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Judge orders parties to court

Karen Best - Staff Writer
Dunville Chronicle
Local News - Wednesday, May 31, 2006 @ 05:00

[SISIS note: The following mainstream news article is provided for reference only, as an example of how mainstream media treats indigenous resistance to genocide. Mainstream media often presents biased and distorted information, lacking pertinent facts and/or context. Inclusion of this article on our site should not be considered an endorsement by SISIS.]

CAYUGA -- Seven parties connected to the Six Nations occupation of a Caledonia construction site must attend a special hearing in the Superior Court of Justice this week.

Justice David Marshall has called a special sitting on the court’s own warrant because injunctions and contempt of court orders remain outstanding.In his order, he stated, The Superior Court of Justice has the ultimate responsibility to ensure that peace in the community is maintained under the Rule of Law. Hence this court calls the parties in order to further resolution of these matters.”

Those who must attend or send counsel are: Ontario Provincial Police commissioner Gwen Boniface, Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant, Henco Industries counsel, Ottawa law firm Borden Ladner, Six Nations elected council, Six Nations Confederacy council, Railink Canada operating as Southern Ontario Railway, and Haldimand County. Notice was also provided to the Haldimand Law Society.

Society president Mike McLachlin said the judge extended an invitation to seek status. “Since his honour has put that clause in the order, I’ll have to discuss with the members of the association to see if they have an interest in that,”he said on Tuesday morning. The association has 20 members.

County lawyers have an inherent interest in the way the court system operates and the way justice is administered in the county, said McLachlin.

While unusual, the court certainly has the authority to make its own motion to call a hearing, he said.

County lawyer Woody McKaig has never seen this happen before. On Monday night, Haldimand County council gave him the authority to represent the municipality at the hearing. Both McKaig and McLachlin have no idea what will ensue or what the judge expects from the hearing.

Mayor Marie Trainer expressed great respect for Marshall. “If he can make some sense of this and make some resolve, that’s wonderful,” she said.

OPP commissioner Gwen Boniface will comply with the order by sending two lawyers to represent her, said OPP Constable Laurie Hawkins.

This is a complex historical land issue between the government and Six Nations and police cannot resolve this issue, said Hawkins. “Our primary objective is to keep the peace and ensure public safety,” she added.

According to a press release, developers Don and John Henning did not know the specific reason for the court appearance. “As a result, neither we nor our lawyer can comment on the order until after the court session,” they stated.

In March, Henco Industries secured an injunction requiring Six Nations persons and others to leave the Douglas Creek Estates site. At a subsequent hearing, Marshall found the Six Nations Confederacy council, Janie Jamieson, Dawn Smith or any person action [sic] under their instruction and others on the property in contempt of court. On April 20, OPP entered the site and arrested 16 persons who were placed on probation with orders to stay away from the site for 100 days.

Sometime later Railink secured an injunction against the Six Nations Confederacy, the Six Nations Band, Clyde Powless, Jacqueline House, Hazel Hill, Dawn Smith, Sean Mt. Pleasant, Wes Hill and other persons unknown.

Under Southern Ontario Railway, the company operates a rail service from the Nanticoke Lake Erie Industrial Park to Onondaga, where the line connects with a CN line to Hamilton. On April 20, a wooden bridge over the rail tracks in Caledonia was destroyed by fire. Railway ties below the bridge were also damaged. Barricades erected by Six Nations protesters on the rail line remain in place.

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