By Andy Petrowski
(A Short Note From NAL – We will be offeering some comments of our own on this controversial deer hunt this November 22nd. The next hunt, sanctioned by the Ontario government, begins in Short Hills Provincial Parkthis November 21, 22, 23, 24 weekend and continues the following weekend.)
Signs like this ringed a public meeting this September over hunting deer this November in Niagara, Ontario’s Short Hills Provincial Park. Photo by Doug Draper
As one of the Niagara Regional Councillors who voted unanimously on behalf of the Region of Niagara, along with the three bordering municipalities of St. Catharines, Thorold, and Pelham, to call on the Provincial Government to stop the unsafe native deer harvest in Short Hills Provincial Park (the smallest Provincial Park in Ontario), I am appalled that (St. Catharines MPP and Environment) Minister Jim Bradley and his Liberal caucus members, including Premier Kathleen Wynne, have not intervened by now and at least suspended this potential massacre subject to a proper safety review.
After all, the M.N.R. who is supposedly supervising this deer cull has admitted that it cannot guarantee that it can properly secure the border of this land area (let alone enforce the Park against poaching as evidenced by the photos below) which is surrounded by dozens of homes and numerous private entry points.
During last January’s shorter two-weekend hunt, it was reported that the natives breached the Park boundary more than ten times in pursuit of their prey. Will it take a life-threatening high-power crossbow-inflicted injury and/or fatality to end this ridiculous activity? Is it also true that the M.N.R. have approved a similar “traditional hunt” to take place shortly in the Royal Botanical Gardens (at least its Canada’s LARGEST gardens? Will there be prizes for not trampling the tulips?
The proposed Short Hills Provincial Park hunt which is to take place over the next two weeks from Thursday to Sunday is madness and matches the behaviour of the present Government that has lost touch with fundamental democratic principles such as local community say. This hunt should not be permitted. There is ample evidence that the so-called Albany Deed (which the Liberal Government is hanging its bow on), a treaty signed in 1701 between the British and the Haudenosaunee, does not entitle the natives to this hunt nor does any recent so-called “update” to the Treaty provide a legal basis to either.
Were Peter Kormos, my friend and former seat mate on Regional Council still alive, I am convinced that he would have succeeded in bringing the proper public attention to this urgent community emergency and ended/suspended the hunt on behalf of his Niagara Region constituents whom he proudly and boldly served. I could be so fortunate to try in his absence.
(Andy Petrowski is a first-term Niagara regional councillor from the City of St. Catharines, Ontario and was the only regional councillor who attended and participated in a public meeting this past September, 2013 on another planned deer hunt in Short Hills Provincial Park.)
(Niagara At Large invites you to share your views on this post. A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who share their first and last name with them.)
Niagara At Large 
Keep up the good work! How can anyone look at wildlife and see a target for a bloody takedown?
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Although the Regional council vote was unanimous to NOT allow the murdering of deer who are quite tame in Short Hills Park, why was there only one member of the council at the meeting and only this same one member still involved? All of Regional Council voted to do the right thing yet where are they now when they should be present to show their sincerity. I was so very proud of them for voting against having this horrific event and now I am wondering if being proud of them was a mistake. Again, please stop referring to this as a “cull”. It has not been proven that the deer numbers qualify as over populated. Remember, nature gets along without our meddling by not having as many offspring if the previous season proved to have a food source shortage. Didn’t anyone read Farley Mowat’s “Never Cry Wolf”? Even wolves refrain from mating to reproduce when the previous season did not provide enough sustenance. Too bad some humans aren’t as conscientious about the dangers of over producing as some of the non-humans. We know this hunt is wrong and we know that the Botanical Gardens one is also wrong…I will continue to dissuade any friend or visitor from ever spending a penny in any municipality that allows such cruel crimes against animals no matter how they are bullied by special interest groups or misled by twits at any governmental level. My vehicle is undergoing some serious issues at this time but if I find a ride from Fort Erie to the protest during this murder event then I will be there just as I was last year with my sign that was criticized as politically “not nice”. It was not meant to be nice, just honest: BEWARE OF BULLIES AND COWARDS
WITH BOWS AND ARROWS
MURDERING PEACEFUL WILDLIFE
IN OUR PROVINCIAL PARKS
How proud can a hunter be to kill animals who are so used to cameras shooting them that they are semi tame. It truly is akin to shooting creatures at a petting zoo! Any of my previous critics can whine and criticize me until they get tired of sounding like cruel creeps. The fact is they don’t follow their own rules and as such are branded as people with a whiney entitlement complex. How much of the park will they destroy this year that real taxpayers will be billed for and how many breaches of the limits set within the park will be ignored? Remember when elections come up we need to think long and hard about voting for those who cave so easily that horrible things like this are allowed to happen.
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I humbly disagree with your stance Councillor.
I think that this hunt is a rare sign of co-operation between the government of Canada and the Haudenosaunee Nation. I also think that as a representative of government that you are showing how ineffective regional council is and how poor the communication channels are between the municipality, the region,the province and the federal government. Making the argument that regional council being ignored perhaps goes to illustrate how useless your particular level of government is. I think that supporting the hunters would mend a lot of the wounds between First Nations and Canada, and I would hope that leaders in Niagara would be finding ways to work with local Haudenosaunee, not piggybacking on a cause that you have never really shown any concern over until recently.
As an elected official who represents the regional interests, what constructive ways do you think could be undertaken to bridge the gap between First Nations and mainstream culture for the enrichment of all people who share this land in harmony? I ask this because what you wrote above does not so anything to really accomplish that Mr. Councillor Sir.
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I must have made an error when I initially posted b/c i dont see my post here. I wanted to thank Andy Petrowski for listening to the homeowners and Niagara residents concerns for public safety surrounding this hunt in an urban area. We need more representatives who will listen, ask questions and act in the best interests of the people they represent.
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I agree. The local councils are supposed to represent the local constituency and their concerns. Thanks to councillors Andy Petrowski and Joe Kushner for coming out this past weekend to listen to our concerns. Trespassing on private property, disregarding hunt safety protocols and ridiculing local residents demonstrates that the hunters are not interested in “harmony” with us.
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Given that mr. petrowski has only served one term in the region, Karl, I fail to see how you know that he is “…piggybacking on a cause that [he has] never really shown any concern over until recently…” This hunt is a whitewash by the ministry to make the killing of deer in the park by using, yes using, the native peoples to do his dirty work. They know it would never fly if they allowed a regular lottery or tag system.
The Ministry has not been honest in their dealings with this on many levels – they have not kept their promises about safety, numbers, the supposed ill-health of the deer, etc.
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