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Joseph Tokwiroh Norton, a straight-talking, no-nonsense, down-to earth man who spent much of his life fighting for the rights of members of the Mohawk Nation and other Indigenious people in Canada, has died.

Norton, who served for nearly 30 years as the Grand Chief of Kahnawake, across the St. Lawrence River from Montreal, was 70.

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake confirmed Norton's death shortly after 9:30 p.m. Friday, saying he suffered a fall at his home in the afternoon and had been taken to hospital.

Grand Chief Joe Norton is pictured in Kahnawake on Sept. 18, 2018. (Graham Hughes/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

“He became known as a strong voice for Indigenous solidarity, defiance and determination. As a statesman, he carried a vision in continually striving for the advancement of Indigenous governance," the council said in a statement. 

Following the news of Norton's death, public figures paid tribute to Norton.

Yesterday, we lost Grand Chief Joe Norton, who was a dominant force in First Nations leadership for more than three decades. He was also a wonderful friend and mentor, and was always warm and supportive. My thoughts are with Joe’s family as he journeys to be with our Creator.

— Perry Bellegarde (@perrybellegarde) August 15, 2020

Assembly of First Nations Chief Perry Bellegarde described Norton as “a dominant force in First Nations leadership for more than three decades” as well as a wonderful friend and mentor in a tweet on Saturday.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also tweeted his consoldenes, writing that Norton was a "passionate advocate for his community and served with distinction." 

For three decades, Grand Chief Joseph Norton was a passionate advocate for his community and served with distinction. He leaves behind a remarkable legacy - and my thoughts are with his family, friends, and entire community as they mourn his passing.

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) August 15, 2020

Former Quebec native affairs minister Geoffrey Kelley remembered Norton as a very determined--but fair--leader.

“Joe Norton defined Mohawk pride,” Kelley told the Montreal Gazette in an interview..

“He was someone who stood up for his community, his people, his nation. He was a man who gave almost his whole life to leadership in his community, and he made a great contribution to Kahnawake and to Indigenous rights and Indigenous causes right across Canada. He was an extraordinary individual.”

Norton first gained public attention as a key Mohawk negotiator during the 1990 Oka Crisis--a 78-day standoff between Quebec Mohawks and Canadian soldiers over the proposed expansion of a golf course near the town of Oka. 

(In 2002, Norton was honoured with a National Aboriginal Achievement Award (now known as Indspire) for Public Service in 2002, for his role as a key negotiator in the Oka crisis.) 

He later negotiated agreements with Quebec government ensuring more power.

Members of the Quebec government and Native leaders talk to the media in Quebec City regarding a preliminary agreement to remove the barricade at Oka. on Aug. 2, 1990. From left are Lauwrence Cantoreille, Joe Norton, Mohawk chief of Kahnawaka, John Ciaccia, minister of Native Affairs, Quebec premier Robert Bourassa and Konrad Sioui, of the Assembly of First Nations. (Clement Allard/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

This past February, Norton spoke out against a court order to dismantle a railway blockade in the community, which had been erected in support of Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs, saying Quebec provincial police and the police service operated by the Canadian Pacific Railway had no place in the community.

A long-time ironworker, a former star lacrosse player and a fluent speaker of Kanien'kéha,

A coalition of over 20 community groups in Montreal have released an outline of 10 demands to slice the budget of Montreal’s police force in half and reinvest that money into community programs, during a news conference yesterday.

The Defund the Police Coalition other demands includes to disarming and demilitarizing the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), as well as decriminalize all drugs, sex work and HIV status.

The coalition wants the funds deducted from the SPVM’s budget to be redirected into programs created and run by communities to prevent harm including harms related to violence, mental illness and drug use. 

“Defunding is not just about taking money away from the police, it’s about reinvesting into Black and Indigenous communities. Communities that have been deeply divested from and that suffer daily from police violence and criminalization,” Marlihan Lopez of Black Lives Matter Montreal said at a news conference on Tuesday. “It’s about choosing an economy of care over an economy of punishment.”

According to the city of Montreal, the SPVM had an operating budget of about $662 million in 2019. 

The coalition also advocates for an investment in Indigenous models of justice and empower Indigenous communities to address all harms committed by Indigenous people, and to empower other oppressed communities, especially Black communities, to run similar approaches to justice. 

“We must create structures and mechanisms that build resilient, safe, and compassionate communities,” a statement on Defund the Police Coalition's website said. “It is our hope and mission that we may live in a society void of policing, one where neglected communities may thrive, and justice for all Montrealers is upheld.”

Last month, when Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante was asked about reforming the police, she said it was a “big, big conversation.”

Quebec has been called out for systemic racism in the past. Just last month, anti-racism demonstrations were held in Montreal, Quebec City, Sherbrooke, and Rimouski, to demand an end to police harrassment and discrimination. 

In October of 2019, three independent researchers found systemic bias in street checks done by the SPVM and said that Indignenous and Black people were four to five times more likely to be stopped by police than white people.

The SPVM had no policy on street checks until today. The police force said its new street check policy indicates that street checks will be done based on observable facts and not any discriminatory motives. 

With files from CBC News and Claire Loewen

Turkey has said it can no longer support the mass influx of migrants from Syria and elsewhere.

It says it will no longer keep them from attempting to cross into Greece and Bulgaria as they seek to head into European Union countries.

Paul Heinbecker is the Deputy Chair of the The World Refugee Council, and a former Canadian Ambassador to the UN, and Germany.

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As the mass at border crossings with Greece, or attempt to cross the Aegean to Greek islands, the Greek forces are attempting to keep them out.

The Deputy Chair of the The World Refugee Council, and a former Canadian Ambassador to the UN, and Germany (CBC)

Tear gas and piano wire use is prevalent, with heavily armed police and military standing at border points, while patrol vessels forcibly turn back rafts and boats attempting to cross the sea.

Greek patrols were forcing rafts and boats back from attempts to cross the Aegean from Turkey. In some cases warning shots were fired into the water in front of the rafts. (CBC)

Heinbecker says Turkey seems to have a legitimate position as he says the EU has not lived up to agreements with Turkey for funding and resettlement to help that country deal with the almost 4 million migrants now there.

Turkey has been housing almost 4 million migrants, many of whom want to head to the EU countries, and have begun camping out at the borders with Greece and Bulgaria, hoping for a chance to cross (CBC)

Turkey had also wanted to set up a safe zone in Syria where people fleeing the civil war there could go, but Heinbecker says, NATO and the EU seemed not particularly interested.

Greece has moved police and fully armed military into position along its borders to prevent migrants from crossing. (CBC)

Turkey is now reported to have sent 1,000 armed police to the border to stop Greece from forcing the migrants back into Turkey. Athens says it has prevented as many as 35,000 from crossing in the past five days and is said to be preparing to deport hundreds of other who have managed to slip across.

The two countries have a long history of belligerence and so tensions are rising.

Additional information

Al Jazeera: Mar 5/20: Turkish police bolster Greek border to stop migrants' return

BBC: Mar 3/20: EU chief says Greece is Europe's shield in migrant crisis

Thomson-Reuters (via CBC) Mar 4/20: Greek and Turkish police fire tear gas as migrants try to cross into Greece

Associated Press (via CBC) Mar 3.20: Greece PM rips Turkey as thousands of migrants seek entry into Europe

In Canada where the often bitterly heated debate about firearms has been raging on and off for decades, a federal politician decided he needed to be informed by fact, not opinion.

Tako Van Popta is the Conservative Member of Parliament for the riding of Langley-Aldergrove in British Columbia

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Van Popta says he had never held a firearm before taking the required course (and other processes) to obtain a “possession and acquisition licence” (PAL) for firearms.

This also includes paying fees of course, along with written spousal approval and other references, police background check, and daily scrutiny. Interestingly, legal gun owners are the only segment of society subject to daily police checks.

MP for Langley-Aldergrove in British Columbia, Tako Van Popta was challenged by constituents to learn the facts of gun ownership in Canada. Here he takes the instruction course required as a part of the long and somewhat expensive process to obtain a gun licence (supplied)

As a politician who would be involved in debates on the subject, he admitted he knew almost nothing about firearms. He was challenged by constituents to learn first hand and realised that to better understand the situation he would take the mandatory ownership and owners course.

He says he doubts many of the politicians who debated and voted on gun laws like C-71 actually know about the extent and restrictions of current gun laws in Canada.

Hunters and target shooters say they are "easy targets" for increased restrictions and mandatory gun buybacks as they are the ones who obey laws. One expert says the government plan for  (mandatory) buyback of semi-auto rifles will cost billions, not the half million the government claims. Van Popta says that money should be spent on the "real problems" of underfunded social programmes and fighting criminal gangs and gun smugglers instead. (CCFR)

Van Popta also expressed dismay at the Liberal government proposal to create a mandatory buyback of semi-auto rifles through a possible ‘order in council’ which would avoid a debate in Parliament.

He also believes the vast sums spent on such a programme will not make Canada safer, and that the money should instead be spent on policies he says would target the real problem of gangs and illegal gun smuggling.

After taking the course, he is very doubtful he would become a hunter or even buy a firearm, but may accept invitations for target shooting. Van Popta also says it would be a good idea if other politicians informed themselves first hand of Canada’s firearms laws and requirements before taking a position and creating laws which could negatively affect over 2 million legal owners, and the tens of thousands of employees at small businesses throughout the country serving hunters and sport shooters.

Additional information-sources

Fraser Institute: G Mauser;  Jan21.20: Trudeau government’s ‘buy back’ gun program likely a multi-billion boondoggle

Ottawa Citizen: Mar 2/20: S. Yogarnetnam:Proactive policing, not gun buybacks or CCTV cameras: Ottawa Police Service

iPolitics: T. Naumetz: Feb 4/20: Liberal Red Flag plan panned by gun safety advocate and firearm lobby leader

Open Parliament: debates on C-71

Poly Remembers: gun control lobby website

Canadian Firearms Safety Course (mandatory)

Your hosts today, Vincenzo, Terry, and Marc ( video of show at bottom)

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Canadian Space Agency invests in moon exploration

The control center at the Canadian Space Agency in Longueuil, Quebec, Canada, February 28, 2019. (Reuters/Christinne Muschi)

The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) is seeking to get more involved in exploration of the moon. To that end they've given out more than $4 million in contracts to several companies and a university. This is to help them develop technologies to be able to detect water on the Moon, measure mineral composition, and tools to navigate rovers on the lunar surface.

Vincenzo spoke with Erick Dupuis, the director of Space Exploration Development at the CSA.

International survey indicates trust in key institutions declining

The Trust Barometer survey was taken before the current Indigenous crisis and rail blockades, but even at that trust in institutions and government shows a decline (CBC news)

A new international survey shows people around the world are slowly losing trust in society's key institutions. The Edelman trust barometer, or trust index, is now in its 20th year. The marketing and PR firm has been using the 'guage' as a tool to advise their clients, but over the years its expanded to become an insight into how people feel about their politicians, business, the media, and NGO's.

Canada occupies a middle ground between trust and distrust of those institutions, but this year it shows a drop of several places showing Canadians, like many others, are losing faith in these institutions to deal both quickly, and ethically with ongoing crises.

Marc spoke with Lisa Kimmel, CEO and Chair of Edelman Canada.

David Ayres: the legend grows

The man himself following his Saturday Night Special. (CBC)

An amateur goalie, and sometime zamboni driver, Canadian David Ayres, was in the stands at an NHL game. When the Carolina Hurricane's goalies were injured, the team had to call in a spectating Ayres as an emergency back-up.

The Hurricanes went on to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-3.  It's a story that has made headlines, and the late night talk shows, across N. America.

Terry talks about this exciting and rare event

Video of show begins at 0;40

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The construction of a natural gas pipeline across northern British Columbia has  divided Canadian opinion.

A small group of hereditary Wet’suwet’en chiefs and supporters has opposed the project, while the elected chiefs, and apparently most of the Wet’suwet’en, have approved the pipeline.

This has caused friction within the band, but also resulted in many protests in cities across Canada, including several railway blockades all in solidarity with the hereditary chiefs.

The protests and blockades have caused major disruptions to the economy with large scale layoffs of rail workers and others. As business, industry, agriculture and rail passengers increase demands on the federal government to end the blockades, the Trudeau government insists that patience is needed and not forced removal of the illegal Indigenous blockades as demanded by some.

A survey this week shows the situation has left Canadians almost evenly split on what to do about the situation.

Angus Reid Inst. Feb 25,2020

The non=profit Angus Reid Institute found 47 per cent of Canadians agree that patience is the best way to resolve the situation. On the other side 53 per cent say the blockades should be brought down, by force if necessary.

The difference of opinion on actions is mirrored by the difference of opinion on the issues. Over half (56%) say the issues at stake are the economy, or the need for rule of law. Under half (44%) say the main issues are indigenous or environmental concerns.

Regardless of stance on how to end the blockades, the clear majority of Canadians think Prime Minister Trudeau has failed to handle the situation well. Only one in five (21%) think he’s done a good job, with a mere three per cent saying “very good”.

Whether Canadians agree with the Trudeau stance on patience, or disagree saying force is an option to end barricades, the majority say he has not handled the crisis well (CBC News)

Other findings include the fact that another clear majority of respondents feel the situation has set back relations and reconciliation efforts between Canada and indigenous groups (80%)

Another majority (78%) feel the situation has damaged Canada’s reputation internationally as a place for investment. Interestingly support for the Coastal GasLink pipeline itself seems to have grown from 51 per cent at the beginning of February and the start of the conflict, to 61 per cent this week.

Meanwhile, after three weeks of major disruption to the economy caused by blockades, it now appears the dissenting chiefs have agreed to meet with provincial and federal politicians this week.

Two days of meetings have been set aside for the discussions starting later today at a Wet’suwet’en office in Smithers British Columbia.

Additional information-sources

Angus Reid: survey

Burkina Faso is facing one of the world’s fastest growing displacement crises threatening to engulf the entire West African country and spill over into neighbouring Ghana, Benin, Togo, and Cote d’Ivoire, warns a report by the U.S.-based NGO Refugees International.

Burkina Faso has emerged as the latest epicentre of a conflict that has already consumed much of neighbouring Mali and Niger in Africa’s troubled Sahel region, said Alexandra Lamarche, a Canadian humanitarian worker who authored the report for Refugees International.

And the speed at which the situation in Burkina Faso has deteriorated has caught the country’s government, the international community and aid groups off guard, Lamarche told Radio Canada International in a phone interview from Washington, D.C.

“I was in Burkina in the Fall and they estimated that by the end of the year there’d be about 330,000 internally displaced and instead by Dec. 31 they had reached numbers of 530,000 and now we’re at 613,000,” Lamarche she added.

(click to listen to the podcast interview with Alexandra Lamarche)

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The numbers are expected to climb even higher, she added.

“NGOs are estimating that there might be closer to 900,000 by April but I would be shocked if numbers weren’t actually higher than that,” Lamarche said.

Astounding levels of violence

Source: “Humanitarian Response Plan 2020: Burkina Faso,” OCHA, (January 2020), https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/hrp_2020-bfa-fr_abridged-web.pdf

The level of violence and the rapid increase in the number of internally displaced people are “astounding,” especially since Burkina Faso was once known for its relative stability and harmony across ethnic, religious, and linguistic lines, she said.

Intercommunal tensions are on the rise, and the country is grappling with its first major humanitarian crisis in recent history, Lamarche said.

UN food assistance agency warns of escalating crisis in Burkina Faso

Canadian gold mine hit by deadly attack in Burkina Faso won’t reopen in 2019

And increasingly the country’s civilian population is caught in the crossfire as "a motley assortment" of armed groups – jihadist insurgents, criminal elements and local self-defence militias set up to protect rural communities – have plunged the country into violence, Lamarche said.

Grappling to provide services and security

A Burkina Faso soldier patrols at a district that welcomes Internally Displaced People (IDP) from northern Burkina Faso, in Dori on Feb. 3, 2020. (Olympia De Maismont/AFP via Getty Images)

For its part, the government of Burkina Faso is struggling to meet the needs of its population and to provide basic security in large parts of the country, she said.

Meanwhile, aid groups are scrambling to mount an effective response to the crisis, Lamarche said.

Aid groups are hampered by a lack of funding and government policies that prevent them from providing humanitarian assistance to some of the most vulnerable populations who live in huge swaths of Burkina Faso controlled by various insurgent groups, Lamarche said.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) currently estimates that $295 million US ($392 million Cdn) will be required in 2020 to provide humanitarian assistance to those in need, the report said.

International donors, including Canada, will need to quickly ramp up funding to “nip this in the bud” and stop the instability in Burkina Faso from spreading to neighbouring countries, Lamarche said.

“We’re seeing increasing violence by the Togo border, it’s only a matter of time before it goes into Togo,” Lamarche said.

Welcome to Diplomatic Dispatch, a new podcast series by Radio Canada International.

My goal is to bring you insights into Canada’s foreign, defence and development policy.

I’ll discuss Canada’s global role through interviews with policy makers, former and serving diplomats and soldiers, academics and think tank experts, humanitarian workers, civil society activists and entrepreneurs recorded at the Summit on Canada’s Global Leadership in late November of 2019.

Robert Greenhill is executive chair of Global Canada (Photo courtesy of Global Canada).

The event was organized by the Canadian Council for International Co-operation (CCIC), the Canadian Association for the Study of International Development (CASID), the Canadian Partnership for Women and Children’s Health (CanWaCH) and the Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI).

There I met with Robert Greenhill, executive chair of Global Canada and former president of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

Greenhill says the minority Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau needs to take a page from its recent defence policy and commit to serious increases in its international development budget.

"If you don't want a climate crisis become a catastrophe, we have to help developing countries leapfrog how they're doing energy," Greenhill says. "If we don't want to have the Zikas, the SARS, the Ebolas, as just being early examples of terrible pandemics in the future, we need to improve healthcare systems around the world.

"If we don't want to have Western Europe that is massively destabilized because of millions of irregular immigrants and refugees, we all have a vested interest to help places like the Sahel and others be able to take control of their own destiny in a more successful way."

This is Episode Five: A Marshall Plan for the 21st century

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Welcome to Diplomatic Dispatch, a new podcast series by Radio Canada International.

My goal is to bring you insights into Canada’s foreign, defence and development policy.

I’ll discuss Canada’s global role through interviews with policy makers, former and serving diplomats and soldiers, academics and think tank experts, humanitarian workers, civil society activists and entrepreneurs recorded at the Summit on Canada’s Global Leadership in late November of 2019.

Former Liberal cabinet minister and Canadian ambassador to the United Nations, Allan Rock, says the Trump administration presents Canada's greatest foreign policy challenge. (Sean Kilpatrick/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

The event was organized by the Canadian Council for International Co-operation (CCIC), the Canadian Association for the Study of International Development (CASID), the Canadian Partnership for Women and Children’s Health (CanWaCH) and the Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI).

There I met with Allan Rock. He is a former Liberal cabinet minister and also served as Canada's ambassador to the United Nations after leaving federal politics, as well as president and vice-chancellor of the University of Ottawa.

He says the possible re-election of President Donald Trump for another term in 2020 would present the greatest challenge for Canadian foreign policy.

"The decision that is going to have the biggest impact on Canada's foreign policy is not going to be made by Canadians, it's going to be made by Americans," Rock says. "If he [Trump] continues in power, after the election of November 2020, we're going to have to think very carefully how we're going to survive that.

"And if he doesn't, we're going to have to think very carefully how we're going to rebuild and restore, and recover from these awful years."

This is Episode 4: The Trump challenge

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Welcome to Diplomatic Dispatch, a new podcast series by Radio Canada International.

My goal is to bring you insights into Canada’s foreign, defence and development policy.

I’ll discuss Canada’s global role through interviews with policy makers, former and serving diplomats and soldiers, academics and think tank experts, humanitarian workers, civil society activists and entrepreneurs.

Kate Grantham is an international development consultant and vice president of the Canadian Association for the Study of International Development. (Photo courtesy of Kate Grantham)

In June of 2017, the Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled its feminist foreign and development policy. But what is at the core of that policy? And has Canada put its money where its mouth is when it comes to upholding the principles unveiled in that policy? Does that policy need to change and if yes, how? What should be Canada's international development priorities?

These are all questions that I’m hoping to ask and try to answer in this podcast series. And my search for the answers began in Ottawa, at the Summit on Canada’s Global Leadership in late November of 2019.

The event was organized by the Canadian Council for International Co-operation (CCIC), the Canadian Association for the Study of International Development (CASID), the Canadian Partnership for Women and Children’s Health (CanWaCH) and the Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI).

There I met with Kate Grantham. She's an international development consultant and vice president of the CASID.

This is Episode Three: The feminist perspective on Canada's foreign policy

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