Polygamist claims religious persecution

BOUNTIFUL, British Columbia, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- A Canadian religious leader charged with polygamy said the government is targeting his religion for political purposes.

Winston Blackmore, a former bishop of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, said Thursday at the Mormon Hills elementary school in Bountiful, British Columbia, that the charge against him is "not about polygamy," the Globe and Mail reported Friday.

"Tens of thousands of polygamists, among many different cultures, are hiding in plain sight all across Canada. They are known by their neighbors, police, legislators and the media just as we are," he said. "But they are not fundamentalist Mormons. To us, this is about religious persecution. And persecution has always been about politics. Whatever else is involved in this, it is still all about politics."

"I am what I am and we are what we are. We are descended from a long line of Mormon-believing people. My family did not make up our faith, nor did we establish the fundamental teachings of Mormonism," Blackmore said.

The religious leader's statement came after British Columbia Attorney General Wally Oppal announced earlier in the week that Blackmore and rival FLDS leader Jim Oler had each been charged with one count of polygamy.

Police said one of the wives involved in the case may have been as young as 15 at the time of the wedding, but investigators did not say which defendant she allegedly married.