Barriere Lake, QC: Barriere Lake Algonquins face riot squad again
November 24th, 2008
CPTnet
24 November 2008
Barriere Lake, QC: Barriere Lake Algonquins face riot squad again
On 19 November 2008, for the second time in as many months, the Barriere Lake Algonquin community blockaded Provincial Highway 117, a busy resource distribution route used by Canadian logging companies and other industries. The Quebec Provincial police—Sûreté du Québec (SQ)—again responded with excessive force.
Starting at 7:00 a.m., approximately 100 Algonquins and twenty settler (non-indigenous) supporters constructed with downed trees a series of four blockades over a fifteen-kilometer stretch of Hwy 117, which includes the entrance to the Barriere Lake Reserve. Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) maintained a human rights observer presence at the blockades and on the road leading to the reserve from Highway 117.
The Barriere Lake Algonquin community was demanding that Canada and the province of Québec honour the Trilateral Agreement, signed in 1991 but not fully implemented. The United Nations considers the agreement an exemplary model for future treaties. It specifies the conditions under which logging and other resource use will occur in the traditional Algonquin territory. Currently Barriere Lake Algonquins live in extreme poverty on the fifty-nine acre reserve while logging and other activities throughout their traditional territory generates millions of dollars for corporations.
Police arrested community leader Marylynn Poucachiche early in the action despite her having indicated a willingness to dismantle the blockade. At the intersection of Highway 117 and the gravel road leading to the reserve, the Québec Provincial police enacted their own blockade, preventing free movement of Algonquins. The police maintained the barricade two and a half hours after Highway 117 had been cleared and traffic was flowing again. Furthermore, a riot squad arrived after traffic resumed and proceeded to push the Barriere Lake Algonquins and their supporters down the icy road towards the reserve. With their batons, the police forced those who could not keep up with the brisk pace, including elders, to run; some fell. As the riot squad swept the group down the road, they arrested three more people, including community leader Benjamin Nottaway. Between pushes, while an officer stood by, poised to fire tear gas, the incident commander warned the community to clear the road or face further arrests.
By not honouring the Trilateral Agreement, the Québec government lays the foundation for violent police responses to peaceful Algonquin resistance. Christian Peacemaker Teams calls on the Canadian and Québec governments to abide by the Trilateral Agreement signed with the Barriere Lake Algonquins.
24 November 2008
Barriere Lake, QC: Barriere Lake Algonquins face riot squad again
On 19 November 2008, for the second time in as many months, the Barriere Lake Algonquin community blockaded Provincial Highway 117, a busy resource distribution route used by Canadian logging companies and other industries. The Quebec Provincial police—Sûreté du Québec (SQ)—again responded with excessive force.
Starting at 7:00 a.m., approximately 100 Algonquins and twenty settler (non-indigenous) supporters constructed with downed trees a series of four blockades over a fifteen-kilometer stretch of Hwy 117, which includes the entrance to the Barriere Lake Reserve. Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) maintained a human rights observer presence at the blockades and on the road leading to the reserve from Highway 117.
The Barriere Lake Algonquin community was demanding that Canada and the province of Québec honour the Trilateral Agreement, signed in 1991 but not fully implemented. The United Nations considers the agreement an exemplary model for future treaties. It specifies the conditions under which logging and other resource use will occur in the traditional Algonquin territory. Currently Barriere Lake Algonquins live in extreme poverty on the fifty-nine acre reserve while logging and other activities throughout their traditional territory generates millions of dollars for corporations.
Police arrested community leader Marylynn Poucachiche early in the action despite her having indicated a willingness to dismantle the blockade. At the intersection of Highway 117 and the gravel road leading to the reserve, the Québec Provincial police enacted their own blockade, preventing free movement of Algonquins. The police maintained the barricade two and a half hours after Highway 117 had been cleared and traffic was flowing again. Furthermore, a riot squad arrived after traffic resumed and proceeded to push the Barriere Lake Algonquins and their supporters down the icy road towards the reserve. With their batons, the police forced those who could not keep up with the brisk pace, including elders, to run; some fell. As the riot squad swept the group down the road, they arrested three more people, including community leader Benjamin Nottaway. Between pushes, while an officer stood by, poised to fire tear gas, the incident commander warned the community to clear the road or face further arrests.
By not honouring the Trilateral Agreement, the Québec government lays the foundation for violent police responses to peaceful Algonquin resistance. Christian Peacemaker Teams calls on the Canadian and Québec governments to abide by the Trilateral Agreement signed with the Barriere Lake Algonquins.
