Indigenous Fishers Left Stranded: A Harrowing Tale of Mistreatment
Indigenous fishers Kevin Hartling and Blaise Sylliboy recount their disturbing experience of being detained and abandoned by federal fisheries officers in Nova Scotia, sparking outrage and calls for investigation.
Imagine walking barefoot along a deserted highway in the dead of night, stranded without a phone, filled with fear that stopping could mean death. This was the terrifying reality for Mi’kmaq fisher Kevin Hartling and his friend Blaise Sylliboy, both from Indigenous First Nations communities in Nova Scotia. Last week, these two men were detained by federal fisheries officers for fishing near Shelburne, N.S., only to be left stranded at a gas station far from home without any footwear or means of communication. What followed was a harrowing journey of survival, reminiscent of a dark chapter in Canadian history.
Hartling, 29, and Sylliboy, 25, were apprehended on March 26 while fishing for baby eels, also known as elvers, when three fisheries officers intervened. After confiscating their phones and hip waders, the officers callously dumped the men at a gas station about 45 minutes away from their fishing spot. Despite pleas to allow them to write down contact information or modify the waders to avoid walking barefoot, their requests were callously denied by the officers.
- They said: ‘No. That’s not our problem,'” Hartling recounted.
Stripped of their belongings and left to fend for themselves in the middle of the night, Hartling and Sylliboy faced a dangerous predicament. The closure of the elver fishery due to violence and intimidation issues had already heightened tensions, but the treatment meted out to these Indigenous fishers was beyond comprehension. Their ordeal on that fateful night has sparked outrage across the nation, with calls for accountability and justice ringing loud.
Abandoned and Desperate
As they stood at the gas station, Hartling and Sylliboy borrowed a phone in a desperate attempt to contact someone who could help them. With no access to their stored contacts, their situation grew increasingly dire. The hours ticked by as they tried reaching out to familiar numbers, only to be met with silence on the other end. Forced to leave the gas station by an unsympathetic clerk, the pair embarked on a treacherous journey along the dark highway towards Liverpool, N.S., hoping to find shelter.
Walking for hours on end, their feet blistered and sore from the cold pavement, Hartling and Sylliboy encountered a glimmer of hope in the form of a clothing donation bin. This unexpected discovery provided them with some much-needed relief as they swapped their deteriorated socks for something warmer. The symbolism of finding solace in such a simple act was not lost on them amidst the chaos and uncertainty of their situation.
- “The blisters on my feet are still pretty bad, but they were a lot worse,” Hartling shared.
A Painful Reminder
Priscilla Settee, a professor emerita of Indigenous Studies at the University of Saskatchewan, expressed her disgust upon hearing Hartling and Sylliboy’s story. For Settee, this incident was a stark reminder of the dark legacy of starlight tours that have plagued Indigenous communities in Canada. The deliberate act of abandoning vulnerable individuals in harsh conditions without adequate protection or support is a chilling reminder of the systemic injustices faced by Indigenous peoples.
Starlight tours were not merely acts of negligence; they were calculated attempts to inflict harm and suffering on Indigenous individuals. The echoes of past tragedies reverberate through stories like that of Hartling and Sylliboy, serving as a poignant reminder of the ongoing struggles faced by Indigenous communities across the country. It is a stark wake-up call to confront the deep-rooted biases and injustices that continue to pervade our society.
As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed a thorough investigation into the mistreatment suffered by Hartling and Sylliboy, the nation waits for answers and accountability. The plight of these Indigenous fishers has shed light on the urgent need for systemic change and justice for marginalized communities who have endured centuries of oppression and mistreatment.
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