Six women arrested at sit-in at Chuck Strahl's office
March 29, 2010 - 1:58pm
From Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women
Peaceful protesters are demanding reinstatement of funding to Aboriginal Health Foundation
At 12:50pm on Monday, March 29th RCMP officers arrested six women who were peacefully refusing to leave Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl’s office until he pledged to restore funding to the Aboriginal Health Foundation. The sit-in began at 12:05pm.
“By cutting the funding to the Aboriginal Healing Foundation and having us arrested for protesting these cuts, Harper is denying effective services to thousands of residential school survivors,” said Maya Rolbin-Ghanie, a member of the Montreal-based grassroots group Missing Justice.
Here is some more information on the sit in - they are asking for people to call:
Right now there is a peaceful sit-in in Chuck Strahl's office which is
located in the Confederation Building (Ottawa). Six female activists
from Montreal are refusing to leave until Mr. Strahl pledges to renew
the Aboriginal Healing Foundation funding.
The Aboriginal Healing Foundation (AHF) was established in 1998 and
was give a mandate to encourage and support, through research and
funding contributions, community-based Aboriginal-directed healing
initiatives to address the legacy of physical and sexual abuse
suffered in Canada's Residential School. During the past 10 years, 134
organizations have begun doing this work however with the 2010 budget,
all of the AHF funding has been cut. This will force many of these
organizations to close their doors on March 31st when the funding will
go into effect.
Please help us get the federal government to renew the Aboriginal
Healing Foundation by calling Mr. Strahl and ask him to renew the
funding and to bring up this question today in the House of Common's.
Chuck Strahl: 613-992-2940
604-847-9711
1-800-567-9604 (Complaints Coordinator)
It will only take a minute! and feel free to spread this e-mail WIDELY
Thank you,
Monica van Schaik (member of the sit-in)
Brava to these brave women!
Thanks kim, actioned.
Maybe they'll restore the funding if E.Tamaran goes there with his gun...
Just Kidding
Photos of some of the freedom fighters:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/powless/sets/72157623605240343/
Apparently there weren't any good shots form inside. These are all after they were released with minimal charges.
This is wonderful. I don't even pretend to know or understand the full issue or the background. An action like this needs to be recounted everywhere. It reminds me of Judy's occupation during the Gaza attack. These exploits have far greater repercussions than elections or debates or speeches or conferences. Bravo!
For various reasons I'm ambivalent about the AHF and this is not an issue I will be fighting, but it is very encouraging to see Aboriginal activists for whom this is a priority occupying Strahl's office to press their point.
What I find most disturbing about this is that they were arrested for peacefully protesting. Even though Strahl's desk may have a little sign with his name on it, his office is public property so they couldn't even legally be charged with trespassing. They were there during business hours.
The corruption under this government is getting more obvious. They don't have to follow the law but they sure don't hesitate to use it against us.
It's not against the law to protest but you can be arrested for it? WTF!
Funds for the Aboriginal Healing Foundation should be reinstated. it's the very least Harper should do.
In 2008 Ardoch Algonquin elder Bob Lovelace spent 3 months in prison for his resistance to uranium mining in eastern Ontario. This is his easter message to the PM:
An Easter Greeting to Steven Harper,
Easter seems a fitting time for a Christian to extend compassion to the innocent. Jesus forgave the thief. even while he suffered death himself. It's time that Steven Harper lived up to his moral code and reinstate funding for the Aboriginal Healing Foundation programs and services. Every Christian congregation in Canada should be demanding that Steven Harper at least live up to his promises. If those who we democratically give power to can not reflect through the use of that power the fundamental truths of wisdom, love, respect, bravery, honesty, humility and truth then we need to remove that power from their hands and give it to those who can.
Robert Lovelace
Harper is acting as Caesar.
He nails up victims and pounds in the spikes.
over and over.
His lust for destruction finds more it can brutalize.
In this country, in Afghanistan, wherever he expands his aggression.
Harper's Empire must be taken down, not simply allowed to fall in its own corruption.
For various reasons I'm ambivalent about the AHF and this is not an issue I will be fighting, but it is very encouraging to see Aboriginal activists for whom this is a priority occupying Strahl's office to press their point.
Does Aboriginal activist mean someone who is an activist and is Aboriginal, or does it mean someone who is active in Aboriginal issues?
None of these women are aboriginal. They themselves wanted that cleared up.