Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Haldimand "Truth about Caledonia Inquiry Act"

An inquiry into the Caledonia Land Dispute (which is what sparked all of the land disputes since then) is in my opinion an absolute must! This is where it all started!

Here is an example of some of the questions that I would like answers to;

Landowners rights, do we have any?
Is the Province going to add the South Cayuga crown lands to the Reserve?
Why did the Province buy out DCE so quickly, when the Federal government seems to have stated at that time there was no valid claim?
Why did Haldimand County refund the developers fees of around $250,000.00?
Haldimand County gave the go ahead for the builders to develop DCE (in I believe 2002) was there in fact a "Land Claim" on DCE at that time?
How have the OPP been directed in regards to Court Orders?
How much money has been spent in "Total" to all parties involved?
Who is really telling the truth?


Toby here -

Please find attached my column appearing in this week's papers titled, Time for an inquiry into area land disputes, in which I provide further detail with regard to my plans and reasoning for the introduction of legislation later this month calling for an inquiry into Haldimand, Brant, Brantford, Six Nations area land disputes.

Just as I asked last week, I continue to request of you the reader for several examples that come to mind suggesting inappropriate interventions or undue influence on our area’s court system, land ownership system, or system of law enforcement.

Time for an inquiry into area land disputes

By now, many will have heard about the petition that calls for an inquiry into justice issues surrounding the Caledonia land dispute.

Caledonia resident Ken Hewitt began distributing the petition before Christmas - both online and in hard-copy.

At time of writing, the petition has garnered over 5,000 signatures – one of them being my own.
This is not the first time I have joined a call for an inquiry into the unanswered questions plaguing our area over the past few years.

It was June of 2006 that John Tory presented an Opposition Day motion that was passed by the Legislature calling for a commission to be set up to, “inquire into and report on how absence of communication and lack of leadership by Premier McGuinty and his Liberal government allowed the Caledonia situation to escalate to a full-blown standoff and subsequently a public security crisis.” More than two years later we are still waiting.

It was November 2003, when Dalton McGuinty set out the mandate of the Ipperwash Inquiry – “1. to inquiry [sic] into and report on events surrounding the death of Dudley George; and, 2. to make recommendations directed to the avoidance of violence in similar circumstances.”

And for those of you reading this newspaper column you will now know that I intend to introduce legislation to the Parliament of Ontario also calling for a commission to conduct an inquiry.

The purpose of this inquiry, subject to further advice, will be: to determine the truth with respect to allegations of political influence in the court’s administration of justice and the police enforcement of the law with respect to activities in Six Nations, Haldimand County, Brant County and the City of Brantford; to determine the truth with respect to the ownership of land within the boundaries of the former Haldimand Tract; and to make recommendations directed to preventing similar chaotic confrontations when dealing with future land dispute issues in the province, including recommendations with respect to ways in which we can improve dispute resolution in this area and enhance respect for the courts and the rule of law; and to grant the commission powers under the Public Inquiries Act.

I propose the title of the bill to be the Truth about Caledonia Inquiry Act.

As the impacts of the ongoing land disputes continue unabated, the need for an inquiry grows more urgent by the day. Just as the Ontario Liberals previously sought answers through three private members bills - and finally government legislation - creating the Ipperwash Inquiry, so too we need answers through a Caledonia inquiry.

As with Ipperwash, an inquiry would be a way to ‘find out what happened – to look back’, as well as to ‘look forward’, and ‘propose policy reform’…all the while conducted in public view and with the participation of the public.

Further, the Ipperwash report contends that the inquiry, “was established to meet both of those objectives – to conduct an investigation and to examine policy.” – I hope to meet those same objectives through an inquiry into area land disputes.

The report goes on to say that an inquiry, “…provides a forum for citizens and groups to participate in the resolution of issues and the development of future policies.”

We need to get to the bottom of this, to consider all evidence, and to establish the truth.

8 comments:

  1. There will be no inquiry, too many people are involved, too many will pay the price if the truth ever be told.

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  2. Lots of more serious incidents will happen from the troublemakers on both sides I'm afraid.

    Better put that inquiry on hold for a while Toby.

    I can't wait to see what private commications have happened over the past few years from the three levels of Government (Haldimand, Ontario and the opposition and the Federal Gov't.) There might be some nervous people in all those offices.

    You sure you really want all these cans of worms opened Toby, because you said you want the truth right?


    I have a feeling that the OPP has the least to fear actually.

    Do you

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  3. I thought the Inquiry was about the inactions of the OPP according to the Police Services Act and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
    Ipperwash had a POLITICAL Inquiry with the main interest to get Mike Harris and the Conservative government. The Federal Gov't refused to be involved in that Inquiry.
    This Inquiry must cover the detrimental policies of race-based policing to be truly effective.
    I do not see that in Toby's news release.

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  4. Toby has finetuned his request for an Inquiry.
    Unfortunately nothing in it mentions Fantino or race-based policing. I hope Ken Hewitt brings this to Toby's attention otherwise there will be only months of who owns what and that is being done already in three years of negotiations.

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  5. Please no more POLITICAL inquiries - Regional News Feb. 11, 2009

    By Gary McHale

    Caledonia sits in the aftermath of one of the biggest politically motivated inquiries in Ontario – the Ipperwash Inquiry. Instead of dealing with illegal acts, either by the OPP or individual protesters in Ipperwash, it was designed as the means to expose Mike Harris. The residents of Caledonia have paid the price of such any inquiry. You can read a detailed report of this political inquiry in the regional news over the next two weeks.

    The people in Ipperwash had hoped the inquiry would help them just as the people signing the petition hope an inquiry into Caledonia will also help. Mr. Hewitt's petition states the following:

    "… Following the flawed results and recommendations of the Ipperwash Inquiry, the OPP and the command decisions made by the OPP have violated and ignored the rules and guidelines as set out by a number of statutes. These include the Criminal Code and the Ontario Police Services Act. In addition the OPP have violated or ignored their training and standard operating procedures. There is documented and electronic evidence that the OPP did so knowingly…



    We petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

    1. To request the Premier of Ontario to immediately launch a public inquiry into the actions and decisions made by the Commissioner of the OPP Julian Fantino and impose his immediate suspension without pay and upon confirmation of the facts, his immediate resignation.
    2. To request the Premier Of Ontario to immediately launch a public inquiry into the actions and decisions made by the OPP with respect to Caledonia over the past 3 years."



    The People are calling for a clear inquiry into Law and Order and decisions made by senior OPP officers. This i7
    s not a political inquiry but an inquiry into Race Based Policing. This is a grassroots demand that the People be allowed to have a voice into the actions of the police, not politicians. That is another matter.

    With the increasing tide of support in Haldimand County it is becoming popular to stand up and demand an inquiry. This grassroots movement to demand real accountability of the police is so strong that even Councilor Grice and MP Diane Finley felt compelled to join in.

    However, the People need to be concerned that political involvement (although needed and wanted) can have negative effects as well. Politicians rarely do things for purely selfless reasons in support of the people they claim to represent. As McGuinty once said, "Politics is a full contact sport" and politicians will use every means to win advantages over the other party – if the public benefits from this then that is merely a side affect.

    In my view, there is a direct danger that the People's demand for an inquiry into how the OPP have 'violated and ignored the rules and guidelines as set out by a number of statutes' can be turned it into just another political inquiry. MPP Toby Barrett submitted the following at Queen's Park:

    "Barrett’s Private Members Bill calls for an inquiry:

    to determine the truth with respect to allegations of political influence in the court’s administration of justice and the police enforcement of the law with respect to activities in Six Nations, Haldimand County, Brant County and the City of Brantford;
    to determine the truth with respect to the ownership of land within the boundaries of the former Haldimand Tract; and
    to make recommendations directed to preventing similar chaotic confrontations when dealing with future land dispute issues in the province, including recommendations with respect to ways in which we can improve dispute resolution in this area and enhance respect for the courts and the rule of law;"
    Any new inquiry that includes talking about ownership of land or allegations of political influence will end up as nothing but a political inquiry whereby each party will use the inquiry to gain points against the other.

    The People cannot allow this to happen.

    For three years the People have clearly stated that it doesn't matter who owns the land because Law & Order and Race Based Policing is the real issue involved. Are we somehow to have an inquiry into 200 years of endless debates from both sides and only allow a few days to talk about Race Based Policing? If negotiations go on endlessly for years why would anyone want an inquiry that opens the door to endless years into the same question?

    I appreciate Toby at least raising the issues at Queen's Park and if I have misunderstood his intention then I apologize. However, Mr. Barrett's motion before Queen's Park, in my view, in nothing but pure politics.

    On June 5, 2007 John Tory called for an Inquiry into Caledonia stating the purpose of such an inquiry was to review the 'absence of communication and lack of leadership by Premier McGuinty and his Liberal government,' not to examine OPP race-based policing.

    Where is the call into the actions of Commissioner Fantino or of the OPP as requested by Hewitt's petition? Where is the demand to investigate the illegal actions of the OPP? Where is the hope that one day this Province will firmly stand against all forms of Race Based Policing?

    NDP Peter Kormos stated back on April 18, 2007, "Fantino has crossed the line in a big way… [Kwinter] has little choice but to ask Fantino to step down".

    We don't need another political inquiry – we need to examine how individual officers who took an Oath to uphold the Charter of Rights chose to violate those rights solely because of the Race of the people involved.

    An inquiry like this would rock this province to its foundations and force police officers and all Government officials to understand that they too are accountable to the Laws of Canada, to the Charter of Rights and ultimately to the People.

    I ask Mr. Barrett to support this type of an inquiry and the only question is will he?

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  6. Toby says "as with Ipperwash, an inquiry would be a way to find out what happened" and "propose policy reform". What a crock! How much real truth was revealed through Ipperwash other than the fact that Mike Harris and his boys new how to stick together with their lies? Most of the truth died with many of the key players who mysteriously died before giving their testimony. As to policy reform, the so called "race based policing" policy arose from the Ipperwash inquiry and I'm sure that those who use that term now would be totally silent if the race that they think it is favouring was white rather than native, as it normally is. Hold onto your hats folks, you don't want to lose them in the SPIN.

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  7. McHale is calling for a Rally against Toby Barrett's Inquiry at Queen's Park this Wed.

    http://www.caledoniawakeupcall.com/documents/TobyInquiry.pdf

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