Six Nations council calls for land claim talks with Ontario and Ottawa amid tensions

The elected council of an Ontario first nation at the heart of an Indigenous land dispute is calling for calm following escalating tensions between police and demonstrators at a housing development site.

Six Nations Elected Council says the community should focus on its goal of addressing land claims with the federal and provincial governments.

Community members who have been living at the site for months say the development near Caledonia, Ont., and the First Nation is on unceded Indigenous land and violates the sovereignty of the Haudenosaunee people.

The statement also addresses a permanent injunction issued by a judge Thursday ordering all demonstrators off the site, saying it’s an example of systemic racism in Canada’s judicial system.

Reports of violence came from Caledonia hours after that ruling, with demonstrators saying police fired rubber bullets and police alleging cruisers were damaged.

Premier Doug Ford says he wants dialogue with the demonstrators, while calling those who engaged in the alleged violence “bad apples.”