Canadian military planned deception, ambushes and killing of Mohawks, Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad in new counterinsurgency manualBy Brenda Norrell
Human Rights Editor
U.N. OBSERVER & International Report
Human Rights Editor
U.N. OBSERVER & International Report
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The Canadian military's draft counterinsurgency manual exposes how the so-called "war on terror" is a mask to authorize torture and murders, that ultimately profit corporations and profiteering politicians.
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With a copy of the draft manual, the Globe and Mail reported, "Radical natives are listed in the Canadian army’s counterinsurgency manual as a potential military opponent, lumping aboriginals in with the Tamil Tigers, Hezbollah and the Islamic Jihad."
Caught in the act by the media, and exposed by Mohawk Nation News, the Canadian government is now backpedaling.
The Canadian government now says Aboriginal organizations won't be included as security threats like the Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad in a new counterinsurgency manual.
However, the Globe and Mail reported Saturday that the military draft manual recommends deception, ambushes and the killing of insurgents, which included Mohawks.
Canada's draft counterinsurgency manual reflects the tactics of the counterinsurgency manual used by the United States' School of the Americas for decades in Central and South America. As in Canada, Indigenous Peoples in the south were fighting for survival, and to retain their land, water and resources. Corporations acted with impunity and carried out the campaign of genocide.
Indigenous Peoples were raped, tortured, murdered and disappeared by the paramilitaries and Latin leaders trained by the School of the Americas. Renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security, protesters continue to be arrested each year at the Fort Benning, Georgia site. In violation of the Geneva Conventions, the U.S. secret system of torture and disappearances continues at secret international prisons and Guantanamo Bay.
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Mohawk Nation News: Canada's military plots war crimes against Indigenous Peoples
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2007/03/canada-military-plots-war-crimes.html
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Caught in the act by the media, and exposed by Mohawk Nation News, the Canadian government is now backpedaling.
The Canadian government now says Aboriginal organizations won't be included as security threats like the Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad in a new counterinsurgency manual.
However, the Globe and Mail reported Saturday that the military draft manual recommends deception, ambushes and the killing of insurgents, which included Mohawks.
Canada's draft counterinsurgency manual reflects the tactics of the counterinsurgency manual used by the United States' School of the Americas for decades in Central and South America. As in Canada, Indigenous Peoples in the south were fighting for survival, and to retain their land, water and resources. Corporations acted with impunity and carried out the campaign of genocide.
Indigenous Peoples were raped, tortured, murdered and disappeared by the paramilitaries and Latin leaders trained by the School of the Americas. Renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security, protesters continue to be arrested each year at the Fort Benning, Georgia site. In violation of the Geneva Conventions, the U.S. secret system of torture and disappearances continues at secret international prisons and Guantanamo Bay.
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Mohawk Nation News: Canada's military plots war crimes against Indigenous Peoples
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2007/03/canada-military-plots-war-crimes.html
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Aboriginals listed as terrorists and insurgents says Fontaine
April 2, 2007 - by Joseph Quesnel
Canada First Perspective
A national Aboriginal leader is asking Ottawa to ensure that Aboriginal groups are removed from a federal National Defense document which lists militant Aboriginal groups alongside other radical groups.
Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine today demanded that the federal government immediately remove any reference to First Nations in a Department of National Defense draft counter-insurgency manual listing international terrorist threats. According to a report by The Globe and Mail, radical Native American organizations such as the Mohawk Warriors Society are listed in the training manual as insurgents, alongside other insurgent groups.
"Any reference to First Nations people as possible insurgents or terrorists is a direct attack on us - it demonizes us, it threatens our safety and security and attempts to criminalize our legitimate right to live our lives like all other Canadians do. Just being referenced in such a document compromises our freedom to travel across borders, have unimpeded telephone and internet communications, raise money, and protest against injustices to our people," stated AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine.
"I am calling upon Prime Minister Stephen Harper to immediately and without reservation, reject and remove any references to First Nations from all versions of the training manual."
"It is shocking and outrageous to learn that the Canadian military would consider First Nations people as insurgents or equate us to Hezbollah or Hamas. Not only is there not a shred of evidence to make this link, First Nations have always served Canada well by their contributions to the Canadian services. Such absurd allegations only serve to undermine respect for the military and lead us to believe we will not be able to rely on their protection the way other Canadians do."
Fontaine also pointed out that the revelation of Aboriginal groups within the training manual also comes after the federal government said that they aggressively audit and possibly cut off funding provided to First Nations organizations who participate in, or support the National Day of Action on June 29th, which the federal government has said may include illegal blockades and other activities.
"Taken with the report that we are included in the list of insurgent organisations in the military's manual, raises serious questions about the federal government's respect for freedom of speech and freedom of assembly for First Nations people. It appears that they want to silence us," said Fontaine, in the release.
"The proposed June 29th National Day of Action is intended to bring focus to and generate awareness of the deplorable social - economic status of First Nations peoples in this country. Too often, First Nations poverty and the injustices suffered by our communities are not well understood. We aim to begin changing that by reaching out to Canadians and by putting our issues and our solutions front and center. First Nations people are people of integrity and we will abide by the rule of law while exercising our right to free speech," said the National Chief.
The Assembly of First Nations is the national organization which purports to represent First Nations citizens in Canada.
Monday, April 2, 2007, Canada squirms more:
Final version of terror report will not refer to natives, O'Connor says
BILL CURRY
Globe and Mail
OTTAWA -- References to radical natives in the Canadian army's counterinsurgency manual will not appear in the final version of the document, Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor has announced.
The use of "radical Native American organizations" as an example of insurgents in a draft version of the manual has incensed native leaders, who viewed the wording as a threat to their political rights to protest.
Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine said yesterday the inclusion of natives in the manual could threaten the ability of Canadian natives to travel internationally.
But in a written statement, Mr. O'Connor explained that the document was simply making reference to past examples of insurgencies and was not meant to suggest that natives in Canada are a potential military target.
"The draft counterinsurgency manual was produced in September, 2005, under the previous government. The draft manual is not a final document, and continues to evolve and be updated," the statement from the minister said.
"The final version will not contain references to any current aboriginal organizations. The draft manual does not make comparisons between aboriginal groups and any insurgent groups," he stated.
"The draft manual does not state that any other particular group is a potential target of the Canadian military . . . What the draft document does do is use examples of past insurgencies from Canada and abroad to illustrate how some groups have resorted to violence or the threat of violence in the past in order to gain political influence or concessions."
The minister's office said the draft manual has been used to train Canadian soldiers for the mission in Afghanistan. The reference to natives will be removed because the manual is only for use in relation to that mission, a spokeswoman said.
The Globe published a report on the manual on Saturday. The report noted that the Mohawk Warrior Society was involved in the 1990 Oka crisis in Quebec, which spawned a 78-day confrontation with police and the military that left a police officer dead.
The draft manual's 164 pages outline a wide range of measures that could be used to assess, manage and defeat an insurgency.
On the 11th page, under the heading "Overview of insurgencies and counter-insurgencies," a paragraph is highlighted, which states: "The rise of radical Native American organizations, such as the Mohawk Warrior Society, can be viewed as insurgencies with specific and limited aims. Although they do not seek complete control of the federal government, they do seek particular political concessions in their relationship with national governments and control (either overt or covert) of political affairs at a local/reserve ("First Nation") level, through the threat of, or use of, violence."
There is no other mention of natives in the manual, nor does the manual add further context as to why that paragraph is included.
Five pages later, the manual gives other examples of insurgents, listing Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah and the Tamil Tigers.
Mr. Fontaine issued a statement yesterday describing the mention of radical natives as "shocking."
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CFRA Radio
DND Dismisses Report on Counterinsurgency Manual
Josh Pringle Saturday, March 31, 2007
A statement from the office of Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor says the "final version will not contain references to any current aboriginal organizations."
O'Connor's office calls a manual for the Canadian Military a draft only.
The Globe and Mail says the draft manual lists "radical Native American Organizations" as potential opponents.
The draft version puts the radical Canadian aboriginals among security threats such as Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad.
The document outlines measures the military might use to fight insurgents at home and abroad.
The Defence Department calls the report "speculative, sensational and inaccurate."
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Breaking News links on Canada's counterinsurgency manual:
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&ie=UTF-8&q=mohawk+manual&scoring=d
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Globe and Mail
Forces’ terror manual lists natives with Hezbollah
BILL CURRY
From Saturday’s Globe and Mail
OTTAWA — Radical natives are listed in the Canadian army’s counterinsurgency manual as a potential military opponent, lumping aboriginals in with the Tamil Tigers, Hezbollah and the Islamic Jihad.The military is putting the finishing touches on the manual, but adraft version of the document obtained by The Globe and Mail outlines ahost of measures the military might use to fight insurgents at home andabroad. The measures include ambushes, deception and killing. The draft manual was produced in September, 2005, and recently released through an access-to-information request. A final edited version of the army manual is expected to be complete within months, but a coverletter states that the draft version was immediately circulated in 2005to army units for military training. Its inclusion of “radical Native American Organizations” as a potential target of military action surfaces at a time of heightened tensions between aboriginals and the federal government. “The rise of radical Native American organizations, such as the MohawkWarrior Society, can be viewed as insurgencies with specific and limited aims,” the manual states. “Although they do not seek complete control of the federal government, they do seek particular political concessions in their relationship with national governments and control (either overt or covert) of political affairs at a local/reserve (‘First Nation’) level, through the threat of, or use of, violence,”the manual states. The Mohawk Warrior Society was involved in the 1990 Oka crisis inQuebec, which spawned a 78-day confrontation with police and themilitary that left a police officer dead. The society normally describes more militant natives from the traditional Mohawk territory,covering parts of Quebec, Ontario, Vermont and New York State. Stewart Phillip, the Grand Chief of the Union of British ColumbiaIndian Chiefs who recently predicted “a summer of aboriginal protest”in response to the perceived lack of action on native poverty in thefederal budget, said he is “absolutely outraged” by the manual.“It’s a complete attack on our political rights,” he said.“What we’re seeing,” Mr. Phillip continued, “is the deliberate criminalization of the efforts of aboriginal people to march, demonstrate and rally to draw public attention to the crushing poverty that is the reality within our communities.”Native leaders who are not regarded as militant have called for asummer of protest over a perceived lack of attention from Ottawa on issues such as native poverty and land claims.Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice has responded with warnings of financial penalties for any native group that uses federal money to plan such protests.“Working together to find common solutions is a much more constructive way of dealing with issues than planning blockades,” he said in a letter to The Globe and Mail this week.The manual defines an insurgency as “the actions of a minority group within a state who are intent on forcing political change by means of of subversion, propaganda and military pressure, aiming to persuade or intimidate the broad mass of people to accept such a change.”Counterinsurgency, according to the manual, involves “much more” than simply military action, and can include psychological measures aimed at defeating an insurgency. Much of the manual appears to be aimed at Canadian missions in failedor failing states where various factions are fighting for power. Among the army’s proposed measures are “deception operations” to fool the insurgent and “physical destruction” of the enemy.“Attrition will be necessary, but the number of insurgents killed should be no more than is absolutely necessary to achieve success,” the manual states. The Canadian Forces were not able to find someone yesterday who could comment on the manual. It is therefore unclear whether this is thefirst such manual created for the military or whether natives have previously been listed by the army. The most recent protest by natives led to arrests and charges yesterdayfor three men connected to the blockade of Quebec’s Highway 117 onMarch 12 and 13. The highway is the Abitibi region’s main link to the south, a nd theblockade caused major concern for the residents of Val-d’Or andRouyn-Noranda.Among those arrested was Guillaume Carle, the controversial leader ofthe recently formed Confederation of Aboriginal People of Canada. Mr.Carle led the protest of about 50 people, many of whom were carrying rifles. Mr. Carle has claimed in the past to have the support of the MohawkWarrior Society, but people claiming to be from that society denied involvement.
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Toronto Sun
Natives blast rebel label
By JORGE BARRERA, NATIONAL BUREAU
The military's decision to identify the Mohawk Warrior Society and "radical Native American organizations" as insurgents in a draft version of a guerrilla warfare field manual has sparked concern among First Nations.
In an article titled Canada's Military Plots War Crimes Against Indigenous People, which is circulating on blogs and chatboards, the Mohawk Nation News Network says labelling Natives as insurgents raises troubling questions.
"Why are weapons being pointed at us? We are defenceless. Why are we being compared with the Taliban who have rockets, artillery and modern weapons to blow up U.S., Canadian and British tanks that are inches thick?" asks Kahentinetha Horn, the network's editor.
"Does Canada's Parliament or the Canadian people know about this genocidal action that is being done in their name? Since when is it legal to make plans to attack us?"
Under the heading "Overviews of insurgencies and counter-insurgencies," the manual says Native "insurgencies" differ because they have "specific and limited aims."
"Although they do not seek complete control of the federal government, they do seek political concessions ... and control (either overt or covert) of political affairs at a local/reserve (First Nation) level, through the threat of, or use of, violence."
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The Canadian Press:
... Stewart Phillip, the Grand Chief of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs who predicted "a summer of aboriginal protest" in response to the perceived lack of action on native poverty in the federal budget, said he is "absolutely outraged" by the manual.
