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Resist Operation Charging Bison Stop the Bison \|\| March 29, 2006 Related - Harper pledges to boost military presence in cities Related - Army to Occupy Downtown Winnipeg From April 30th to May 6th, 2006, more than 500 Canadian troops, backed by helicopters, armoured vehicles, and artillery, intend to transform downtown Winnipeg, Canada into an urban-warfare training playground in the largest training excercise of its kind ever held in Canada. Operation Charging Bison is intended to simulate situations Canadian soldiers "would encounter in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq." What are we calling for? We are calling for a broad range of actions to counter this training, from high-school walk-outs, to street theatre, to teach-ins, to direct action, to a national convergence, to solidarity actions. We encourage people to take the initiative to plan their own autonomous actions, but we're also eager to see co-operation between organizing groups. We are planning a major day of action on May 1st, International Workers' Day. Why are we opposing this? Or, "But Canadian missions are only for peacekeeping. What's the problem?" The problem is that Canada's peacekeeping reputation is already in tatters around the world. We don't need to look that hard to see why. Here are the kinds of operations the military is training for. A Canadian soldier stands guard at the Toussaint Louverture Airport in Port-au-Prince. * In Haiti, Canadian soldiers and RCMP are currently giving logistical assistance to the brutal Haitian National Police and participating in MINUSTAH, an international force which has been carrying out massacres in urban slums. All this to "stabilize" a government Canada helped put into place. Two years ago, Canadian troops helped carry out a coup of Haiti's elected leader and oversee the installation of a government of business elites and sweatshop owners. The year before that, at the Ottawa Initiative on Haiti, Pierre Pettigrew and other members of the Canadian government decided alongside France, the U.S., and Latin American countries that the Haitian government must be overthrown. For more on occupied Haiti visit this national information site or the local Winnipeg-CHAN site. Article Posted at www.KnowledgeDrivenRevolution.com * In Quebec City in 2001, 1000 soldiers were deployed against protestors of the Summit of the Americas, to stifle dissent against the governments' push for corporate control of the hemisphere. * In Ts'peten, also known as Gustafsen Lake, British Columbia, in 1995, native demonstrators trying to protect their land from further encroachment were met with armoured peronnel carriers, .50 calibre machine guns, and land mines. The federal and provincial governments rejected any involvement by an impartial, independent, international adjudication process to settle the conflict, and even the presence of neutral peacekeepers, with the famous declaration "There shall be no alien intervention into the affairs of this state." * In Afghanistan, top Canadian soldier Rick Hillier clarified the Canadian military's role, "We're not the public sevice of Canada. We're not just another department. We are the Canadian Forces and our job is to be able to kill people." Canadian forces joined the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. The military occupation continues today. * In Kanehsatake in 1990, Canadian forces attempted to put down Mohawk resistance to the town of Oka's attempted expansion of a golf course on to territory including a Mohawk burial ground. * In Iraq, we find Canadian troops again, despite the government's official position that they're staying out of the invasion. One Canadian Major General has thousands of U.S. troops under his command. This is not a history of peacekeeping and good will, and the training operations in Winnipeg are an attempt to hone the Canadian military's tactics of repression. Come to Winnipeg! We are calling on people from across Canada to come oppose this operation and its consequences for people around the country and around the world. Come put on workshops, plan actions, act as medics, observers, anything your heart desires. We will do our best to find couches to sleep on and to put together bicycles to be lent out. More info about that as it develops. There are already folks tentatively coming from Toronto and Ottawa. Endorsers * The Canada-Haiti Action Network Winnipeg * icePIRG If you'd like to add the name of your organization to the list of endorsers, write to stopthebison@winnipeg.canadahaitiaction.ca Mailing List To work with us, send a blank email to stopthebison-subscribe@bike-dump.ca Corporate Media on Operation Charging Bison * Winnipeg Free Press on Excercise Charging Bison * Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal on Exercise Charging Bison Stop the "Charging Bison" in its tracks! If you are into getting march permits How to apply for a parade permit* Write an application letter by mail: Attention: Traffic Unit Chief of Police Jack Ewatski Box 1680 Winnipeg, Manitoba R3C 2Z7 by fax: Attention: Traffic Unit Chief of Police Jay Ewatski 986-8114 the letter should include the following: - group name - contact person from group, with address and phone number - reason for parade - exact route - date and time of the parade - number of participants expected For more information on obtaining permits for special events, contact Constable Kevin Cisaroski at 986-5403. He is the Special Events Co-ordinator for the police department. *a parade permit is for events where participants move from a start point to an end point. For an event that involves blocking the streets for any sort of activity that would stay in one place, insurance is required. About KDR \| \| Home \| \| Weekly Features Archive	Weekly Weekly Features Archive
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Resist Operation Charging Bison

Stop the Bison || March 29, 2006

Related - Harper pledges to boost military presence in cities

Related - Army to Occupy Downtown Winnipeg

From April 30th to May 6th, 2006, more than 500 Canadian troops, backed by helicopters, armoured vehicles, and artillery, intend to transform downtown Winnipeg, Canada into an urban-warfare training playground in the largest training excercise of its kind ever held in Canada. Operation Charging Bison is intended to simulate situations Canadian soldiers "would encounter in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq."

What are we calling for?

We are calling for a broad range of actions to counter this training, from high-school walk-outs, to street theatre, to teach-ins, to direct action, to a national convergence, to solidarity actions. We encourage people to take the initiative to plan their own autonomous actions, but we're also eager to see co-operation between organizing groups.

We are planning a major day of action on May 1st, International Workers' Day.

Why are we opposing this? Or, "But Canadian missions are only for peacekeeping. What's the problem?"

The problem is that Canada's peacekeeping reputation is already in tatters around the world. We don't need to look that hard to see why. Here are the kinds of operations the military is training for.

A Canadian soldier stands guard at the Toussaint Louverture Airport in Port-au-Prince.

* In Haiti, Canadian soldiers and RCMP are currently giving logistical assistance to the brutal Haitian National Police and participating in MINUSTAH, an international force which has been carrying out massacres in urban slums. All this to "stabilize" a government Canada helped put into place.

Two years ago, Canadian troops helped carry out a coup of Haiti's elected leader and oversee the installation of a government of business elites and sweatshop owners. The year before that, at the Ottawa Initiative on Haiti, Pierre Pettigrew and other members of the Canadian government decided alongside France, the U.S., and Latin American countries that the Haitian government must be overthrown.

For more on occupied Haiti visit this national information site or the local Winnipeg-CHAN site.

Article Posted at www.KnowledgeDrivenRevolution.com

* In Quebec City in 2001, 1000 soldiers were deployed against protestors of the Summit of the Americas, to stifle dissent against the governments' push for corporate control of the hemisphere.

* In Ts'peten, also known as Gustafsen Lake, British Columbia, in 1995, native demonstrators trying to protect their land from further encroachment were met with armoured peronnel carriers, .50 calibre machine guns, and land mines. The federal and provincial governments rejected any involvement by an impartial, independent, international adjudication process to settle the conflict, and even the presence of neutral peacekeepers, with the famous declaration "There shall be no alien intervention into the affairs of this state."

* In Afghanistan, top Canadian soldier Rick Hillier clarified the Canadian military's role, "We're not the public sevice of Canada. We're not just another department. We are the Canadian Forces and our job is to be able to kill people."

Canadian forces joined the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. The military occupation continues today.

* In Kanehsatake in 1990, Canadian forces attempted to put down Mohawk resistance to the town of Oka's attempted expansion of a golf course on to territory including a Mohawk burial ground.

* In Iraq, we find Canadian troops again, despite the government's official position that they're staying out of the invasion. One Canadian Major General has thousands of U.S. troops under his command.

This is not a history of peacekeeping and good will, and the training operations in Winnipeg are an attempt to hone the Canadian military's tactics of repression.

Come to Winnipeg!

We are calling on people from across Canada to come oppose this operation and its consequences for people around the country and around the world. Come put on workshops, plan actions, act as medics, observers, anything your heart desires. We will do our best to find couches to sleep on and to put together bicycles to be lent out. More info about that as it develops.

There are already folks tentatively coming from Toronto and Ottawa.

Endorsers

* The Canada-Haiti Action Network Winnipeg

* icePIRG

If you'd like to add the name of your organization to the list of endorsers, write to stopthebison@winnipeg.canadahaitiaction.ca

Mailing List

To work with us, send a blank email to stopthebison-subscribe@bike-dump.ca

Corporate Media on Operation Charging Bison

* Winnipeg Free Press on Excercise Charging Bison

* Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal on Exercise Charging Bison

Stop the "Charging Bison" in its tracks!

If you are into getting march permits

How to apply for a parade permit*

Write an application letter

by mail: Attention: Traffic Unit
Chief of Police Jack Ewatski
Box 1680
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 2Z7

by fax: Attention: Traffic Unit
Chief of Police Jay Ewatski
986-8114

the letter should include the following:

- group name
- contact person from group, with address and phone number
- reason for parade
- exact route
- date and time of the parade
- number of participants expected

For more information on obtaining permits for special events, contact Constable Kevin Cisaroski at 986-5403. He is the Special Events Co-ordinator for the police department.

*a parade permit is for events where participants move from a start point to an end point. For an event that involves blocking the streets for any sort of activity that would stay in one place, insurance is required.