INAC Minister blames First Nation organizations and people for problems
Canoe.ca article ...
Native rhetoric blasted - Minister 'fearful' of violence
By JORGE BARRERA, NATIONAL BUREAU
Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice says First Nations leaders will be responsible for the consequences if they continue their heated rhetoric about a coming summer of "barricades, blockades and balaclavas."
Many First Nations leaders across the country reacted with outrage to the federal budget, which they say ignored the misery in many of their communities. They warned of impending confrontations if government does not start taking them seriously.
'ON THEIR HEADS'
"I think people should be responsible in their public comments. I don't agree with or condone people who are calling for those kinds of things because I am fearful that somebody will get hurt," said Prentice. "If that happens, it will be on the heads of people who are calling for that kind of conduct."
Members of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte community planned last night to reclaim a quarry 20 km east of Belleville that sits on land they say the federal government has admitted was stolen.
The Assembly of First Nations has also called for a national day of action June 29 that is expected to shut down some rail lines, highways and ports across the country.
Nunavut Liberal MP Nancy Karetak-Lindell, an Inuit, said it's the Conservative government triggering the unrest. She said Prentice "doesn't respect" aboriginal people.
'HE DOES NOT LISTEN'
"I don't think he actually cares about them. He does not listen to the people," said Lindell, usually a soft-spoken MP. "What I see from this government is a 1960s style of doing things for us again, without input."
The increased strife overshadowed what should have been a good news day for the Conservatives, who unveiled a progress report on First Nations drinking water. The government cut the number of "high-risk" water systems to 97 from 193 over the past year, said the report. Prentice, however, could not guarantee all on-reserve Natives would have clean water by next year.