sporting red hats, say that "Caledonia is ours".  No amount of rational arguments, or evidence in the form of the actual signatures of the 66 Chiefs who signed the surrender, has shaken the bedrock of belief.

In this blog I have repeatedly presented the factual basis of the ownership of the DCE - but as noted over and over, facts mean nothing to the HDI and their supporters.  It is only what they believe that has any meaning whatsoever.  So in essence, they make their own reality. 

Guess We Know Who is Calling the Shots

The sheer audacity of the move is also reflected in the following picture:

 

Classy Sign

The "militancy factor" is seen in the number of Mohawk Warrior flags that accompany the Confederacy flag as seen here:

 

Three Mohawk Warrior Flags - Note Smaller One by Yellow Sign





Some further pictures to round out what one sees today:

  

"The" House in the Distance - Yes That is Another Mohawk Warriors Flag

In a very presumptuous move, the "Welcome to Six Nations" sign greets visitors - well, there are no visitors, and the add about Six Nations Tourism at the very bottom of the sign is such a bad joke.

 

 

The Flag which to Many in Caledonia Represents Violence and Brutality





So the HDI or other representative of the HCCC has illegally blocked the only public roadway into Provincially owned land.  I know the "unofficial" entrance via 6th Line, but it can get muddy.  This blockade is an illegal act of defiance, and is deserving of swift action on the part of the various levels of government.  The question is, do they have the where with all (stones), or intestinal fortitude, to do what is mandated by law - or will Six Nations once again be given a "pass" and allowed to proceed without impediment?

It will be important to contact the Ontario Provincial Police, the Mayor of Haldimand, the Member of Provincial Parliament for Haldimand - Norfolk, and his Federal counterpart to see what can be done to bring justice and the rule of law to this place.  If they are unwilling to act, then, after 8 years of this illegal battering, is it time for the citizens of Haldimand and adjoining regions to stand together and do what has long been needed to deal with the terrorists?  Let us never forget.  The acts of April 2006 and subsequent events were acts of terrorism.  With lulls of relative quiet perhaps we have deluded ourselves into thinking that all is well.  Alas this is an illusion.  Six Nations have their sights set not only on DCE but also the Burtch Correctional Centre lands, and Provincially owned lands in South Cayuga Township - which they now want "returned" (although long surrendered).  Next ............ 

It only takes the rule of law and the establishment of the evidence in the matter - what I have been pleading for, so that a legal settlement will be established so that a just resolution can be effected.  My words (and those of others of like mind) have fallen on deaf ears.  I can assure all, based on what I have learned to date, this orderly and peaceful approach will never fly.

According to the 29 claims submitted to date (see here), what do Six Nations want?  The description of each claim suggests that all Grand River (Haldimand Tract) properties are at risk of being "reclaimed" in the manner of DCE.  My previous postings have outlined the specifics here. 

Based on the wording of these claims, they are going after property throughout "the land belonging to the Onkwehonwe or real people", in other words six miles on each side of the Grand River - will our government protect your property rights?  They didn't do it in the case of DCE, so why should we believe that they will act any differently down the road?

A thoroughly disgusted,

DeYo.