Intolerance behind Asian angler attack, commission report says

[Spiel]

Intolerance behind Asian angler attack, commission report says

Georgina gets B grade for its response to issue

 

 

April 09, 2009

L.H. Tiffany Hsieh / yorkregion.com

 

 

David Ma will not go fishing anymore.

 

In May 2008, Mr. Ma and a group of his friends were fishing on a bridge at Lake Simcoe, when a Caucasian man approached them to chat about fishing. The man appeared friendly at first, but what Mr. Ma experienced next was not what he had expected from the perfect stranger. The man pushed him into the water.

 

"No, I don't fish now," Mr. Ma said in Mandarin. "I don't go."

 

Mere days before Mr. Ma, who lives in downtown Toronto, found himself having to swim back ashore without the help of his attacker, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) released a report that confirmed racial profiling as playing a role in the much-publicized inquiry into assaults on Asian Canadian anglers. The inquiry was prompted by six serious incidents reported in Georgina between April and September of 2007. Police are still looking for suspects for the Aug. 18 incident on Mossington Bridge.

 

The final chapter of Fishing Without Fear, released in Markham on Tuesday, gives a generally positive progress report on how the 22 community, government and police organizations engaged by the OHRC dealt with racial discrimination throughout the inquiry.

 

Chief commissioner Barbara Hall stated "yes" to a list of key criteria the OHRC examined: increased police presence, commitments, dialogue, awareness and a decreased number of reported assaults.

 

"But have we finished the job? No," she said. "It's a positive start, but more needs to be done to keep the momentum going."

 

Following incidents in Georgina, a number of cases involving Asian Canadian anglers have sprung up across southern and central Ontario. The latest hit close to home again during an ice fishing tournament in Sutton, part of the Township of Georgina, on Jan. 31.

 

According to the OHRC report, Georgina Mayor Robert Grossi called the anglers and offered his apologies in response to the Sutton incident. Mr. Grossi, who was not present at the press conference due to meetings, his secretary said, was not available for comment.

 

Representing the Outdoor Venture Fishing and Hunting Club, which hosted the event at the Diamond Banquet Hall in First Markham Place, Danny Leong says the OHRC report sends a very important message.

 

"When you are working, fishing or travelling and some people are doing something wrong and you can't define it as racial discrimination - you have to learn (how to recognize) it," he said. "The report says racial discrimination was there right amongst us and we didn't realize that before."

 

Mr. Leong, who lives in Markham and has directed a number of victims to the police, also noted attacks on Asian Canadian anglers are not inclusive of people of Chinese descent.

 

"It's Filipinos and south Asians as well," he said. "And for someone like David, who was pushed and doesn't go fishing anymore, it's sad. It's not the way to share the natural resources of Ontario. It's totally wrong."

 

Also at the conference were members of the Community Reference Group, a community-based coalition group.

 

Headed by lawyer Avvy Go, director of the Metro Toronto Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic, the group released a report card on the response of the Ontario government and stakeholder groups. It gave an "F" to the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters for its "failure to understand the issue of discrimination against Asian Canadian anglers," and to the Village of Westport, north of Kingston, for "no commitments" in dealing with two reported incidents there.

 

The Town of Georgina and both school boards in York Region received a "B." York Regional Police Services is the only one of all 22 organizations that garnered an "A" for "promoting safety around angling in the region, as well as educating the public and providing multiple language services to report any incidents."

 

Chief Armand La Barge is proud of the more than 40 Asian officers he has on the York Regional Police force. He addressed the crowd with salutation in Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese and English.

 

"There's been a lot of action taken since the initial incident in 2007, but the reality is that this is a never-ending process," Mr. La Barge said, adding Operation Safe Shores, launched last year to step up waterfront patrols, will continue to take effect in Georgina.

 

Mr. La Barge also said these "cowardly acts" of hate crime by no means reflect communities where the incidents have occurred.

 

Last year, a total of 83 hate crimes were reported to York Regional Police, while 23 were in the Jewish community, only one was in the Asian community.

 

"In the Town of Markham, 66 per cent of the residents were not born in Canada, so we have really worked hard, especially here in Markham and Richmond Hill, to represent the community that we serve," Mr. La Barge said.

 

"I quite frankly think that the 80 or so cases that were reported to us in 2008 are the tip of the iceberg. I'm quite confident that there were more incidents of hate out there that were not reported to us, and I would suggest that the Asian community under-reports probably more so than any other communities."

 

Part of the challenge, he explained, is the language barrier. As well, "most other communities don't enjoy the support the Jewish community does from organizations such as the B'nai Brith Canada Institute for International Affairs or the Jewish Congress, which will facilitate the reporting of hate crime."

 

Nevertheless, Mr. La Barge says it is important to report all crimes, and reporting can be done in languages other than English.

 

Not far from where Mr. Ma sat in the restaurant was Scarborough's Wally Cheng, who listened to the press conference with his family while photographers perpetually turned their lenses on him.

 

"It's because of what happened to me, you know? Twice," Mr. Cheng said. "Once at Lake Simcoe, once at Rice Lake."

 

In one incident, Mr. Cheng says he was approached by a police officer who was not in his uniform and demanded to see his fishing license.

 

"I asked, 'Who are you?' You have to give me your name or I'm not going to give you my fishing license. Then he got mad at me. He shout at me and that's why I shout at him," Mr. Cheng said.

 

While Mr. Cheng did not suffer from physical injury, he said the experiences still haunt him today - just not enough to discourage him from his favourite pastime though.

 

"I still go fishing, all the time," Mr. Cheng said. "I went fishing to the same place three times March and April. I'm not afraid, because I'm entitled to fish."

[centerpin_drift]

haahhaahaha

[tonyle87]

whats so funny centerpin?

[e-z-out]

Fishing is getting out of hand if people need to push others in the lakes or rivers.

i understand it's hate crimes and we will always have them no matter what we do.

I know fishing is a very relaxing sport and it's nice to fish solo but with this happing more offten your better off fishing with a few friends.

 

Remember numbers will always scare off cowards

[Spiel]

haahhaahaha

 

I must have missed something, care to elaborate?

[Guest ThisPlaceSucks]

apparently intolerance is alive and well in this thread.

[limeyangler]

i hate the word intolerance in this context...it implies that there actually is something to be "tolerated".

[ohhenrygsr]

haahhaahaha

 

Yea that's just wrong man. Care to explain your actions

[xeon]

haahhaahaha

 

Lol dam you didnt get it at all.

Edited April 20, 2009 by xeon

[salmon]

haahhaahaha

 

He disappeared

Man up and explain yourself!!!

 

Jose

[Jet]

haahhaahaha

 

Since it seems humorous to Centerpin_drift maybe he can read some facts and have some more laughs. http://www.ocoa.ca/Pages_MNRnews/index.htm

 

Unfortunately in this day and age some forget its people that are guilty, not whole groups.

Edited April 24, 2009 by Jet