[IPSM] [Fwd: MNN Foreign Legion Rules! Renegade Judge Sentences Kanehsatake Mohawks]
Ahniwanika
willowtree at mts.net
Sun Jan 22 08:42:11 PST 2006
This is long and important. Hope you can read it all.
**
*FOREIGN LEGION RULES! RENEGADE JUDGE SENTENCES KANEHSATAKE MOHAWKS*
MNN. Jan. 20, 2006. The Mohawk political
prisoners of Kanehsatake were sentenced on January 20^th 2006 in St.
Jerome Quebec. A stacked white jury had found them guilty of “rioting
and confinement”. They stood up to 67 paid mercenaries who invaded
their community on January 12^th 2004. A mercenary is a paid soldier.
Payment had come through a stolen private corporation illegally funded
by the Solicitor General of Canada with Canadian tax dollars. They
were hired to make an end run around the legally constituted Kanehsatake
Police Commission.
Former Public Security Minister, Jacques Chagnon recently
affirmed in a CBC Radio interview, “These mercenaries were very heavily
armed”.
*Investigations are not complete. *
Were those 30,000 bullets or 30,000 rounds of ammunition?
There are only 1,500 people in Kanehsatake, including the elderly and
newborn babies! How many bullets does it take to kill a Mohawk anyway?
Chagnon was shocked by the arsenal that was
later found. A minister has a right to assume that information he is
being given is complete and accurate and that operations are being
conducted according to the law. He publicly declared that the
Kahehsatake raid was illegal and had never given his permission for what
happened.
Chagnon raised serious questions. Jeff Boro and Daniel
Lighter, the lawyers for the wrongly convicted Kanehsatake defenders,
filed a motion asking Judge Duval Hesler to vacate her convictions and
re-open the trial because of this new evidence. They pointed out that
they had asked on countless occasions for disclosure which was denied
them by the Crown, Francois Briere. Chagnon’s announcement was proof
that the legality of the mercenary commando raid was in question.
This is what MNN and the audience that filled two courtrooms
and filed into the halls saw. The other reporters didn’t seem to see
anything. Even though the Liberals are at the point of collapse because
of corruption, they did not report on the main issues.
*Solicitor General backed operation*
The illegally funded Canadian foreign legion got a $900,000
grant from the Solicitor General’s Office. Their operations were guided
by the Quebec Police and RCMP. How deep does corruption go in Canada?
When the interlopers entered the Police Station on that cold
morning, they were surrounded by a crowd of elders, women, children and
unarmed citizens. At the time none of them knew where the funding came
from. But it was obvious that something was fishy. The community’s
Police Commission had been completely ignored. The whole situation
revived queasy memories of the SQ and Canadian army invasion that
provoked the Oka Crisis of 1990. Instead of defending law and order and
investigating the legitimate concerns of the people, renegade chief
James Gabriel got the Crown Prosecutor to lay charges. At the trial the
jury let off all the women and went after the men. Now these men are
going to jail.
*Supporters filled the court*
* *
Hundreds of supporters, student activists, family members
and media were there. There were dozens of cameras, radio and
television reporters. The defendants arrived in a white stretch limo
and waved the warrior flag to the cheers of the crowd as they entered
the court house. The area was surrounded with heavy duty police. The
doors were guarded by cops with guns and big guts, looking like extras
from a “Dukes of Hazzard” remake.
*New evidence presented*
* *
Boro started the hearing by providing the Judge with a way
out. Chagnon had gone public. Boro pointed out that Judge Duval Hesler
could vacate her convictions and re-open the trial to ensure that
justice was done. He diplomatically downplayed the Crown Prosecutor’s
chronic suppression of evidence. Lighter listed the demands.
Crown Prosecutor, Francois “/Who has it in for
the Mohawks/” Briere seems to have found his calling. He once trained
for the priesthood, but God wasn’t his thing. Rumors circulate at
Kanehsatake that he had worked as an advisor to James Gabriel. If the
rumors are true, this could be very partisan indeed.
Lighter concluded that he could cry about the
injustice of the convictions if the motion is not granted. Judge Duval
Hesler said, “No need. Consider it done”. To her it was just an
opinion. Two Gazette newspaper articles and the taped Radio Canada
interview of Chagnon were entered as evidence. The mood in the
courtroom was hopeful. It looked like the guys carrying their Indian
luggage - plastic bags with a change of underwear in case of arrest -
were unduly pessimistic.
It was open to Briere to support this move in
the interests of justice. The court could then have adjourned and set a
new date to review the new evidence.
Instead Briere went for the jugular. He refused
to acknowledge the justice of the submissions he had just heard. He
claimed his suppression of evidence was irrelevant. It looked like he
wanted to avoid hearing from people who knew what had really happened
behind the scenes. Briere made all kinds of excuses for his own
incompetence by admitting he was disorganized, didn’t have enough staff
and had no investigators. “We did our best”, he claimed. Well, he got
the results he wanted. Criminal convictions are supposed to be proven
beyond a reasonable doubt.
He whined on and on saying, “We have passed the
11^th hour”. By now the crowd was getting nervous. He obviously wanted
to throw these guys in jail. The big red lips painted on Judge Duval
Hesler’s face spread into a ghoulish grim like the Cheshire cat in
“Alice in Wonderland”. The sight drove a dagger into the hearts of the
mothers and children in the audience.
Lighter said, “Hey, this is not Texas! Are you
suggesting that the switch be pulled?”
*Ignoring due process and new evidence*
The need to reopen the trial was obvious. Briere ignored
it, even though he had new evidence himself. He read out an internal
RCMP “memo” that allegedly showed Chagnon had once supported the
operation. Briere claimed this made it a legal attack. He said, “The
Minister is not a member of the bar”.
A new trial would have given the court and the
jury a chance to review the evidence properly and bring in witnesses for
cross-examination.
Lots of new evidence has come to light since the
trial. Attorney General of Quebec, Bernard Roy, has signed an affidavit
stating that the goons didn’t follow the law. Jacques Beaupre of the SQ
investigated and reported on the Kanehsatake takeover. He felt that the
operation was illegal. Chagnon said it took place without his
permission. These are 3 authoritative opinions that this operation
violated Canadian law.
Judge Duval Hesler ignored the new evidence
coming from both sides. She said that she relies on a Band Council
Resolution as the authority for the attack. A BCR is an internal
document. By law a warrant is needed for such an operation and they
didn’t have one.
It looks like lie after lie to cover up a lie.
It’s looking more and more like the final decision for the attack was
made right from a building on top of a hill with a good view of the
Ottawa River. The Mohawks continue to wonder what’s behind it all.
Why were mercenaries sent into Kanehsatake? She ignored the
legally constituted Police Commission.
The scales of justice are blind and deaf. A
judge is supposed to hold the scales of justice and balance the points
of view of all parties. What this judge did was to hop onto Briere’s
side of the scale and knocked him right off. Sentences are supposed to
be based on precedents so everyone is treated fairly. The most Briere
thought he could ask for was 4 to 6 months. Judge Duval Hesler decided
that wasn’t enough because the Mohawks were not apologetic. She doubled
and tripled the maximum sentences.
*Judge Duval Hesler’s 20 minute sermon (on the mount)*
* *
* *Judge Duval Hesler had pre-written planned out
reasons. She sat like a preacher giving a sermon. To the audience it
sounded like she was saying, “We colonial settlers won’t accept backtalk
from you Injuns. The ex-Minister’s comments don’t mean anything to me.
See here, I’m the boss. It’s okay for police to take a “gang busters”
made-for-television approach. Yah, it was extreme, but that’s no excuse”.
She said, “This case is not about ethnic
conflict. It’s about the rule of law”. We Mohawks agree. What did she
think the fuss was about? The goon squad was illegal.
We also agree that it is important to listen to
and respect other points of view. This is what our constitution, the
Kaianereh’ko:wa, is all about. Judge Duval Hesler was completely blind
to what things look like from our side of the track. She gave a biased
characterization of the events and ignored very significant evidence.
She didn’t want to hear about the concerns of the people who were
worried about the illegal occupation of their police station.
The Mohawks were reasonable and calmly gathered
around the police station to express their concern over the attempted
coup. They had no part in the burning of James Gabriel’s house. Her
repeated mention of this incident was highly prejudicial. She claimed
that the tractors that arrived shook up the whole building. The building
is still standing unscathed. Judge Duval Hesler failed to mention that
the illegal GI Joes inside were armed to the teeth with high calibre
weapons. As Chagnon said, the illegal army had all the weapons. The
worse harm she could cite was the interception of a pizza delivery. The
protestors paid for the order and ate it. “They were so nasty”, she
said.
The back doors were also blocked by heavy
equipment. The shovel on the payloaders were pounded on the ground to
try to get the attention of those inside. Someone might even have
pounded the ground with a baseball bat. There were no injuries and
property damage. Judge Duval Hesler did not mention the drumming
outside and the singing. People started a fire to keep warm and make
coffee. The people acted with impeccable restraint at all times. This
is a riot?
The illegal goons didn’t come out for 73 hours.
Kanehsatake has been held hostage for over two centuries. Judge Duval
Hesler made it clear that the state of siege is not about to end. The
local police commissioners went in and out trying to resolve it.
Finally the Kahnawake Peacekeepers came in and escorted the legionnaires
out. Judge Duval Hesler said, “So the trial convicted 13 out of 19
criminals”. To her every Mohawk is a criminal.
*It goes both ways*
If she really believes that respect for the law
is fundamental, why doesn’t she look into the mercenaries’ occupation of
the police station? If she wants a peaceful and safe society, why did
she threaten us by throwing kerosene onto the flames of community
discontent?
*They are unremorseful*
Judge Duval Hesler accused us of being
“rehabilitatable” and “unremorseful”. Is she? She hasn’t shown any
remorse for her flagrant racism! She wanted revenge. Because she was
in a position of power, she got it. At the last hearing, she wanted
them to apologize to those rotten chiefs and their hired guns. They
refused.
“These criminals are not open to other points of
view. They don’t know how to criticize themselves”. Hey! Look in the
mirror, lady. She’s got enough for all of us ten times over. To add
insult to injury, she ridiculed one defendant’s effort to heal the
wounds in the community. He had put out a one-page photo copied
newssheet in Kanehsatake. What did she expect, The New York Times?
People in Kanehsatake don’t live on judge’s salaries. Judge Duval
Hesler didn’t like the criticism of the illegal council. She should
read the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom which guarantees freedom
of opinion. She seems to think there’s something wrong with us just
because we wont agree to accept colonial oppression.
The sentences she dished out got heavier as she
went on. The first sentences were for unlawful assembly. Some got a
conditional discharge and had to make a $500 donation to a legally
constituted colonial charity. Others had to do community service and
pay fines of $500 to $1000, which could be turned into jail terms if
unpaid. She probably wants them to go to her place and clean out her
shed and scrub her bathroom floor.
Then she got onto the “rioting and forcible
confinement”. She declared, “This shows contempt for legally
constituted authority”. She called their actions, “a violent show of
force” meant to scare the living Jesus out of these goons. Swearing and
sticking your tongue out scared her dear mercenaries who were armed to
the teeth with the latest military guns and gizmos. “We could send you
away for 10 years”, threatened the power drunk judge. She seems to
think that the “might makes right” legal system deserves respect because
it has the big guns.
There was whispering among the audience, “Gee!
Is this what democracy means? That judge makes it sound like a dirty
word”.
“There are other ways to be heard without taking
the law into one’s hands”, she declared. Sure, you have the big budget
public relations company constantly pouring out Mohawk bashing
propaganda so no one will listen to us.
*The sentenced*
Our convicted and sentenced “heroes” are:
Stewart Conway, Keith Cree, Joseph Daye, Bradley Gabriel, Gary Gabriel,
Milton Gabriel, Robert Gabriel, Gordon Lazore, McDonald T. Nelson,
Hubert Nelson, Allister Nicholas, Francois Pinsonneault and Terry Yaxley.
Judge Duval Hesler obviously wanted controversy
and reaction. She did not take her own advice about following the rule
of law. We thought we heard her say, “Don’t you know? There’s a
special law for you Injuns.” Sentencing for rioting and forcible
confinement were given out in quick succession. Terms were for three,
four and six months. When she sentenced cousins, Robert and Bradley
Gabriel, to 12 months, the crowd gasped in shock and horror.
The audience jumped up and started yelling. One
screamed at Judge Duval Hesler, “You racist bitch”, “Nazi”, “Eva Braun”
among other colorful epithets.
Robert’s 14 year old daughter ran up to kiss her dad good-bye. The
guards tried to hold her back. The audience let her through.
The judge’s body guard reached into his pocket
for his gun or for comfort. “Are you gonna shoot us?” someone asked.
*Bound but unbowed*
* *
* *As they were escorted from the prisoner’s
dock, they remained calm and raised their handcuffed fists over their
heads to cheers from the crowd. “Don’t give up the fight” they told us.
The audience in both courtrooms broke into cheers and applause.
The Judge turned to our lawyers, “Can’t you
control your clients?”
“Our clients aren’t out of control”.
Judge Duval Hesler was in over her head. The
case was not about ‘rule of law’. It was about “Might makes right”.
The big guns win. She closed the session and then ran out of the court
room.
It was to resume in 30 minutes in the other
courtroom. One of the fat guards turned to John Harding who had been
sitting quietly in the back of the second court and said, “You have to
leave”. He left quietly without comment. The white middle class
university students were shocked and said, “Is this democracy? This is
ridiculous!” They went out and organized a loud rally in the hallway.
In the same courtroom someone said, “Liberal
judge! Conservative judge! Any way you look at it, you always get the
/ota/ end of the stick”. Everyone laughed.
Once the first courtroom was cleared, Judge
Duval Hesler reconvened the hearing. She quickly sentenced Gordon
Lazore and Gary to 15 months in jail and declared the hearing over.
Someone asked a question about the meaning of “conditional discharge”.
The prisoners and their lawyers were gone.
Briere complained that there had been no probation order made against
some of the sentences. Boro pointed out that the men in question and
their lawyer were absent. Judge Duval Hesler was undeterred. She
jacked up their sentences by tacking on probation orders. Does this
mean that a judge can tack on anything they please even though a trial
is over and you are gone?
During her sermon Judge Duval Hesler had just
said “there can’t be reconciliation without introspection” and being
open to other viewpoints”. What about you, lady? Let’s put you in the
slammer for a while. May you can learn some introspection. Try walking
in a Mohawk woman’s moccasin. Has she ever had 30,000 rounds of
ammunition aimed at her children? The nightmares are real for those who
live in them.
*The Sentences*
_For rioting and forcible confinement: _
15 months in jail: Gordon Lazore, Gary Gabriel,
12 months in jail: Robert Gabriel, Bradley Gabriel
Six months: Hubert Nelson
Four months: Allistair Nicholas
Three months: Terry Yaxley
_For unlawful assembly:_
$1,000 fine: Francois Pinsonneault
$600 fine: T. Nelson McDonald
$500 fine and 50 community hours: Joey Daye
_Conditional Discharge, $500 charitable donation:_
Milton Gabriel, Keith Cree, Stuart Conway
*‘Unbiased’ comments from supporters *
Ariwahkete said, “It’s a continuation of
colonialism”.
Holding warrior flag in front of them, the
Mohawk youth said, “We are the next generation”. This is one of the
strongest flags you will ever see.
Another said, “They got the wrong people. These
goons came with arms to our community to kill us. It was supposed to be
a massacre. Why aren’t they on trial?”
John said, “30,000 bullets divided by 1,500
people! Enough said!”
Sonia from the disbanded Police Commission said,
“This is malicious prosecution. There was no disclosure to the defense
to prove that this was a legal attack. Even after Chagnon revealed they
had a huge arsenal. They had every intention to kill us. They had
total disregard for the people. The federal government is responsible
The 67 should be charged criminally, along with James Gabriel, Doreen
Canatoquin, Marie Chene and Clarence Simon. This process is complete shit.”
Another said, “Our guys are heroes. /(Prime
Minister for now)/ Paul Martin is a terrorist”.
*Crowd control*
The crowd chanted, “We demand a public inquiry
and an investigation into the whole matter”. An appeal has been filed.
A bail hearing is taking place on Monday, January 23^rd. in the Montreal
Court of Appeal.
Judge Duval Hesler wanted to show our young
people that colonialism isn’t dead. She’s worried that colonial
society’s efforts to colonize us are a dismal failure. “Hey guys!
Don’t you feel you’ve done something wrong?” we thought we heard her ask.
The Indigenous Sage, the Great Red-X, has advice
for times like this on how to avoid rehabilitation, which is really
brainwashing. “Always be true to your own people, no matter the
punishment or the foreign laws used to try to kill your spirit. Keep
yourself in good condition because the next generation is watching you.
They need you to be a good example.”
Our men remained stoic throughout, while we
loudly voiced our opinions. Our anger shows our refusal to accept
colonial mistreatment was valid, even after Judge Duval Hesler revised
her sentences and made them stiffer. We told the system we will keep
resisting genocide and will tell the world about it.
If Judge Duval Hesler wanted drama, she got it good. (Black
Eyed Peas: Lovely Lady Lumps).
/“Hey lady, whatcha gonna do with all that junk, all that junk inside
your trunk. Lie, since you won’t listen to the evidence. Whatcha gonna
do with all that colonial junk. I am a’gonna get you drunk, make you
scream, make you scream”. /
*New definition for “rioter”*
Jeff Heinrich of the Montreal Gazette is working
on a new legal definition of the word “rioter”: “anyone who objects to
illegal use of force in the name of the law”. He was either asleep at
the wheel or is involved in the plot. He missed the big story. Hasn’t
he noticed that the rule of law was trashed by Canadian politicians,
cops and bureaucrats?
The Indigenous people are sick and tired of
media defamation. Maybe the rule of law is too complex for ordinary
Canadians to understand, or maybe it’s the media that doesn’t explain it
properly. The media is supposed to educate the public. Instead it’s
dumbing them down.
*The end for now*
True, the mercenaries did suffer the unrequited
lust to disrobe an all-dressed pizza. All she could say was what
sounded like, “15 months for you. 9 months for you. 12 months for
you. None for me”. 67 cops all crowded into that small police
station. Were they going to try out all their new weapons? Is that
what it was all about? Or was the pepper spray the spice of choice for
their pizza?
Kahentinetha Horn
MNN Mohawk Nation News
Kahentinetha2 at yahoo.com
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