What's really behind the Cape Breton moose cull protest? One reporter offers her views

A reporter with the Aboriginal Peoples Television Networksays more than moose may be driving aprotestopposing a cullon North Mountain in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

A small group of Mi'kmaq hunters are conducting the moose harvest on behalf of Parks Canada, which saysa "hyper-abundant"population is preventing there-growthof vegetation in the park.

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APTN reporterTrinaRoachetold CBC Radio's Maritime Noon that shewas there at the start of the hunt Wednesdayto do a story on the Mi'kmaq hunters conducting the harvest for the Unima'kiInstitute of Natural Resources.

She saidabout 30 protestors joined opponent andhunting guideDennis Day at his roadside location, and she went to speak with them as well.

Roache saidit quickly became apparent the protesters intended to go into the restricted zone on North Mountain and confront the hunters.

She saysthe Mi'kmaq hunters expected some opposition once thecull began, but they were not prepared fora confrontation.She says Parks Canada wardens stepped in to calm the protesters, then selected two among them to go meet the hunters.

Into the restricted zone

"Very quickly, a larger group, probably up to 20 of the protesters, followed," she recounted. "As we went down, we saw the Mi'kmaq hunters were sort of standing there and they knew at this point what was about to transpire and were standing in a line, ready to greet them."

Roache saidasthe large contingent approached the hunters,tempers flared, both sides began shoutingand a decision was made to suspendthe hunt.

"There's a real, I think, lack of understanding of why the Mi'kmaq were there," Roache said.

There were also mixed messages from the protesters, she says. One sign read "Stop the Slaughter," while another said "Let's Hunt Together."

She saysthe Mi'kmaqbelieve the protesters don't understand their right as treatyholdersto perform the harvest.

Oneprotest sign, Roache says,read "Parks Canada is prejudiced against white people."

'They want in on the hunt'

Lead protester Dennis Dayhas said he doesn't believe the hunt is necessary because the moose population was starved and injured during the last winter.

Roache said she interviewed him andhe said admitted he doesn't know much about treaty rights.

"He didn't understand why the Mi'kmaqwerein there, why it's not 50-50. You know, they want in on the hunt," Roache says.

"And from the Mi'kmaqperspective, when they'retargetedbecause there's that lack of understanding. Yeah, it definitely does have racial overtones. I think that the Mi'kmaq hunters definitely felt that yesterday."

Roache said some protesters accused the Mi'kmaq hunters of planning to hunt all over the park, instead of the 20-square-kilometrerestricted zone. The hunters replied that's not how they do a harvest.

For many, the protestcomes down to money, said Roache, and she said that became clear during the confrontation between the two groups.

"The Mi'kmaq, they're not selling the meat, they're not making money off this. They take the meat back to the community," she said. "But there's a livelihood for the guides that happens thereand they feel like that's getting cut into."

Parks Canada and the Unima'kiInstituteagreed in a conference call today to proceed with the moose harvest, with "more enforcement." Parks Canada has not decided when the hunt will resume.