ZGram - 12/16/2002 - "Hate crime charges for the Indian Chief?"

[irimland@zundelsite.org]

ZGram - Where Truth is Destiny

December 16, 2002

Good Morning from the Zundelsite:

Yesterday's ZGram told you that a bombshell of sorts exploded in the 
Great White North and was widely published and broadcast on media 
networks from coast to coast in Canada and via the Internet all over 
the world:  An Indian chief misspoke himself in politically incorrect 
ways - and not a few of us were wondering if "hate charges" would 
follow.

Guess what?  Here is a follow-up!

A Zundelsite comment:  If the Jewish leadership succeeds in dragging 
the old Indian Chief through a criminal trial, they will make the 
same mistake they did with the Zundel trials earlier!  Can't you see 
Doug Christie, the world-famous Battling Barrister, flanked by Indian 
Braves in full war paint glory, clashing mightily with the Forever 
Persecuted who stand there, wringing hands, oy veying?  Can a movie 
be then far behind?  Such a scenario  could well amount to a version 
of Custer's Last Stand - Blockbuster Glory, in my book!

[START]

Could Native Leaders Be Charged
With "Advocating &
Promoting Genocide"?
By Erin Anderssen
The Globe and Mail
12-16-2

A prominent Jewish group in Canada is calling for a hate-crimes 
investigation after a former national native chief publicly applauded 
Adolf Hitler for the six millions Jews "fried" in the Holocaust. 
Keith Landy, president of the Canadian Jewish Congress, suggested the 
Saskatchewan government should consider criminal charges against 
David Ahenakew, a former leader of the Assembly of First Nations, the 
country's most prominent native organization.
 
"There's no doubt that the police should be looking into this," Mr. 
Landy said. "These statements cannot be made with impunity." In an 
interview with a Saskatchewan journalist after a public speech before 
a provincial native group, Mr. Ahenakew was quoted as saying that the 
genocide Hitler ordered against Jews and other ethnic groups was an 
attempt to "clean up the world." "That's how Hitler came in," he told 
the Saskatoon Star Phoenix. "He was going to make damn sure that the 
Jews didn't take over Germany and Europe.
 
That's why he fried six million of those guys, you know. Jews would 
have owned the goddamned world. And look what they're doing. They're 
killing people in Arab countries." Mr. Ahenakew, 68, who headed the 
AFN in the 1980s and remains a prominent native statesman, had been 
invited to speak before a meeting of the Federation of Saskatchewan 
Indian Nations, a group he once led. The subject of the meeting was 
new Health Canada policy requiring natives to sign consent forms 
releasing medical information before they can obtain services. In his 
speech, the Star Phoenix reported, Mr. Ahenakew said that while he 
served with the Canadian Army in Germany in the 1950s, the Germans 
had told him the Jews started the Second World War. Asked by a 
reporter to clarify his statement, he saidhe agreed with the Germans, 
and in reference to the Holocaust, responded, "How do you get rid of 
a disease like that, that's going to take over, that's going to 
dominate?"
 
When it was pointed out to him that the Nazis had committed genocide, 
he said: "I don't support Hitler. But he cleaned up a hell of a lot 
of things, didn't he? You would be owned by Jews right now the world 
over." Mr. Ahenakew told the gathering that he has warned provincial 
officials "40 years down the road, we're going to be taking over 
[because of population growth among Indian people]. We're going to be 
the government. You [non-Indians] are going to be the Indians, and 
we're going to be the bosses. And you [the government] better start 
preparing right now." He also complained about bigotry in city 
schools. "My great-grandson goes to school here in Saskatoon.
 
These goddamned immigrants =F7 East Indians, Pakistanis, Afghanistan, 
whites and so forth =F7 call him a dirty little Indian. He's the 
cleanest of the old goddamn works there. That's what I'm saying. It's 
starting right there, at six years old." Mr. Ahenakew could not be 
reached for comment Sunday, but he was expected to meet Monday with 
the chief of the Saskatchewan native organization, Perry Bellegarde, 
to discuss his statements. Native leaders have made efforts to 
distance themselves from his comments. A spokesperson for the AFN 
stressed that the national association does not share his views. Mr. 
Bellegarde, who was not at the meeting, called the comments shocking 
and pointed out that Mr. Ahenakew is no longer an elected member of 
the federation. As a former provincial leader, he holds the honorary 
title of senator. He has a reputation for bold talk; most recently, 
he was quoted in July warning of an impending "physical 
confrontation" over native issues that neither the police nor the 
army would be able to stop. "We respect David," Mr. Bellegarde said 
Sunday.
 
"But his views on the Holocaust are his own personal views. His 
language and train of thought must have gotten off track. We don't 
try to push people apart and burn bridges."Mr. Bellegarde said he 
plans to send letters of apology to Canada's Jewish organizations. "I 
have to extend my hand," he said. Members of the Saskatoon Jewish 
community met Sunday to decide what action to take. Susanne Kaplan, 
president of the congregation Agudas Israel, said that she now plans 
to wait to hear from native leaders. "We'll see what they have to 
say." A criminal charge under the country's hate laws would require 
the consent of Saskatchewan's Attorney-General. The offence, defined 
as advocating and promoting genocide, carried a maximum sentence of 
five years in prison. Mr. Landy said his group will review the 
process for filing a complaint and gather input from other Jewish 
representatives in Saskatchewan. "One has to question what is the 
motivation and how deeply held are these views," said Mr. Landy, who 
wants to hear from the native community. "This is the time for good 
people to speak up."
 
Another former head of the Assembly of First Nations, Phil Fontaine, 
called Mr. Ahenakew's comments intolerable, but declined to comment 
on whether they constituted a hate crime.

"[Aboriginals] have been subject to all kinds of similar experience 
with racism; I don't know why we should turn around and inflict that 
on other people. You can imagine if it was directed at us as first 
nations people; there would be a great hue and cry."

[END]
 
(Source: 
http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/front/RTGAM/20021216/wxnati1=
216 
/Front/homeBN/breakingnews )