Periodical
UBCIC News - volume 1, number 9 (February, 1979)
- Title
- UBCIC News - volume 1, number 9 (February, 1979)
- Is Part Of
- 1.06-01.03 Nesika: UBCIC News
- 1.06.-01 Newsletters and bulletins sub-series
- Date
- February 1979
- volume
- 1
- issue
- 9
- Language
- english
- Identifier
- 1.06-01.03-03.01
- pages
- 37
- Table Of Contents
-
INDIAN GOVERNMENT AND LAND CLAIMS
REVISIONS TO THE INDIAN ACT
EDNA NED WINS! - Contributor
- Beth Cuthand
- Pauline Douglas
- George Manuel. Terry Starr. Val Dudoward
- Jeannette Bonneau
- Dinah Schooner
- Gene Joseph
- Sylvia Woods
- Linda Jordan
- John Warren
- Clifford Hanuse.
- Type
- periodical
- Transcription (Hover to view)
-
UBCIC NEWS
NO. 1, VOLUME 9 FEBRUARY, 1979
INDIAN GOVERNMENT AND LAND CLAIMS
REVISIONS TO THE INDIAN ACT
EDNA NED WINS!
ONE DOLLAR
EDITORIAL
I arrived in Montreal late in the afternoon of
November 10, 1975. It was getting to get dark by the
time I reached the Holiday Inn where the Inuit and
Cree were negotiating the final details of their Land
Claims settlement: The James Bay Agreement.
Ever since the agreement-in-principle was adopted
by all parties on Nov. 15, 1974, the Cree and Inuit
negotiators had been heavily criticized, not only from
other Indian Inuit and Metis organizations across
Canada, but also from their own constituents, who
objected strongly. Inuit Communities: Sugluk,
Akulivik and Povungnituk refused to be signatories
to the surrender of Aboriginal Rights.
They had been under extreme pressure ever since
Premier Bourrassa announced the James Bay hydro-
electric project in April 1971. The giant project
would dam or divert all the major rivers of James
Bay and build powerhouses which would increase the
hydro-electric production of Canada by 30% but
would be sold to the Eastern United States. The Inuit
and Cree would be heavily impacted by the project,
their hunting and trapping lifestyle would be
destroyed.
The Crees initiated a court action in 1972
requesting a permanent injunction to halt the
project. This action which the Inuit later became
party to, dragged on for two years, at the same time
as the land claims negotiations which moved slowly
as the Quebec government refused to take the Inuit
and Indians seriously.
‘‘They had suffered enough,’’ I thought, ‘‘all
those pressures on them and the pressure of being in
the public eye, of being watched all the time by the
media, must I, an Indian reporter, question them
now? Why doesn’t everybody just leave them
alone?”’
But there 1 was, walking into the lobby of the
Holiday Inn in Montreal, covering ‘‘an historic
landmark.’’ What would I ask them: How does it feel
to lose? Why did you give away your aboriginal
rights? I stood in the lobby wondering how I would
conduct the interviews, when suddenly a door opened
down the corridor. I could hear the sounds of a large
number of people. The crowd rounded the corner
and came into my line of vision. What I saw next will
remain imprinted on my mind until I die. I stood
rooted to the spot as the Inuit and Crees walked
down the corridor toward me. The negotiations had
ended. The strain, the grief and an infinite weariness
was worn on every face. As they walked around me, I
could feel their grief and pain and it touched the core
of my soul. ‘‘Thev know what they’re giving up.’’ I
thought, ‘“‘They know far better than we do.’’
They fought courageously and with dignity to save
their way of life, but the James Bay Inuit and Cree
didn’t stand a chance of negotiating a just settlement.
Facing the combined might of the Quebec
government, multi-national concerns and the Federal
government, theCree and Inuit hunters and trappers
couldn’t win, had never even stood a ghost of a
chance. This realization flashed through my mind as
I stood in the corridor, feeling my brothers’ grief.
The Cree and Inuit had disappeared when I finally
moved. Something had hardened in me, in that short
space in time. I turned decisively and walked out of
the Holiday Inn.
I was a jumble of emotions. | felt grief, anger,
resolve, frustration. | got a room at a Hotel nearby
and ordered three bottles of white wine from room
service. I drank it all. . .every drop.
The next morning the James Bay Inuit and Crees
signed their land claims agreement, extinguishing
their aboriginal rights to 410,000 square miles of land
in exchange for a settlement worth according to one
estimate: $3.05 per acre, a bargain equivalent to the
$24.00 paid for Manhatten Island. And me? I
watched the signing on T.V. in my hotel room
nursing a hang-over. But a little burning spark
smouldered, in my soul, preparing itself for the day
when it would flame up and burn powerfully. My
committment to our struggle had been born.
The Editor
OUR COVER: From the Public Archives of Canada, a photo from about 1915, entitled simply ‘‘Tommy and his
Grandpa’’.
ne __ 2
UBCIC NEWS 2
; The UBCIC NEWS is the official voice of ne
UBCIC - Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs.
, It is dedicated to building a strong foundation
for Indian Government by providing an awareness
of the political and social issues affecting the
Indians of British Columbia. ;
Signed articles and opinions are the views of
the individuals concerned and not necessarily
those of the UBCIC.
‘
Editor: Beth Cuthand Assistant Editor: Pauline Douglas
Written Contributions: George Manuel. Terry Starr. Val Dudoward, Jeannette Bonneau,
Dinah Schooner, Gene Joseph, Sylvia Woods, Linda Jordan, John Warren, and
Clifford Hanuse.
Typesetting: Pulp Press
The Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs
440 West Hastings Street Telephone: 684-0231
Vancouver, B.C. Telex: 04-54220
Keb? V6B 1L1 J
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PACRHIUNT EM es ge Bite, 5. sk prathnin vos NR en GE mond PG in Ae dc hho nw sera aw Pee
Revisions to the Indian Act: Going All the Way. .........00daccncccccevesstevcseesres 4
PLOR INCI 5 ROG BOING caicc. a5! oun ote hte ele a oe 6 hia Vek aie Pw Ei 6S ee tigin ane wale a4 Peeuses a
ACTOTG CACUL tas areca cs 4. sinc ka a we a ope ah Vn Ech Re Raila» SETA Mae Bee bela 7
Bai Gn ACER) Peels PME APS OPETS 25.5 one ces on WE do wo pc, ache Wines cake santas mechs ace iat 8
No More Cattle to Bring Home.......... AP ie Se OP Pe ee 10
LMSeLIGUG). 2% vc op cents si: 5-0e Uieictse< Ce BA a in ob tsa Rete Ree nae wie aca v0 eh 1]
North <oast District ounce a Proie,2o seks. poe ceed oeie dele ace wes Soon tees 12
Mens Bea Bdtig Ned WW WS aca s dw are yds wn oe aval ke mien baie woe knew ea ne ee soe
PIOeCtrs fOr Peal o <5 sli ees ic es cas PE ee ah en eR Pee ae 15
Ar Gis tl ek MOEN SS 2s a few reas ce there eb hae be ee eae Reeth alg
CE Sere menl 1s Inman Growermnmnent... Fi. eee s wie eee esac se cages ee ee et see e ees 18
_ Pressured to Sell: Three Land Claim Settlements . . 0... 6-1-0205 scepecdeweeencscen’ 20
yy OTT 11 ECM EA) ENO ROIIIOIMEIUL y Gor sch lene Wis Cele Cie vn Ween ee se ewrbgep aes dniee eu 23
Sadanicn indian School Board Taking Control. .2.60 ek ac eae os cee cele eens cee’ 23
Central Inter-Tribal Council: Getting Down to Basics...............0 cece eee ee enone 24
Fer Pre eeeueniiceest EANEU HMBER 5 Soo 05h vie Mipiens dre cae win then ody igie wae « « ogtu tel vale ngeh ts ans
Terms and Conditions of the Northern Pipeline Agency ...........0.cceweeeeweneenes 26
PrReUere CARR ct Cs Pen Rete ttrCk ae bt Tee Ee ee de «cw chen a haael’s ak eee
PP erie Demet tee. oc ate Ss oe es ois eis s oe yp hace nie Vo oo. a wie D W atgrele hte mies 29
Cannenes: The Wore aa-inere for Us... 62S. Bee Os as ae aa oe on Ciena Seecneas 30
Western Indian Agricultural Corporation. ..+..... i elsiag = griecaie Si d'a 5) kg Ea ay eteaes wy auras 33
Basket Ball Fever...... gaia pPbevad hacen RCtec ukaysdees ie SPRIEA sacguidan coe aS SUNS GA RAEN CleedorR ines 34
Mis ontessins. oF. a Leennpe Cheereager o.oo 55> saan nape tis eo me 0 oe sealed ee aie nes « 34 .
UBCIC NEWS 3
GOING ALL THE WAY___
THE INDIAN ACT EXPLAINS
THE B.N.A. ACT
The Indian Act was written about a
hundred years ago to explain Section
91 (24) of the B.N.A. Act which
states that the federal government
was the only authority to make laws
regarding ‘‘Indians and land reserved
for Indians.’’ To prove the point, the
federal government at that time made
up the Indian Act, making up laws
for Indians and our land. Our
forefathers were only invited to this
exercise as token advisors (see
January issue of UBCIC NEWS).
Control went to the newly created
Ministry of Indian Affairs who
decided on issues like membership,
land tenure, education, local govern-
ment and so on.
pate 672
Land Claims, Aboriginal Rights, Indian Government, Repatriating the
Constitution: revising the Indian Act involves all of these. You can’t deal
with it separately.
Indian government portfolio head,
described the process in B.C. ‘‘The
approach that we took here was first
to go through the Indian Act. It’s a
complex document, really vague and
even lawyers had a difficult time
understanding it. We couldn’t see
ourselves running around the
province trying to clarify it and
determine what our people felt about
the Indian Act as it existed. We
decided to go around to the people
and determine what were the root
problems of our people. What would
they like to see under their authority
and jurisdiction? That’s how the
Aboriginal Rights Position Paper
evolved: identifying the three areas
that are fundamental to any kind of
self-determination—land, resources
and Indian Government authority.
13% © Gre
Now our leaders are demanding
more than a token role in the
rewriting of the Indian Act. Over the
past few years they’ve been
recommending changes through the
National Indian Brotherhood
Cabinet Committee. While the DIA
was drawing: up revisions to the
Indian Act on their side, the
provincial and territorial Indian
organizations were preparing their
position papers. Bobby Manuel,
UBCIC NEWS 4
ABORIGINAL RIGHTS POSITION
1. We get more land, expand our
Indian reserves. ’
2. Get more resources under our
control and in sufficient quantities
that we can form an economic
foundation for ourselves.
3. The establishment of our Indian
Government Institution. We shall
involve all other _ essential
institutions.
The Aboriginal Rights Position
Paper as it was adopted at the
Assembly is a basic position that the
Union had developed. It spells out
where we want to go. If we get into a
debate about Aboriginal Rights, Land
Claims, B.N.A. Act or Revisions to the
Indian Act, that Aboriginal Rights
Position. Paper will form the basis for
all our discussions.
The Government is currently trying
to keep all these items separate to
discuss land claims as a separate
issue, to discuss the British North
American Act as a separate issue, to
discuss the Indian Act as a separate ‘
issue. But all of these are so inter-
related that no matter which we are
discussing, it all boils down to us
pushing for the position contained int
the Aboriginal Rights Position Paper.
CITIZENSHIP: THE PROPOSED
REVISIONS DON’T GO
FAR ENOUGH
The proposed
Indian Act covers
questions as - tribal
citizenship, education, land
surrenders, hunting, fishing,
trapping, gathering, anachronisms
(things that don’t exist anymore) and
areas that aren’t clear. At first glance,
proposed revisions seem _ quite
encouraging, stepping in the right
direction at least. But it’s only half a
step and the revisions don’t go far
enough. One example is citizenship
(which they-call membership). If the
Government wants to implement their
proposal there’ll still be non-status
Indians.
Though the Bands would still have
more say in this matter they would
not be able to deal with the matter
retroactively, that is, with non-status
people from way back. Final control
would still rest with the Department
of Indian Affairs. They would still
retain the criteria and the registry.
The Band will have more control, but
not to the degree that is necessary to
really establish an Indian governing
institution.
revisions to the
such basic
government,
(continued page 6)
| PRESIDENT’S
MESSAGE
The foundation of the Allied tribes of British Columbia
as a provincial Indian organization was crushed in 1927
when the Indians of British Columbia refused to surrender
their aboriginal rights to lands, water, forestry, fisheries,
wildlife (and Indian political authority over these rights) to
the Canadian Government, in exchange for beads and
blankets. Following the attempt of the Allied Tribes of
British Columbia for recognition of Aboriginal Rights,
Parliament amended the Indian Act making it an offence
for Indians to raise money for the purposes of executing
claims for Aboriginal Rights. The law did not stop the
Indian people from continuing to organize on the basis of
our belief to our birthright for self-determination. The law
forced the Indian people to go underground until it was
repealed in 1951. Indian people have continued to organize
and work in the area of Indian rights since that time.
The land claims debate has been in existence in British
Columbia since the English established themselves on our
land. But to date we have not reached an agreement to
settle this dispute. For this we deeply appreciate our
forefathers’ strength, vision and wisdom in not allowing
themselves to be stampeded into an agreement that would
have prohibited the opportunity for us to negotiate for
self-determination, within the framework of our own
Indian political institution in B.C.
I must emphasis that the solution to our claims is not
money. If the answer to Indian land claims and Aboriginal
Rights was merely money, the conflict would be resolved
with little or no haggling. Indians in B.C. would simply pry
as much cash out of the Federal Treasury as they could,
and the federal government would sigh with relief as it
washed its hands of British Columbia’s Original People.
I would like to make it clear that the main principle of
land claims in B.C. is that Indian title and Aboriginal
Rights are not to be sold or extinguished. Negotiations are
only to establish treaty agreements between the
governments and the Indian people how the principles of
Indian title and aboriginal rights will be developed,
administered and implemented by the Indian people.
The original treaties signed by Indians in Canada were
not designed to equip Canada’s Original People with the
tools necessary to participate with pride and independence
in an ever-expanding European society. The benefits
Indians received in the old treaties are a pittance when one
considers that half a continent was handed over in
exchange. We were never given access to the Nation’s
political and economic institutions or allowed to
participate meaningfully in Canada’s political and
economic affairs. In short, we were denied the right to self-
determination. Indians in British Columbia today are
determined not to allow the mistakes of the past to be
repeated in any negotiations with Governments.
Section 91 of the British North America Act deals with
the areas that are the responsibility of the federal govern-
ment. Article 24 states ‘‘Indians and lands reserved for
Indians”’ are the responsibility of the federal government.
The BNA Act makes it clear that Indians are a distinct
Nation of people in Canada. The authors of Canada’s
Constitution were forced to acknowledge the Indian
people as a distinct fact of political life in their 1867
deliberations.
What we are seeking in our land claims and Aboriginal
Rights settlement is the recognition of this sovereignty as a
founding nation of people in British Columbia. Canadians
are already familiar with the idea that Canada was
originated by two founding nations, the English and the
French. We are asking for the same recognition as a
founding people in British Columbia. We do not want
either apartheid or assimilation. We want participation.
Participation on terms that will recognize our national
identity and will ultimately strengthen Canada. It requires
not extinguishment of our Aboriginal Rights, but their
preservation. This nonextinguishment requires first the
degree of sovereignty and self-determination that will
make it possible to control our natural resources and land
base. And secondly, the political institutions of this
country must be reorganized to make a place for us to sit
and bargain with other Canadians, and provincial and
federal governments at the highest levels.
eogtibeaih
UBCIC NEWS 5
(from page 4)
THE CHARTER SYSTEM
Another questionable area
is their charter system which is a
legal vehicle allowing Bands to
develop their constitution within a
limited framework. In the final
analysis this is a federally incorp-
orated municipality.
The federal government is
proposing to create a new federal
agency: a charter commission which
would be semi-independent of the
Minister and of the Department of
Indian Affairs. This would determine
whether a Band was ready to go into
this charter system. All this leads to
the question, ‘‘Is this step one toward
making bands provincial
municipalities?”’ They seem to be
copying the tribal system in the
U.S.A. They’re certainly using the
Bureau of Indian Affairs language. .
The tribal system though takes away
the power of Indian Governments
(Band Councils) to control their own
affairs.
Thirdly, the commission would
recommend to the Minister which
Bands would be allowed to enter what
level within the charter system. This
also raises some questions about how
much Bands would have to toe the
DIA line to get into the charter
system.
LIMITING OUR RIGHTS TO
RESERVE BOUNDARIES
Another area we’re having
problems with, is that it would appear
that the Government is trying to limit
Indian rights within the boundaries of
our Indian reserves. One example is
hunting, fishing, trapping and
gathering. They’re talking about
Bands having authority to regulate
only within the boundaries of the
reserve. Most of us know that in B.C.
the reserves are often pretty small.
We were just talking to one Band who
has nine acres. Well, there’s no
wildlife there. True economic self-
determination will require our rights
to extend beyond the existing Indian
reserve boundaries.
“It’s stepping in the right direction
in lots of ways but it’s not giving the
real and complete authority to the
’ Band Government (Indian Govern-
UBCIC NEWS 6
ments). We need to really examine
the proposals, fill in the blanks.
Make sure we’ve got all aspects
covered so that what we want
is incorporated into the new act.
There are many areas our people
want under our jurisdiction and
authority. _‘‘What we’re saying,”’
concludes Bobby ‘“‘Is that we’re
pushing to ensure that the DIA make
their position very clear. We’re
~ pushing them to go beyond where
they want they go. They’re taking
half a step and we’re pushing them to
go the full step to accept our
Aboriginal Rights Position Paper
that our people have agreed upon.”’
STARTING THE NEGOTIATIONS
So now we’re at the first stage of
the negotiation process. We have our
position and the Minister’s put his
proposals together and put them out
for comment. DIA staff are now
making themselves available to dis-
cuss these proposals. The views of our
people, at organization level and at
Band level, will be brought back to
the Minister. He’ll make the revisions
and then he’ll turn it into a legislative
form and submit it to the House of
Commons on April 1, 1979. From
there it will go to a committee who
will travel across Canada having
Public Hearings, not just for Indian
people, interestingly enough, but for
non-Indian people as well. After that
the Revisions will then be re-
introduced into Parliament.
On February 16th Bobby Manuel
led a delegation from UBCIC to meet
Hugh Anderson, Parliamentary
Secretary to the Minister of Indian
Affairs, to discuss some of his more
‘immediate concerns. The main topic
of the discussion was the
impossibility of dealing with the
revisions to the Indian Act in
isolation.
One of the questions that will also
be brought up is about public educa-
tion in preparation for the Public
Hearings. Indian people have had a
bad enough time keeping up with the
work to do with the Repatriation of
the Constitution, Revisions, MTA,
Local Services Agreement, Health
Guidelines and the 0-based budget. It
Som
MUNICIPALITY STATUS
It appears, through the federal
government’s proposed changes to
the Indian Act, that the goavernment
is trying to place reserves under
“municipality status.’’ Municipality |
status would put reserves under the
same legal definition as any
municipality (Vanouver, Fort St.
Joh, Prince George...), and would
change the Indian way of life on
reserves.
Taking on municipality status
would result in the enfranchisement
of whole bands—everybody would
become ‘‘non-status.’’
Another problem that band
councils would face under
municipality status is taxation.
Municipalities receive much of their
revenue through taxation of their
residents, and this revenue is used to |
pay for services such as roads, water,
sewage and housing. Reserves under
municipality status would be forced
to tax the band members for these
services; the money would not come
from the federal government, as it |
does now. Some band councils have
already been approached,
individually, by the government in an
effort to persuade a few band
councils to change their status to that
of municipalities. It is likely that the
government is hoping to convince a
few band councils to adopt
municipality status, and then will |
pass legislation forcing all band
councils and reserves to take on
municipality status. This possibility is
very dangerous and very real, and the
U.B.C.I.C. Indian Government
Portfolio is investigating every angle
ae development in this area. y
feels like a bombardment of issues de-
signed to weaken our position and |
diffuse our working strength. Will the
non-Indian public be prepared with
enough information to take part in
these Public Hearings or will this just
be a chance for uninformed groups
like B.C. Wildlife Federation to take
pot shots at Indian rights? The Go-
vernment needs to give some assur-
ance about its serious intention with
regard to these Public Hearings.
CHIEFS COUNCIL onrssmimien
The Chiefs’ Council of the UBCIC
met for three days early this month.
The detailed minutes are in the
process of being done and we hope
the following will give you an overall
view of the Chiefs’ Council meeting.
In December, the UBCIC found it
necessary to go on a policy of fiscal
restraint until the end of March to
avoid a deficit. There were some lay-
offs in staff and this management
decision was challenged by Vice-Pres-
ident Ernie Willie in a letter from him
dated December 18, 1978. The item
was placed on the agenda and
. discussed in detail during the first day
of the Chiefs’ Council. A ‘‘Statement
of Financial Condition’’ was
prepared for presentation to the
Council, along with the UBCIC
Employment Policy Manual. After
hearing the issue, Council restated
the Employment Policy as written in
the Manual and referred the issue to
the Personnel Committee. Chiefs’
Council unanimously passed a vote of
confidence in the leadership of
George Manuel as President and in ©
the UBCIC staff, and were able to
proceed with the Agenda.
N.I.B. Taxation:-
Louise Mandell and Leslie Pinder,
UBCIC lawyers, gave a summary of
the NIB Tax case. The NIB $éis
appealing on the basis that we are
exempt from income tax according to
the Indian Act. Council
decided to both intervene in the
National Indian Brotherhood case
and launch our own Appeal at the
same time.
Health: —-
George Manuel recently attended
an NIB Executive Council Meeting in
Ottawa regarding the National
Health and Welfar policy guidelines
cutting back on health services to
Indian people, and he presented
Chiefs’ Council with a _ detailed
account. This was regarded as a
‘ priority issue, guaranteed as a Right
under the B.N.A. Act. Provincial and
Territorial organisations and
individual reserves across Canada
have demonstrated’ their total
rejection of these guidelines.
Chiefs discussed the NIB
presentation with Health Minister
Begin (see page for details). The
UBCIC is still receiving many Band
Council and individual letters of
support. Band input is needed to
figure out strategies to persuade the
Federal Government to recognize its
obligations.
Education:
The DIA has indicated
that it is ready to discuss the re-
negotiation of the Master Tuition
Agreement and will meet with the
. UBCIC to determine the nature of
these negotiations. Other areas of
concern were the post-secondary issue
of Circular 12 and the DIA Band
Training Programs. Millie Poplar
informed Chiefs Council that due to
her family commitments and the
more than fulltime nature of the
Education Portfolio holder, ‘she
would like to offer her services to the
Union in another capacity. Maxine
Pape, assistant to the President, and
Millie have exchanged positions and
the Chiefs’ Council wished both every
success.
Chiefs’ Delegation to the Queen:
Linda Jordan reported on the NIB
Plans for sending a delegation of
Chiefs and Elders to London. The
purpose is to inform the Queen and
her Ministers that the patriation of
the B.N.A. Act Canadian soil should
be denied by the British Parliament
unless an agreement is made to
recognize our Aboriginal Rights in
the Constitution. Linda is co-
ordinating plans for the B.C. Region.
Social Economics:
A recommendation was given to the
Council that 2 resolution be passed
opposing the n ve by the Provincial
Government not to hold hearings be-
fore the roll-over of Tree-Farm Li-
cences under the new. Forest Act
which has provision for such hear-
ings.
There was substantial discussion
about the need for bands around the
province to hold their own hearings.
The motion was passed.
Communications: ————————_
Beth Cuthand presented proposals
for radio programming which was
approved by the Council.
Energy and Resources:
Land Use and Occupancy:
Dinah Schooner has recently been
involved in an __ enlightening
experience in northeastern B.C. and
she shared this with Chiefs’ Council.
Dinah described how the study began
and how it documents to what extent,
hunting and trapping are the
foundation of Indian existence in teh
northeast. The Chiefs applauded her
. presentation.
Uranium: - -
Debbie Hoggan reported
on the B.C. Government’s plans for a
public enquiry into uranium mining
and the Union’s intention § to
participate because some of the
uranium sites are close to reserves in
the Okanagan.
Hat Creek: a
Steven Basil presented the slide-
show telling of the environmental
risks that we would be exposed to if
B.C. Hydro is allowed to proceed
with the Hat Creek project.
Fishing:
Lillian Basil reported on the Fish
Forum and Fishing cases in the
courts. Herman Thomas showed the
two films ‘‘We’’ll do Our Fishing,”’
Mount Currie, and ‘‘Sinumuk,’’
Bella Coola. The Fishing Portfolio
has acquired funds for Herman to
show these films to Bands and other
institutions on request. Chiefs’
Council was adjourned so that the
chiefs could join the march and
demonstration to B.C. Hydro. (see
page 8)
UBCIC NEWS 7
=
More than fifty people marched through the streets of Vancouver to the B.C. Hydro Building to tell Hydro why they
object to the proposed Hat Creek Project.
B.C. HYDRO HAS
NO ANSWERS |
It was a dark, rainy February
Thursday in Vancouver.
The Chiefs’ Council of the Union
of B.C. Indian Chiefs had
been meeting for three days. Now
they speeded up their business so they
could be ready.
The time was drawing near for
what one Indian leader was to call ‘‘a
mission of awareness.”’
By mid-afternoon a company of 60
was assembled on the street outside:
Indian leaders from Hat Creek and
around the province, joined by others
in town for the Council meeting and
by members of the UBCIC staff.
With leaflets for passers-by in
hand, the march began. Film crews
ran ahead of the column as it wound
its way through the heart of the city:
onward to Hydro headquarters!
**Burn the place down!’’ yelled a
construction worker from a job site
across the street.
“Love to,’’ shouted back a
marcher.
**Go ahead!’’
UBCIC NEWS 8
vrwae
a
Pouring into the Hydro building
and piling into elevators, the
emissaries finally made __ their
destination: the boardroom high atop °
Hydro-central, the seat of electric
power in British Columbia.
‘‘We hadn’t expected this many
people,”” Thom Thompson of
Hydro’s community relations office
apologized, as many were left
standing.
*“‘Now maybe you'll appreciate
how many people are interested in
this,’ shot back UBCIC president
George Manuel. ;
The time had come for Indian
people to confront Hydro with what
they believe to be the risks they face
from a coal-fired power plant.
Hydro plans to build such a plant
in the Hat Creek valley just west of
Cache Creek. Some 12 Indian Bands
live in the area, drawing on the valley
for food and for jobs.
But Hydro has discovered more
than a billion tons of thermal coal
beneath it. And the utility wants to
By James Harper
reprinted from the Energy File
_ build a power plant at Hat Creek that
might one day supply nearly a third
of B.C.’s electricity.
What will the project involve?
What will the hazards be for the
people and environment of the area?
For months the Hat Creek
Committee of Indian Bands and the
UBCIC had met obstacles in getting
any real information from Hydro.
But after doing their homework
and contacting places where coal-
powered plants already exist, Indian
people now armed themselves with
scientific reports, a slide.show and
their own ‘‘Statement of Risk.”’
“We do not mean to frighten
anyone unnecessarily with this
Statement of Risk,’ the UBCIC
writes. ‘‘We have tried to present
what we believe to be the true
situation.’’
The information is there. Sixteen
square miles of a ranching valley
appropriated for the power project.
An open pit coal mine 600 feet deep
(‘‘almost twice as high as the Hotel
Vancouver’’). A billion tons of waste,
rock and overburden.
Hat Creek itself, which runs
through the valley providing
irrigation to. ranchers and water
supply to Indian communities
downstream, will be relocated and
dammed.
Underground water systems in the
valley will be changed, with the open
pit of the mine acting like ‘‘a giant.
drain’’ to “‘dry up the earth for a long
way around the pit and make it
difficult for anything to grow.”’
But of even deeper concern is what
will happen to the air, and what could
follow from that. _ 3
‘Everyone who has worked on
preparing this risk statement agrees,”’
the UBCIC states, ‘‘that air pollution
will present the most serious danger
to the people in the Hat Creek atea,
as well as causing problems hundreds
of miles around.”’
When Hat Creek coal is burnt in
the power plant, elements that make
up the coal will be released into the
atmosphere in tremendous volumes
as by-products.
Sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide,
ash, particulates, hydrocarbons and '
trace elements (such as arsenic): all
will be in the air pollution. Many are
already known as harmful to plants,
animals and humans.
Borrowing a page from the mine
operators at Sudbury, Hydro
proposes to build a tall stack at Hat
Creek to disperse the air pollution
from the power plant over the widest
possible area.
But the results from Sudbury and
other areas where this scheme has
been tried are devastating. As the air
pollution travels over long distances,
it can be converted to an ‘‘acid rain.”’
This will fall over a wide area with
irreparable damage to lakes, streams
and vegetation.
The UBCIC has investigated wea-
ther patterns around Hat Creek to
find out how they might affect
dispersal of the air contaminants.
In their Statement of Risk, they
report that breathing in polluted air
from Hat Creek is ‘‘the most serious
health hazard for people.’’
Attacking lung tissue and possibly
entering the blood stream, the air
contaminants put ““most at
risk...the children, the elderly and
those who may already have a chest
disease.’” ,
These factors together pose a very
real danger to Indian people living
near the proposed plant site.
UBCIC environment consultant
Jim Brisebois finds, under certain
weather conditions at Hat Creek,
“the residents of the Hat Creek valley
would have experienced a fumigation
similar to the trench warfare gassings
of the first great war.”’
Questions, demands and angry
E # a
P Pa —*
Hydro didn
at expect the large number of angry people who confronted them
Gerald Etienne, acting for the Hat
Creek Committee, charged ‘‘it’s on
the onus of B.C. Hydro to prove to
the people of B.C. and to local people
that this project won’t be detrimental |
in its effects to people.”’
““Why should Indian people be
forced to come to this building and
beg, you for their lives?’’ asked Chief
Ray Hance of the Toosey Band (from
west of Williams Lake).
“It’s always afer the fact that
Indian people are finally consulted.
And what happens is they’re told
what’s going to happen.”’
on questions of risk in the Hat Creek area.
declarations were put time and time
again to a coterie of Hydro brass in
attendance at the February meeting.
But they were met by a wall of
arrogant (and perhaps fearful)
silence.
‘Our health is very bad now,’’ a
delegate remarked. ‘‘What will it be
then? Your action slowly but surely
kills. You can’t get around that!’’
Hydro’s only reply throughout the
' afternoon was that they had ‘‘no
answer now’’ and must await further
studies.
**You’ve got the cream already,’’
said John L. George, whose Burrard
Band itself is ‘‘just down the road’’
from a Hooker Chemicals plant.
‘*I don’t see any progress in killing
the Indian people off. Sure you’re a
big outfit. But I don’t think you're
Jesus Christ himself.’’
**You’ve got a responsibility to
(Indian) people,’’ one speaker
declared, reminding Hydro of its
mandate to serve B.C. residents, ‘‘not
to American citizens south of the
border.”
“‘We’re not gonna sit back and let
B.C. Hydro destroy the people in the
Hat Creek valley.’’
Finally it was George Manuel who.
summed it all up—all the anger in the
room, the memories of past power
projects (like Ingenika), the
determination to continue the fight.
‘* We're’ beginning to know what
B.C. Hydro is all about,’’ he said.
‘**B.C. Hydro has become the most
powerful organization in British
Columbia.
*“ You've, bulldozed our people
before. But we’re not gonna take
B.C. Hydro lying down!”’ :
UBCIC NEWS 9
(We worked. . . at an early We,
with my grandfather who was what is
called a ‘range rider.” This job took
us miles into the mountains and we
found out where the cattle were
grazing, and this would happen all
summer until fall time when all the
cattle had to be brought back to the
ranch to be kept and some to be sold.
All the men who knew how this was
to be done were chosen to bring the
cattle home to the ranch. Sometimes
it would take maybe ten men to do
this round-up and today, because
B.C. Hydro has bought out the big
ranches, the ranches don’t function
as they once did. There’s no cattle to
bring home and there’s just no more
jobs for the people who depended on
ranching to support their families.’’
(Steve Basil, a member of the
Bonaparte Band now employed with
the U.B.C.I.C. as a fieldworker in the
\Hat Creek area) sy
Hydro Buying Out
Ranches
The Hat Creek Project planned by
B.C. Hydro involves 11,000 acres.
The people on _ the
Bonaparte Reserve live closest to the
project—one family lives just a mile
and a half from the proposed plant
site. Cornwall, Pavilion, Deadman’s
Creek, Fountain and Bridge River
Reserves are also situated within an
area which will be affected by the
project.
And this project—into which B.C.
Hydro has already poured more than
25-million-dollars for studies—is al-
ready affecting the Indian people
living in the area.
Indian people of the Hat Creek
area depend on ranching as their live-
lihood. Ranching has been their way
of life and their income source in the
past; they want ranching to continue
to be a strong force in their lives.
However, B.C. Hydro has been
buying up land in the Hat Creek area,
and the Bonaparte Reserve is now
surrounded by Hydro-owned land.
UBCIC NEWS 10
PUBYIND “*g ‘010g
‘In the surrounding mountains which are their hunting grounds, where
food is to provide their families and where hunting is an aboriginal right,
the people want to keep B.C. Hydro from running in and taking it away.’’
This move by Hydro means that they
are smothering possible opposition
from ranching operations by buying
them out. Hydro has also succeeded
‘in robbing an estimated eighty
Indians of their ranching jobs by pur-
chasing these ranching operations.
This serious problem has already
forced half of the 350 people on the
Bonaparte Band List to leave their
home to look for other work. For
those who stay, there is virtually no
local employment, so Social Assis-
tance (Welfare) is, for some, the only
way to survive. And the ranches in
the Hat Creek area that are not
bought by B.C. Hydro will still not be
safe from the power plant project:
Sulphur dioxide will be polluting the
air as it comes out of the plant’s giant
smoke stack (to be the highest man-
made structure between Sudbury,
Ontario and the Pacific Ocean). This
sulphur dioxide burns the leaves of
plants, slowing and eventually killing
the growth of these plants. The land
will not have the protection of this
vegetation, and the top soil will
erode. With this top soil gone, land
that was once used for cattle grazing
will become useless.
And this will rob Indians of the last
few ranching jobs left in the area.
Another possible threat local people
face is their water rights.
B.C. Hydro has gained the water
rights to many creeks by buying so
much local ranch land. A_ huge
amount of water will be needed to
operate the coal-fired power plant
and Hydro plans to divert Hat Creek
and to pump water from the
Thompson River via pipeline to meet
this need for water.
If Hydro decides to cut off local
water supplies, landowers will be in a
rather vulnerable position. But we are
talking about a proposed project, and
the Indian people in the Hat Creek
area, and the Union of B.C. Indian
Chiefs, are determined that this pro-
ject will not go ahead as planned. We
are ready and willing to fight.
The Indian people of the Hat Creek
area do not want their way of life to
be destroyed. Ranching is at the
centre of their lives, and B.C. Hydro
has already caused some destruction
to their traditional occupation.
UP-DATE
FISH LAKE CENTRE
TURNED OVER TO TOOSEY BAND
On February 16th Hugh Anderson, Parliamentary
Secretary to Hugh Faulkner, handed over the Fish Lake
complex ownership papers to Chief Ray Hance of the
Toosey Band.
The DIA built Fish Lake on land that the Department of
National Defense considers it owns. According to their |
1975 Land Claim Statement, however, the Toosey Band
owns this land and they have been using the Fish Lake
buildings for their own cultural and educational purposes.
There is no question in the people’s mind about who owns
Fish Lake, and about three years ago, the Band started
lobbying their MP’s to get the complex turned over to
them. All the MP’s approached were sympathetic, but
’ slow to deal with the Department of National Defense. So
the Chief requested the UBCIC lawyer to help out with
negotiations. Once they got National Defense to agree to
turn over the land to the Band on a five year license basis,
the Department of Indian Affairs agreed to sign over the
Fish Lake cultural centre. This is the paper that was
handed over by Hugh Anderson. Now the Band is just
awaiting the license from National Defense, giving the
Toosey Band sole right of occupancy while there is no war
_ going on.
GOLDRIVER: BRINGING IN THE FEDS.
On February 16th, Chief Mary Johnson and Band member
Jack Johnson met with their MP, Hugh Anderson,
In a tully documented presentation, she outlined
the problems that the Mowachaht Band is having with the
Tahsis Co. Pulp Mill: the breaking of lease agreements
with regard to air and noise pollution, jobs and taxation of
Indians working there though the mill is on reserve land.
The Minister accepted the Band’s invitation to come and
see the situation for himself and to study plans for the
Band’s return to Yuquot and to their traditional economic
foundation of fishing. He will also be investigating
problems with UIC non-payments. Len Marchand will be
invited to visit with Hugh Anderson. The UBCIC is
working with the Band preparing legal action should the
MP fail to convince the Pulp Mill to live up to its lease
agreements.
SALE OF CROWN LAND STOPPED
On January 30, the Social Credit Government announced ~
plans to sell off 64 million acres of Crown Land in 3-5 acre
lots for homes. The Land Commission and Agriculture
Commission were not informed in advance and were
outraged. George Manuel protested to Premier Bennett:
**The lands you are offering for sale belong to my people.”’
He called a Press Conference to make sure people were
made aware that the Provincial Government had no right
—legally, _morally or politically—to do this. The
Provincial Government plan to sell 100,000 square miles of
B.C. was regarded as an attempt to remove any possibility
of resolving the conflict between the Indian people and the
Government of B.C. The Premier was invited to come and
explain his actions to the Chiefs Council fo the UBCIC.
James Chabot, Minister of Lands and Resources, issued
a statement soon after, saying that it was all a mistake and
they were only offering a few thousand plots of Crown
Land for sale at this stage.
The UBCIC took legal action against the Province in
August of last year (see UBCIC NEWS September issue)
for similar action in auctioning off Crown Land in the
Peace River area. The case will be heard sometime next
year.
_ LATE FLASH!! FRANCIS HAINES’ MOOSE HAS
BEEN RETURNED (February 21st)
However, the date for the Appeal by the Provincial
Government on the hunting rights decision has been
announced as April 3, 1979, at Williams Lake.
- George Manual urges all Indians to attend court.
FISHING CASES: MANDELL REPORT
Most of the Lillooet/Lytton cases have been postponed
until after the Bradley Bob Aboriginal Rights case has been
decided. This will be heard from April 17th to April 20th
in Lillooet. Everyone is encouraged to come to court. The
case of Edward Thompson of Lytton will still go ahead
before then. One of the arguments in that case will be
harassment by Federal Fisheries. The other cases not
dealing with Aboriginal Rights will be heard in March &
Aor. >
The whole series of Matsqui cases has been timed to
come to court at the same time as the Lillooet case, April
17th to April 20th. Come to Court!
THREE COURT VICTORIES: The Crown Prosecutor
dropped charges against Brian Joe of Duncan. They gave no
reasons.
Edna Ned of Sumas Band won her case (see page 14
for story).
Herman Thomas’s case came up in court on February
19th. The trial continues but after arguments the Crown
has dropped one charge of transporting fish.
UBCIC NEWS 11
NORTH COAST DISTRICT
District Councils represent a form of
-Indian Government. Several bands in
a geographical area form a district
council, and this district council
handles matters like negotiating for
and distributing capital funds and
other monies from the Department of
Indian Affairs, lobbying for needed
services, and investigating concerns
and complaints expressed by band
members. There are 17 District Coun-
cils and similar organizations doing
the work of District Councils in
British Columbia. Val Dudoward re-
cently travelled to Prince Rupert, and
met with the executive of the North
Coast District Council—chairman
Frances (Frenchy) Lewis, co-chair-
man Willard Wilson, and secretary-
treasurer Frank Collison, to discuss
the function and concerns of the
North Coast District. Here is what
she found out: ;
Seven bands belong to the North
Coast -District Council: Masset and
Skidegate from the Queen Charlotte
Islands, Kincolith from the Nass,
and Metlakatla, Kitkatla and Port
Simpson. The District Council
handles capital funding for the bands
with the Department of Indian Af-
fairs, acts as a liason between the
band and government agencies, and
handles many of the local Indian con-
cerns On the north coast.
1 talked to the executive of the
North Coast District Council after
they had met with Department of
Indian Affairs representatives from
the Terrace, Prince Rupert and Van-
couver offices to complain about the
lack of Indian participation in D.I.A.
capital funds planning. ‘‘The North
Coast does it (distributés capital
funds among the bands) on a priority
basis: the needs of each band. We sit
down each year and revise the priority
list,’’ says Frances (Frenchy) Lewis,
chairman of the North Coast District
Council.
This method differs from distribu-
tion based on a per capita system
UBCIC NEWS 12
Photo: V. Dudoward
(population) used by some district
councils. The North Coast is able to
allot money for projects which the
bands collectively feel are priority
matters.
And negotiating for and then
distributing money for capital costs is
an important function of the North
Coast District, because this money re-
presents goods and services needed by
the people in each of the seven bands.
North Coast District co-chairman
Willard Wilson lists the priorities:
‘‘Housing, water and sewer, subdivi-
sion development. . . . housing is a
big priority. Housing isn’t adequate.
It is a priority with the District Coun- -
cil so | would imagine it is a priority
with each reserve because each re-
serve sends a delegate here (to North
Coast District Council meetings) and
we’re always hammering away at
more housing. We need more housing
on each reserve.””
Members of the North Coast Dis-
trict executive want to be involved in
decision-making sessions held by the
Department of Indian Affairs and
other government agencies.
**We (the District Council) should
always be involved in any issue that is
concerning people at the band level if
it’s going to affect their way of life or
whatever, and this is difficult at times
when it doesn’t work out,’’ says Mr.
Lewis, referring to recent decisions
made by the D.1.A. at the national
level which don’t take into considera-
tion Indian participation or consulta-
tion. :
“I'd like to point out that not all
government people are unsympathe-
tic to (Indian) participation,’’ says
Mr. Wilson., ‘‘When they (D.I.A.)
had that zero-base budgeting work-
shop for the Department personnel,
there was a few Indians there, and
they asked. . . they requested of Fred
Walchli (Regional Director, D.1.A.)
that there be Indian participation
through this exercise. As a result of ©
that there is Indian participation right
now. The North West District (of the
D.I.A.) has been designated as the
pilot project and they’re having full
Indian participation in that, so appar-
ently back East there (Ottawa),
they’re starting to listen a little.’’
An opinion often held about the
North Coast area is that it offers
better employment opportunities for
Indians (and non-Indians), and better
general living conditions than other
areas of the province. Evidence of
this opinion lies in the numbers of
people who flock to Prince Rupert
(which is the centre of the North
Coast area for Indians and_ non-
The people of Port Simpson are concentrating on improving the housing,
roads and employment on the reserve.
COUNCIL: A PROFILE
Indians; % of the city’s population of
18,000 is Indian, most of them be-
longing to one of the seven bands of
the North Coast District Council)
during traditional seasonal periods of
high employment, to find work
E re
Council’s Native Outreach Program.
during the salmon season, the herring
season, and peak periods of logging.
However, Frank Collison, secretary-
treasurer of the North Coast District,
does not believe that Indians, espe-
cially those who live on-reserve, are
*“better off’’ on the North Coast.
*‘| think they are (North Coast
Indians) a little more aggressive when
they’re going after (government) de-
partments or wherever funding is
coming from, but saying we’re better
off, | don’t think that’s really true.
A lot of our problems that we have
now have been long-standing ones
that should have been resolved, |
think, many years ago, and would’ve
been if there were different govern-
ment structures. The things that we
fight for now are things that are taken
pretty much for granted by any muni-
cipality. We spend hours and hours
and years and years fighting for the
same things: water systems, basic in-
frastructures (houses) of communi-
ties. . . . an ongoing fight for most of
our bands, and that really isn’t pro-
gress. What | would think progress
should be is some way of establishing
some economic base for the com-
Terry Starr and Sandy Miller are among tho
munities, rather than fighting for
essential services.
That was, I believe, the thinking
behind taking on the Native Outreach
Program (1% years ago). . . to try to
establish some assessment of our
a
bea :
se working on the District
needs in. the seven villages in the
North Coast District. And from there
we would have some documented evi-
dence of what our needs would be,
and what sort of economic base could
be established in the villages, and
from there going a little bit ahead of
the game, instead of hanging on to
the tail end of these programs that the
Department (DIA) keeps placing on
us. I think it’s (the Outreach Pro-
gram) been very successful from the
standpoint of becoming known and
gathering information and just being
a good vehicle for us to operate.’’
The Native Outreach Project is run
out of an office in Prince Rupert and
employes five people: Terry Starr, co-
ordinator; Sandy Miller, fieldworker;
Bob Collison, fieldworker; Frances
Abrahams, receptionist; and Marla
Pryce, secretary. The Outreach office
has up-to-date duplicates of Canada
Employment Centre job listings, as
well as training and educational pro-
grams available in the area. In addi-
tion, the Outreach staff travels to the
seven villages belonging to the North
Coast District, to keep everyone up-
to-date on jobs available, as well as
HBS "| ASBWNOD :o}0Ud
government-sponsored training, and.
vocational and educational
programs. The Outreach staff also
monitors the (un)employment situa-
tion on the reserves.
Response to the Project has teen
very good so far, with many Indians
preferring to drop into the Outreach
office first when looking for a job.
They look over the job listings, then
get a referral slip for the jobs they are
interested in and take this slip to the
Canada Employment Centre. In this
way, they cut down on their time
spent at the government office, where
many of them feel uncomfortable.
“It (the Outreach Project) should
establish the need of each village. . .
with regard to employment, and
should give the District Council a
good idea of what the economic base
of each band is. One of the reasons
the District Council sponsored it is so
they could have a profile of each
band,’’ says Mr. Lewis.
*‘Maybe in our priorities, too, we
should’ve included employment, too,
because that’s the way the District
Council decided to start out in taking
over Our Own programs. Employment
on our reserves is a high priority, too,
says Mr. Wilson, referring to the Out-
reach Program. ‘‘Unemployment rate
is something high on the reserves. I
don’t know the exact figures, but it’s
pretty bad in the wintertime.”’
The North Coast District Council is
striving for Indian involvement and
consultation in programs and deci-
sions initiated by government
agencies. The District Council is,
through the Native Outreach Pro-
gram, putting together a picture of
- the employment situation on each of
the seven reserves and among Indians
living in Prince Rupert.
The District Council is working at
improving the level of basic services
such as water and sewer systems and
housing on re serves, while keeping an
eye to the future: establishing an eco-
nomic base for eachof theseven
villages.
UBCIC NEWS 13
HOLDING OFF FED. FISHERIES:
EDNA NED WINS!
On February 15th, Edna Ned, an
elder from the Sumas reserve, won
her fishing case in Matsqui courts.
She had been charged with
unlawfully disposing of fish. Actually
she had been fishing near Matsqui all
day, under her food fish permit. She
felt sick and went over to a friend’s
house for dinner. Because her friends
had given her dinner, she wanted to
repay them for their kindness. An
opportunity to do so came up when
her friends’ landlords came to the
door. Edna decided to give the
landlords some of her fish.
But wait: lurking in the bushes was
Constable Ross. He had been sitting
therefor some time, binoculars in
hand waiting for an illegal transfer of
fish. Through his binoculars he
focused on Edna Ned going to her car
with two strong gentlemen, in the
dusk of the night, and _ silently
removing 5 fish. She wordlessly
handed them over. The trunk closed
shut.
Immediately Constable Ross
phoned in for reinforcement back-up
in order to make the arrest. Within
moments, 2 more officers appeared
on the scene and surrounded the
house where Edna Ned was eating
dinner.
Edna says that the officers came to
the house twice and demanded that
she come out. She told them that she
was sick. ‘‘Could they come in?’’ she
asked. :
*“*No.”’ they snapped. ‘‘Come out
of the house.’’ Edna says she was told
if she didn’t come out of the house,
they would crow-bar her car.
All these facts of the arrest came
before the court, but the Judge
decided that there had been no
intimidation in the arrest.
Louise argued in court that Indian
people should be allowed to give fish
away under the present law and
regulations. What would have
happened if Edna had invited those
people to dinner and had cooked the
UBCIC NEWS 14
five fish? The judge ruled that, in his
opinion, that transaction would be
illegal.
Edna took the stand and told the
court that she was innocent. She said
that she had done everything she
knew to obey the law: she had a food
fish permit; she cut off the nose and
dorsal fins; she knew she was not
allowed to sell fish, and she had no
intention to do so. She did not know
it was illegal to give the fish away. As
far as she was concerned, she was
totally innocent and, she said, she
was mad at how she had been treated
like a criminal. The judge said that he
believed her. Edna won her case.
From a legal point of view, the case
is an important victory. The principle
by which Edna Ned was found not
guilty is called ‘‘mens rea’’ (mens ray-
a). This principle refers to the
intentions of the accused—did (s)he
believe (s)he was committing a crime
or an offense?
Before Edna’s case, the
prosecution could prove that an
Indian had broken the law simply by
proving that the offense had taken
place. Now the accused person can
come to the courts and say, ‘‘But I
am innocent—I didn’t think I did
anything wrong,’’ and if the court
believes the person, we can win our
cases.
However, the real victory will not
take place in the courts. The real
work must continue in_ the
communities. People have to defend
their fisheries politically as well as
legally. In a legal sense, we can keep
Indian people out of jails for a while,
while we win our cases. We can hold
off the Department of Fisheries from
busting Indian people by putting
Fisheries on trial during our defense
presentations; we can embarass them
and cost them money while we win
our cases.
But the Government can keep
changing the laws while we win in the
courts until, at some point, even our
defenses could be made illegal. So,
while the cases that go through the
courts are important and deserve
continued hard work and attention,
the battle has to be fought also on the
political front, to- guarantee our
fishing rights and responsibilities.
Photo: S. Basil
On January 24 Indian leaders
met with Health Minister Begin
to protest federal cutbacks to
Indian health services. (see
January UBCIC NEWS). George
Manuel made a dramatic pre-
sentation:
“When your government first
came to our country, you gave
us blankets and medicines in
return for our land. Our people
grew small in numbers from
diseases these blankets carried.
Yet we have survived. One
hundred and twelve years later,
. you have now made a decision’
to cut back our medicine
benefits.’’ (History has shown
how the people of Vancouver
Island were nearly wiped out by
diseased blankets. Even as far
back as 1773 we find documents
by one Henry Bouquet, a
British officer, writing to the
Governor General of so-called
British North America about his
plans to infect blankets with
smallpox germs. Bouquet is
quoted as helping to suppress
the Pontiac rebellion involving
the Ottawa Indians on the upper 232533)
Great Lakes.)
|
Je
<_-_—
ce ee. .
**The Indians of British
Columbia that I _ represent
hereby give you back your
blanket...We await the return
of our land and our health.’’
\ The Minister agreed to
\suspend the proposed cutbacks
for six months, until further re-
search and consultation with
Bands and organisations had
been carried out.
However, the presentation of
the blanket was mis-interpreted
by some members of the
Minister’s staff. She was very
upset and George had to
»reassure her that the Indian
‘people of B.C. had not put a
curse on the blanket, nor
injected it with any disease: ‘‘It
is a terrible lie and should be
sought out. If your staff are
advising you of such a thing,
those individuals should not be
~\ allowed to continue working for
<=\you. I wish to assure you that
p« no such thing has been done by
£5 myself or any other Indian in
‘ this Province. You can rest
quite comfortably with it if you
so wish.”’
PROJECTORS FoR MEDICINE
PLAYING WITH DATES
As a result of the united protest by
Provincial leaders, Health Minister
Begin announced that the guidelines
would be suspended for six months.
The guidelines were only supposed to
go into effect in June, 1979. A six
months suspension should take us to
January, 1980. But according to
National Health and Welfare
Regional Director, this suspension still
leaves us with a June deadline: June
24th is exactly six months after the
Minister’s statement, and 24 days
later than the original deadline.
Double-talk.
CONSULTATIONS BY INDIAN
PEOPLE
The UBCIC Health Portfolio drew
up a proposal for the regional Health
and Welfare officials on the
consultation process with Bands,
suggesting that it should be carried
out by the Indian people and that our
people should control this process. At
a joint meeting with other Indian
organisations, delegates told Medical
Services of fears that- if Medical
Services were to arrange the Consult-
ation, they could pressure District
Councils and Bands to accept the
guidelines. Medical Services could
still be accused of not obtaining the
real views of the Indian people.
Medical Services were indignant at
any criticism. They were quoted a
remark by Alice Smith to UBCIC
Chiefs’ Council meeting ‘‘Whenever
we ask Medical Services for
medicines, we get a new projector or
a chair.”’
SINCERITY OF HEALTH
MINISTER IN DOUBT
The proposal was forwarded to
Ottawa, but funding was refused.
The Minister insists that Medical
Services conduct their own consult-
ations. The cynical play with dates
and the insistence that Indian people
have no control in the consultation
process leaves serious doubt as to the
Minister’s sincerity in dealing with
the whole issue. Indian leaders will be
meeting in Calgary for an emergency
meeting of the NIB executive March
12, 13, & 14 to plan further protest
and opposition to the Minister’s
tactics.
UBCIC NEWS 15
és
1763: Royal Proclamation, a state-
ment of British Policy clearly recog-
nizing Indian lands and rights. It has
never been repealed and has the force
of law in Canada.
1849; James Douglas of Hudson Bay
Company and later governor, secures
Indian land for white settlement by
Treaties on Vancouver Island.
However outrageous
these treaties, they do _ represent
formal recognition of Aboriginal
rights.
1850: the English start flooding in,
clearing land for agriculture and
threatening the salmon in their rush
for gold. Reserves are set up.
1867: Section 109 of the British
and ownership of land and natural re-
sources to the provinces.
1871: declaring ownership and con-
trol of the land, the non-Indians of
B.C. join the confederation of
Canada. For the next 20 years, there
is a great push to destroy the Indian
lifestyle.
1880: start of our historical battle
for our land claims. Individual tribes
and local groups start making repre-
sentations, petitions and start sending
delegates to the provincial and
Federal governments. Chiefs of the
Lower Fraser and South Vancouver
Island protest encroachment on
Indian land.
1887: the Chiefs of Port Simpson
and the Nass petition for return of
their land and formal treaty guaran-
teeing their rights to those lands for-
ever. ‘‘What we don't like about this
government is their saying this: "We
will give you so much land.’ How can
they give it to us when it is our own
land.”’
eo
UBCIC NEWS 16
North America Act gives jurisdiction:
1890: Nisgha land claim committee
formally organized by Arthur Calder.
1889: Treaty 8 signed with the Beaver
and Slavey Indians in the north east.
1906: Squamish delegation’ go to
England with a petition .
1909: 20 tribes from southern B.C.
send delegations to London.
1913: the ‘‘Nishga Petition’? de-
“ manding a legal judgement on the
land claim is formally adopted by
Nishga Land commission.
1915/16: Nishga
Ottawa to lobby
delegations to
1915/16: McKenna/McBride Com-
mission and the cut off lands.
1915: Meeting at Spences’ Bridge
and
1916: meeting on Mission reserve
form the Allied Tribes of B.C. to pre-
sent land claims directly to the Im-
perial Privy Council.
1919: ‘*Statement of Allied Tribes of
B.C. to the Government of B.C.’’,
arepared by Peter Kelly, a Haida
Minister, and incorporating for the
first time all claims for Indian Tribes
in the Province. This is also the first
demand for action on related social
and economic issues. It is also the
first petition to both the Provincial
and Federal Governments.
1920/24: Allied Tribes fight the Bili
to make the McKenna/McBride Com-
mission the final setthement for land
claims in B.C. They are successful.
1926: the Allied Tribes, through
Peter Kelly, Andrew Paull, Chief
David Basil and Chief Chillihitza,
present land claim positions to
Parliament which sets up a Joint
LAND CLAIMS IN B.C. |
Committee to hold hearings and
make recommendations.
1927 Joint Committee judges that
land claims are not proven. They also
make a recommendation, later to
become law, that fund raising by
Indian organizations for land claims
become a criminal offense. They
further recommend an annual Special
Vote with $100,000 for improvement
for Indian life, to be administered by
the Department of Indian Affairs. No
leaders have ever accepted the B.C.
. Special Vote as payment for land
title.
1931: the Native Brotherhood
Andrew Paullorganizes protests from
groups around fishing land and social
issues.
1942: Indian commercial fishermen
have to pay federal income tax.
Andrew Paullorganizes protests from
the south and joins the Native Bro-
therhood.
1943: Andrew Paull attends the
meeting and is elected President of
the Brotherhood of Canadian Tribes
This is to become the North
American Indian Brotherhood.
While the Native Brotherhood and
the Northern American Indian
Brotherhood share many concerns,
one difference keeps them apart.
The Native Brotherhood seeks equal
rights for Indians; the North
American Indian Brotherhood argues
that we have special rights for our
own ways of life as aboriginal inhabi-
tants of this country.
-1946 to 1951: Peter Kelly and Andy
Paull fight for and succeed in getting
revisions to the Indian Act.
1949: B.C. Indians get the vote.
Frank Calder elected to Provincial
Legislature.
A CHRONOLOGY
1950’s: Question of Aboriginal land
rights is heard more and more.
1955: Nishga Tribal Council formed
by Frank Calder to continue the work
of the Nishga Land Committee.
1959: Joint Parliamentary committee
convened to hear questions on Indian
Affairs. Andy Paull tells committee
“*So long as the title question is not
dealt with, every Indian in B.C. feels
Fs i ae
Photo: Nesika
Elliot, Eddy and Joe Elliot, Fred
Miller, Philip Paul and Mike
Underwood and together with the
Native Brotherhood they sponsor the
case.
December 1964: White and Bob
decision. Supreme court upholds the
treaties but avoids the question of
land title. Federal government reim-
burses all costs of this court case and
promises to open negotiations on
You can’t talk about land claims in B.C. without mentioning Peter Kelly, Frank Calder an
the front here (left to right) leading a delegation to Ottawa.
and protest from Indian people and
organizations all over Canada, the |
Feds agree to give funds to groups
working for land claims settlements.
1969: NDP position paper in B.C.
recognizes that Indian title has never
been extinguished and has to be nego-
tiated.
1972: UBCIC leaders present ‘‘Claim
Based on Native Title’’ in Ottawa.
d Andy Paull, standing in
that he is being tricked and will never
be satisfied.“" He died soon after
George Manuel and William Walkem
of the Native Rights Committee
continued to press the question of
Indian Land title in B.C.
1960: Land Claims is a major issue
for Indians in B.C.
1960: Indians get the vote in Federal
elections
1963: Regina vs. White and Bob.
Clifford White and David Bob of ©
Nanaimo are charged for hunting
deer out of season and their defense is
based on Aboriginal rights, that they
were hunting on traditional tribal
territory. The White and Bob case be-
comes the land claims rallying point.
South Vancouver Tribal Federations
organized by Wilson Bob, Dave
_ claim. Under tremendous
B.C. land claims, provided one group
represents 75% of the B.C. ‘Indians.
Several organizations are formed to
meet this requirement but none last.
1969: Nishga Tribal Council decides
to press its claim independently in the
case of Calder (et al) vs. the Attorney
General of B.C.
1969: (2 months later) Liberal go-
vernment issues White Paper on
Indian Affairs reversing their stand
on Indian Land Claims and refusing
to recognize aboriginal land title as
valid.
1969: formation of the Union of
B.C. Indian Chiefs unites most of the
leaders of the previous organizations
to fight this stand and to work
towards a settlement of the land
pressure
1973: Supreme Court of Canada
decisions on the Calder Land Case.
Three justices rule that the Nishgas
have aboriginal rights to 1,000 square
miles of the Nass Valley. 3 justices
say no and the 7th Justice gives judge-
ment on the case and not the issue.
1973: (August 8th) The present go-
vernment acknowledges the 1763
Royal Proclamation to be a Declara-
tion of Indian lands and that the
federal government has lawful obliga-
tions to negotiate. The Province of
B.C. was expected to have input into
these negotiations.
1978: 10th annual general Assembly
adopts the Union of B.C. Indian
Chiefs Aboriginal Position Paper
outlining the principles of Indian Go-
vernment. él
UBCIC NEWS 17
OUR SETTLEMENT IS_ INDI
In the early 70’s, the Land Claims
Movement flowered across’ the
country but nowhere was it so large
or so vocal as in B.C. And with good
reason. With the exception of the vast
Arctic region to the north, no other
area has had such a clear-cut claim to
the land as do the majority of bands
in British Columbia. We have never
ceded our rights to the land by treaty
nor have we been defeated through
war. -
The Land Claims Movement
blossomed in 1972 with the Land
Claims Delegation to Ottawa and
reached its height with the ’75
rejection of funding. 1972-1975 will
probably go down in history as the
most intense, emotionally charged
period in the struggle for Indian
Rights in B.C.
E ’75 rejection did much to
Oliticize the average Indian, but it
ultimately failed in its objective,
which was to live free from the
dictates and controls of a foreign
government. The spirit of the
rejection was, and still is, the ultimate
goal of a large number of Indian
people in North America. In fact,
there is a growing movement toward
political: control and authority by
indigenous peoples throughout th
world.
The ’75 rejection of funding could
have succeeded if there had been
mechanisms in place to ensure an
economic base to provide for our
essential needs in the absence of
government funding. The hardships
that resulted from the B.C. status and
non-status Indian stand, took its toll
on the enthusiasm and force of the
Land Claims Movement in this
province. Politically, the movement
became fractured as the - leadership
broke down under the strain. Many
UBCIC NEWS 18
bands who were bitten hard by the ’75
rejection retreated from _ political
involvement provincially.
The united emotion, the passion
for self-determination which led to
. the °75 rejection, was spent after its
failure to free the Indian people from
the dependency on and control by the
‘government. The
Movement, which was _ already
suffering severe blows in other parts
of the country, seemed to die in
B.C.
But in May, 1977, at Prince
George, George Manuel, former
President of the National Indian
Brotherhood, was elected President
of the Union of British Columbia
Indian Chiefs after constitutional
changes were made so that the
leadership could be more effective.
George Manuel brought a
perspective on Land Claims as
Aboriginal Rights that had been
articulated not only byIndian leaders
in B.C. and North America in the
past, but also among indigenous
peoples throughout the world when
faced with the systematic destruction
of their governing authorities, their
lands and their cultures. The
colonialist influence by foreign
outside religions and foreign outside
governments had and still has an all
too powerful effect on our lives.
Manuel and leaders like him saw the
need to reverse that trend in order to
ensure our very survival as Indian
people. In retrospect the Land Claims
Movement of the early 70’s was
manipulated by and was.a reaction to
the federal government's policies on
Indian Rights. We were not in control
of the timeline for ‘‘settlement.’’ We
talked the language of the federal
government: ‘‘Land Claims’’ became
synonomous with ‘Aboriginal
Rights’’
That dominating force of colonial
rule was taking us down the road to
total assimilation into Euro-
Canadian culture.
Land Claims -
. control and
corporations to
The Federal government’s meaning
of ‘‘Land Claims”’ as a final payment
for our land as ‘property’ in exchange .
for limited rights, became clear by the
American settlement. of Alaskan
Land Claims and even more clear for
us in Canada by the James Bay
Settlement, whose agreement-in-
principle was signed in 1975.
fame Bay Cree and [nuit lost their
boriginal rights and with that the
authority over their
settlement and ultimately, over their
lives. By agreeing to set up
administer the
settlement, they became subject to the
laws of the provincial and federal
governments. An economic
institution rather than an Indian
government/political institution rules
both the Inuit of Alaska and th
Indian and Inuit of James Bay.
We talked about ‘‘Aboriginal:
Rights’’ as ‘‘Land Claims.’” We
talked the federal government’s
language of ‘‘settlement’’ ‘when we
really meant ‘‘agreement.’’ Even .
though we had different definitions
for those words, by using the
government’s words instead of our
own, we subtly weakened our own
movement, our own struggle for our
rights. Z
We believed in the ‘urgency to
settle Land Claims.’’ We fell under
the colonialist rule of the Federal
Government. We were dominated
and ruled by their timeline and their
language. They wanted to settle land
claims quickly so that they could
terminate our special status as the
aboriginal peoples of this land. The
Land Claims Movement was s50
strong in B.C. and reached such a
fervent pitch that even today, given
the settlement models set by the
.N_ GOVERNMENT
James Bay Agreement and more
recently, the COPE settlement in the
Western Arctic, some B.C. Indians
still call for an immediate settlement
of Land Claims.
At an Indian Government
workshop in Kamloops last year,
George Manuel, President of the
Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, talked
about the dangers of this kind ofa
settlement and his alternative:
“‘What does Indian Government
do for you? If you get a settlement,
for instance tomorrow, in terms of
dollars, if you got $1 million or $10
million, your Band Council hasn’t
got the political or legal authority to
take that money and administer it.
That money would be put in trust;
either into Indian Affairs or some
_ kind of corporation. So, it is still out
of reach, it still wouldn’t do the
Indian people any good. It would be
still in the institution, either a
political or economic institution that
you still have no control over as
Indian people.
But if you had an_ Indian
-Government that had sufficient
degree of sovereignty then that settle-
- ment comes from the governmetn
Straight into your government. Your
government will administer those
resources, and because you elect that
from your reserve, that body, every
two years or four years or whatever,
you decide in your constitution on
these reserves: You have a lot of
control over that Indian Government.
It is your government, not a white
government that is committed to the
white society. It is committed to
you.”’
The direction the U.B.C.I.C. is
going toward a land claims settlement
can be seen in the Aboriginal Rights
Position Paper, adopted in principal
by General Assembly in Penticton in
April, 1978. .
The definition of Aboriginal
Rights, adopted by the member bands
is:
a
7
a
vi
S
2
.=
|
by
Beth Cuthand
_ The goal of the UBCIC for a settlement of Indian land claims is to increase
the lands and resources over which our Indian Governments will have
political control.
“ABORIGINAL RIGHTS means
that we collectively, as Indian peo-
ple, have the right within the
framework of the Canadian Con-
stitution, to govern through our
own unique form of Indian Go-
vernment (Band Councils) an ex-
panded version of our Indian re-
serve lands that has an adequate
amount of associate resources, and
is large enough to provide for all
the essential needs of all our
people, who have been defined as
our citizens or members through
our Indian Government.”’
The goal of the U.B.C.I.C for a
settlement of Indian lands claims is to
increase the lands and resources over
which our Indian Governments will
have political control. This is in direct
opposition to the settlements made by
the federal government to date. The
U.B.C.1.C. position calls for more
land, more resources and more
governing authority. Those are our
aboriginal rights.
Manuel has stated, over and over
again, during his time as leader: “‘It’s
absolutely useless to have a settlement
unless we have the governing
_authority to control that settlement.’’
I talked with George Manuel
recently about Indian Government.
He said:
“We already have Indian
Governments which is the Band
Councils. Their governing authority
is so limited. If you look at the Indian
Act, the Federal government has total
authority over what you do, what our
Indian Governments do on a daily
basis. We must strengthen the Band
Councils. I call them _ Indian
Governments. You, me, each and
every one of us must think Indian
’ Government. Using the words Indian
Government to refer to our Chief and
Band Councils is the beginning. It is a
way of respecting our leadership. You
see, I want our leaderhip, our
governments, to grow, to have the
authority and respect they once had,
before the whiteman came. With
strong leadership and active band
members we can develop. the
mechanisms to control our own lives
and the means to live. Indian
governing authority is the key. We |
must reverse the colonialist
assimilation of Indian people. We can
live with dignity, masters of our own
house, but it’s going to take time.
We’ve chosen a tough road.”’
UBCIC NEWS 19
PRESSURED TO SELL
THREE LAND CLAIM SETTLEMENTS
In 1973, the Supreme Court split decision on the Nishga Land Claim forced the Federal Government to recognize the
fact that a number of land claim settlements were still outstanding.
| Land claims settlements have become more or less timed as outside circumstances in the form of a major resource
exploitation in the area, have caused enough pressure to force an agreement. Those people who still have aboriginal land
claims to settle—in B.C., in the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Quebec and in the Arctic—have been offered two
settlement models in the last decade, that of James Bay and that of Alaska. Now the Committee of Original People’s
Entitlement (COPE) have negotiated an Agreement in Principle with the Federal Government.
From these Agreements we know that the federal position on land claims (as in the COPE Agreement) is no more than
cash compensation for loss of land. The Government will not yet deal with organisations who are holding out for Indian
or Inuit Government, control over our own lives and values, lands and resources. But the results of the concessions that |
were forced from our pressured brothers and sisters in James Bay and Alaska have shown that our stand for an Indian|
Government Land Claim is our only chance of survival.
THE COPE AGREEMENT-
' IN-PRINCIPLE
COPE was originally part of
the Inuit Tapirisat and represents the
people of the Western Arctic. The
ITC withdrew their proposal for a
land claim settlement, ““NUNAVUT”’
in 1977, to redraft it in terms that were
understandable to non-lawyers. (The
ITC position is very similar to our
Indian Government position.)
However, COPE decided to go ahead
and negotiate on their own because
the people of the Western Arctic felt
extremely pressured by all the large-
scale exploitation projects planned
for the area. They felt they should
secure something before it was all
gone. However, some of the
communities in the area covered by
this agreement are strongly opposed
to the terms and refuse to be part of
the COPE settlement. They have
threatened to take COPE to court,
should COPE sign such an
agreement on their behalf.
WHAT THE INUVIALUIT
PEOPLE GET:
After that, the people will have what
they would be eligible to receive as
Canadian citizens $7,500,000 for
community development projects.
Traditional Economy: Rights to
harvest fur-bearers, bears and musk-
ox, and exclusive right to gave in
Inuit territory; rights to the river and
sea beds of water that is not
navigable.
Jurisdiction: to be negotiated.
WHAT WILL THEY LOSE?
Land: They get less than 3% of the
land they claimed in the region, 5000
sq. miles in full title. They receive a
further 32,000 sq. miles with no sub-
surface or off-shore rights.
Cash: $45 million dollars,
over between 1981 and 1994,
managed through
Corporations. Economic programs
will be limited to Departmental
budgets and will end in year 2000.
UBCIC NEWS 20
given
to be
Inuit
Land: The settlement is not one in
recognition of aboriginal title, but
deals with compensation for loss of
land. The recognition of the concept
of aboriginal title has been fought
long and hard. Will such recognition
be lost again by the COPE model?
Land Selection Criteria: Only certain
lands are available for selection:
a. important for traditional pursuits;
b. important for tourism or other
economic opportunities
¢. culturally significant
d. to create more Inuit communities
e. chosen from lands that do NOT
contain proven oil or gas fields.
Off-Shore Rights: While the Inuit
will own some river beds, the
Government will own the most, plus
all the fish and all the water. All off-
shore rights are renounced by the
Inuvialuit by this Agreement.
sub-surface
Mineral Rights: All
mineral rights are renounced.
Mineral development by Inuit people
is to be very limited, local and
“traditional.”’ The Government
maintains complete control and
regulatory power over all lands, and
will manage all aspects relating to
mineral exploitation. The Inuvialuit
will be represented in advisory bodies
only.
Access: Public access to Inuvialuit
land is guaranteed for 100 ft. from
bodies of water and where associated _
with resource exploitation projects.
Control of Wildlife Management:
The settlement provides no
jurisdiction over land management,
advisory input into game
management, Government has full
control of water and fish regulations.
Traditional Pursuits Can Be Limited
—But Cannot Limit Other Activities:
The Inuvialuit people will have no
authority to manage and control the
large-scale resource exploiters that
threaten to engulf them.
Decentralization of Delivery of Ser-
vices But Not Control of Services:
While the Government promises to
decentralise delivery of and adminis-
tration of services: it has not
decentralised the decision-making
and control of the dollars to the
Inuvialuit communities.
Political Jurisdiction: To be
negotiated. What is left to negotiate
with?
EE >
SS Se ee
oi .
THE TAX MAN IS COMING TO ALASKA
sej6nog ‘dg :0104d
The 1971 Alaska settlement seemed at
first to deal with a lot of land and lot
of control over that land for the
aboriginal people of Alaska.
Negotiations here also took place
under considerable pressure. Huge oil
fields on the North Slopes had been
discovered and the United States was
hungry for oil. The Alaska
Federation of Natives had secured a
Land Freeze .thus holding up the
building of the giant Alyeska
Pipeline, the biggest ever at that time.
THE SETTLEMENT:
Land: 40,000,000 acres or 125,000
square miles out of a total of 335
million acres, a little over 8%. This
was to be divided up among the
villages and Regions, who would
establish corporations to manage
them. Subsurface mineral rights were
included, but belonged only to the
Regional Corporations.
Land selection was restricted to
land not: privately owned already,
wildlife refuges, National forests and
state-selected lands. The land would
be tax free for twenty years, unless
leased or developed.
Money: $462,000,000 from the
Federal Government for the land that
it took.
+ $500,000,000 from the State,
which is 2% of the mineral royalties
received up to now and for minerals
yet to come.
‘Distribution: Everybody enrolled in a
Regional Corporation became a
stockholder, with a non-negotiable
share in the money. Each village
Corporation had a share and some of
the money went directly to the
people, on an individual basis.
Modifications to and Promises of
Participation in the Alyeska Project.
Jurisdiction: Decentralization of
delivery of services through non-
profit corporations. '
SOME OF THE PROBLEMS:
Complexity: The terms of the
settlement, the distribution and
management process were incredibly
complicated, and not altogether
clear. It is a bitter joke among
Alaskans that the people who
benefitted most from the Agreement
were the lawyers.
New Governing Structure: The
bureaucracies that had to be set up to
handle the land and the cash, were a
totally new governing structure for
the people, concentrating — their
authority on financial adminis-
tration first. The people had to
understand a whole new economic
Structure and language—stocks and —
shares, investments, principals and
interest—and taxation. Secondly all
- these
corporations needed a
phenomenal number of highly skilled
people to run them. Two hundred
and twenty two villages each have a
profit and non-profit corporation.
The profit corporations look after the
money and the non-profit corpora-
tions look after social development,
education, policing, health and so on.
The thirteen Regions also have
Corporations to oversee the villages
and handle their own land and
economic developments, plus handle
all the subsurface exploitation.
Municipalities: Traditional
authorities gave sway to the new
financial corporations, Villages are
becoming municipalities, under State
jurisdiction like any other munici-
pality. Matters like jurisdiction over
land management, resource manage-
ment, wildlife management and
traditional governing authority were
- low priorities in the settlement.
Easements: Written into the
settlement were guarantees for the
Federal and State government access
through all the lands for highways,
recreational sites, transportation,
pipelines and so on. Compensation is
not necessarily made with more land,
and people are feeling that the
governments are taking advantage of
this already.
Taxation: The land is in danger.
Taxation is a nightmare to most
corporations. In just eleven more
years, their land will be taxable and
land taxes are high. If the tax money
is not there each year, the land will be
confiscated. So there is a huge
pressure on the corporations to make
money, a lot of money, to pay the
taxes to keep the land. The non-profit
corporations become very secondary
under this kind of pressure.
People are worried that these
economic priorities for high-yield
investment will be harmful in the long
run, and that they are being forced to
follow the exploitative practices that
their settlement was intended to
protect them from. One regional
corporation recently felt it had to
reject a wildlife sanctuary in favour
of exploiting its mineral resources
because it needed the money more.
UBCIC NEWS 21
The James Bay Agreement was
negotiated behind the sounds of
machinery digging up the land and
waters rushing into new channels. It
is an Agreement between the
Governments of Canada and Quebec,
the James Bay Energy Corporation,
the James Bay Development
Corporation , Hydro Quebec, the
Grand Council of the Crees and the
Northern Quebec Inuit Association.
It was signed on November 11, 1975,
by infinitely weary Indian and Inuit
negotiators.
Its immediate effect was to permit
the development of the hydro-electric
power complex, the giant James Bay
project.
One of the most positive features of the James Bay Settlement is the
immediate lump sum _ non-taxable
payment for cessation of mineral
rights.
Modifications to some of the more
threatening aspects of the Hydro
project.
Jurisdiction of Wildlife: The Go-
vernment of Quebec undertook to
change all laws and regulations that
conflict with the hunting, fishing and
trapping rights of the people. Only a
limited number of provincial
regulations now apply, and any
changes in these regulations must be
negotiated by the Province. Indians
and Inuit will be given first chance to
rolOUd
UIOISUIOM *
guaranteed income scheme for hunters and trappers. David Pash relaxes in
his winter camp at Pine Mountain Lake.
WHAT THEY GOT:
Land: Category I: the exclusive use
and enjoyment of 2,095 sq. miles for
the Crees and 3,250 sq. miles for the
Inuit. These lands are divided under
Federal and Provincial ownership
and jurisdiction, though they may
never be taken away from the Cree or
Inuit. !Category II: 23,130 sq. miles
with exclusive fishing, hunting and
trapping rights for Cree Indians. The
Inuit will get 35,000 sq. miles with the
same rights.
Money: $225,000,000 over the next 20
years as compensation for surrender
of land claims. This capital payment
ic non-taxable. + $75,000,000 as an
UBCIC NEWS 22
Start and own outfitting camps for
hunting and fishing in the rest of
lands, Category III lands, for the next
17 years.
Half of the Hunting, Fishing and
Trapping Co-ordination Committee
will be Indian and Inuit. The other
half will be Government. Certain
species of game will be reserved for
Cree and Inuit hunters throughout
the whole territory.
Economic and Social Measures: Cor-
porations were established to
promote economic development,
mostly in an advisory capacity, Both
‘Governments pledge themselves to
create employment and undertake job
training. An agreement to offer
guaranteed income and incentives to
people wishing to maintain their
traditional life-style.
WHAT THEY LOST:
Land: All land rights in Quebec.
Land reserved for thie exclusive use
will still belong to the Governments.
The Government of Quebec may take
back any Category II lands at any
time for. resource exploitation; re-
placement with other land is not
guaranteed.
Minerals: All claims to income,
benefits or royalties from mining de-
velopment were renounced. Minerals
and sub-surface rights belong to
Quebec.
Jurisdiction: Federally owned
Category I lands, containing most of
the communities, will be run as the
reserves in the rest of Canada
Provincially owned land in_ this
category will be administered by an
Indian/Inuit-dominated corporation,
with government representation. The
Province has access to these lands for
small developments at any time.
Communities will be regarded by the
Province as municipalities.
Wildlife Management: Participation
will be through advisory bodies only.
Final decisions on exploitation, no
matter what the effect on any nearby
community, rests with the Federal
and Provincial Governments.
Easements/Servitudes: Public access
on existing roads is guaranteed. The
Federal and Provincial governments
have limited rights to expropriate
Category | lands for public purposes
as roads, local utilities, pipelines and
transmission lines. Land so used must
be replaced unless the community
benefits. Servitudes on Category II
land need no compensation.
Exploration, scientific studies and
pre-development projects on
Category II land should not conflict
too much with hunting, fishing and
trapping.
There are sO many committees
created by this agreement that one
person claimed that just about every
adult Indian or Inuit person will
have to serve on a committee.
SHALL WE RETURN
BACK TO THE HOMELAND?
When the Europeans bumped
into my land,
while being on course
to another land called India,
where rubies and other riches
lured them,
my Fore-Fathers
were amazed
by the in-coming primitive ways.
In this modern age,
North America
is part of a problem:
the whole world
needs energy for convenience,
and the natural resources
of the lands is almost artificial.
How my Fore-Fathers
would love to see
the Europeans management ways.
So we, The People
who never were conquered in war,
still remain a people
in spite of the immigrant ways.
If the thinking within
our legends
and the white history books
were compared,
the richness of the land and sea
is nO more as abundant as before,
and, the richness of the Indian Peoples
culture is unique.
If the European still maintain
their multi-culture culture,
their original need for riches
from other lands
will take them out to space
after nature appears stripped.
Will they find new horizons?
We, the Indian Peoples
have the richest thing
in the world: a culture.
A culture which does not need
to continuously absorb the multitude:
we, as Indian Peoples can live
with nature forever it seems,
it has happened through many centuries.
when will the Europeans learn
that Mother Nature
maintains the nature
of their existence?
by Clifford Hanuse
SAANICH INDIAN SCHOOL BOARD
TAKING CONTROL
Local control of Indian education is
the philosophy behind the Saanich
Indian School Board, which is now in
its fourth year of a five-year Native
Curriculum Program. Thirteen Band
Council members from the four
reserves in the Saanich area sit on the
School Board, with the elders playing
an important role in the education
process. :
School Board administrator Marie
Discussions continued. In 1972 a
Constitution was in place, and in
1976 the five-year Native Curriculum
Program was funded and
operational. Indian students
attending the Tsartlip School, which
is totally governed by the Indian
School Board, range from _ pre-
kindergarten to Grade Seven levels.
High school students attending local
public schools are still under the
<<“
ee
Saanich elders have made a major contribution toward the education of
their students.
Cooper says, “‘Control. We are and
have been for the past two years
totally controlling the school. Local
control of Indian education is the
emphasis placed....The depth of
that whole school has much to do
with the involvement of the elders.”’
The elders act as instructors: in
classes dealing with Indian language,
beading, printmaking and other areas
requiring the knowledge = and
experience of elders. In addition, the
elders are involved in determining
priorities within the curriculum.
The origins of the Saanich Indian
School Board date back to 1969,
when initial discussions were held
about Indian education. In 1970, the
local Indian Day School was closed
by the federal government.
jurisdiction of the Indian School
Board, and are taught the history of
the Saanich people and the current
issues facing them, in addition to
such ‘‘regular’’ studies as Algebra
Marie Cooper is happy with the
work which has been done by the
Indian School Board, and_ she’s
enthusiastic about the local support:
*““We’ve picked up support, very
definitely and continuously. ...and
it’s building. We have more parents
coming in all the time,’’ she says.
“Helping the young people from
seventeen (years old) up to realize the
meaning of control, specifically in the
areas of education, it is those young
parents that we will teach that it is
their responsibility to teach their
children... .in education.”’
UBCIC NEWS 23
CENTRAL INTER- TRIBAL
GETTING DOWN
TO BASICS
The Kootenay,
South Central Tribal Councils and
representatives from the Lillooet
Tribal Council continue to be entirely
dissatisfied with the present delivery
of DIA Services. The Central Interior
Tribal Council was formed as a joint
negotiating and advisory council to —
bring those services eventually under
Indian Band Government, Since the
Rejection of funds at Chilliwack in
1975, the Okanagan and Kootenay
Tribal Councils have refused to allow
the DIA District Offices to re-open.
By closing down these offices, the
Bands hoped for sweeping changes in
DIA policy, direction and decision-
making and for the delivery of
technical services to be provided by
the Tribal Councils. The Regional
office has not agreed to _ this
arrangement and has continued to
provide these services with the same
inadequacies and inefficiencies that
led to the closure of the District
Offices.
At the UBCIC South Central
Conference last July, Kootenay.
Okanag +n, South Central Councils
and some Lillooet Bands formed
a Working Committee for the
Central Inter Tribal Councii. This
committee was to __ investigate
alternative methods of providing the
necessary services to the Bands.
UBCIC NEWS 24
Okanagan and
wa
=
Oe
g
a
oo
°
£
a &
Photo: S. Woods
i
r
Working out the route to bring delivery of technical services under Tribal
Council control.
FREE TO PLAN ACCORDING
vA) PSPAIML Ameer
On February 19/20th, 75 delegates
from the Bands in the area met at the
Kamloops Indian Residential School
to look at the first draft produced by
the Working Committee. This is a
detailed work plan that looks at the
long and short-term goals, designed
to free Bands from _ DIA’s
stranglehold over administrative and
program patterns, in order to plan
and manage according to the needs of
the Bands.
LOOKING AT THE DOLLAR
ROUTE
Because’ DIA has been
able to manipulate so many Bands by
controlling the purse-strings, the first
priority of the working groups was
to study the DIA mandate. Do funds
have to come this route? They studied
the Treasury Board minutes that are
the guidelines to the Department, and
found that the DIA has interpreted
these to give them more power than
they actually do have. Their
interpretation of the Treasury Board
minute 725973 criticising Band «ad
Department auditing, and then trying
to impose the Memorandum of
Agreement on Bands is just a classic
example of this.
Studying management guidelines to free Band administration for communi-
ty planning.
GOOD MANAGEMENT____
Over the two days, we
studied alternative routes for these
funds, and budgetting. Band Chiefs,
Councillors and staff went through
budget forecasting, monitoring and
reporting: how to use administration
and reporting for the good
management of the Band rather than
make-work accounting to the
Department to get the next cheque.
TRIBAL COUNCIL REPRESEN-
TATION ON AUDIT REVIEW
COMMITTEE_-
Auditing has always been a hassle,
used as a whipping stick by the DIA.
Bands studied auditing procedures
and management: what really has to
be audited and by whom, and the
setting up of an Audit Review
Committee with Tribal Council
representation. |
They discussed Band responsibili-
ties, what responsibilities are really
statutory DIA obligations and what
can be taken back by the Band. Pro-
posals for Band employee manage-
ment, operating and personnel guide-
line manuals were
discussed.
TRAINING TECHNICIANS
Long-term training was an
important subject: at Band level for
Band office administration geared to
Band priorities and a central training
program, perhaps using the
Kamloops school that has been
returned to the Kamloops Band. We
have to train our technical staff,
auditors, economic development
experts, forestry and agricultural
experts, administrators, education
and social workers.
SHARING THE WORK______-_
The Tribal Councils’ aim to take
over the delivery of the technical
services formerly, if inadequately,
supplied by the DIA District Offices,
entails a lot of work and a lot of
lobbyingpower. By dividing the work
among the CITC, the Tribal Councils
and the Bands, this work can be
done, said the Working Committee.
The idea of forming a Central
IN MEMORY OF TIM SPINKS
At the UBCIC November Assembly, the late Tim Spinks gave a moving plea
for help in solving the tragedies of suicides on reserves.
Chief Tim Spinks of the Lytton Band
died February 6, 1979. He will be
sorely missed by his family, his
people and by all those who worked
with him.
Don Moses paid tribute to Tim
Spinks at the CITC conference:
‘*He was always really dedicated to
‘his people. He worked hard for the
Lytton Band. He was very prominent
in issues such as Fishing, Education
and such as the ty,e of issues we’re
discussing here. He’s been Chief of
the Lytton Band on two occasions.
He also worked in the North Coast
area as a Community Development
worker in Massett. And I guess we
know him probably best as the
Chairman of the District Council. He
took that job on about five years ago
and I think he requested to be relieved
of his duties a couple of times but was
persuaded to stay. It says a lot for
him as an individual that with our
confidence he continued on with the
kind of tasks that were required of
him. ;
And I think that if we remember
him for one thing: he is the type of
person who showed leadership, not
only at his Band: level but also at the
District level; and for the kind of
hard work he exemplified. In his last
few days he showed his dedication
not only to his Band but also to our
cause. It was unfortunate that he
passed away in Vancouver while there
attending business on behalf of his
family, his Band and also on behalf
of the Tribal Council.’’
Everyone stood for a Minute of
Silence in respect for the late Tim |
Spinks. We wish to extend our deep |
sympathy to his wife Sharon and to
his children.
Interior Tribal Council ‘‘is to give
Bands protection from ‘back-door
politics’ used by the Department.”
The Bands, in turn, were asked to
monitor the Tribal Council’s
technical and advisory staff, and the
CITC to ensure that the power is not
just shifted from the DIA to non-
Indian professional people and that
bureaucracy is kept to a minimum.
| After each group had gone through
_ the study, making changes and
recommendations, they met in
Plenary session to discuss the main
revisions to be incorporated in the
final study, which will be available in
the next month. The working
Committee was given authority to_
’ negotiate both short and long-term
problems and goals.
UBCIC NEWS 25
THE PIPELINE: OUR OWN
There will be hearings held ‘in the north-east in June
when people will be able to express their opinions and
concerns of what impact the pipeline will have in their
lives.
_A committee, the Northern Pipeline Agency, (NPA) was
formed by the government to monitor the construction of
the pipeline, and their first responsiblity is to see that the
i = . #* - rs —
ae
Our Terms and Conditions aim to protect hunting and
trapping as an independent way of life.
=
pipeline is built; secondly, to minimize the damage that
may be caused to Indian people and also to enforce the
terms and conditions (guidelines) to companies building
the pipeline. The terms and conditions drafted by the
Agency has been unsatisfactory and totally inadequate, so
the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs -has drafted our own
terms and conditions based on all intormation gathered
from map-biographies, interviews and research. The mere
fact that the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs have been
‘successful in delaying the hearings is very significant
indeed, considering that in the past our efforts to cause
delay were met with failure and frustration. The people
were not prepared for the hearings held in Ft. St. John in
November 1977 before the National Energy Board but still
testified very strongly against the Grizzly pipeline. Even
while the hearings were in progress the bulldozers were also
in motion as the construction on the pipeline began. Now,
the hearings on the Alaska pipeline were originally
scheduled for September 1978, then November 1978, then
January 1979, then March 1979, then May 1979, now June
1979,
Now even the construction of the pipeline has been
moved from one year up to four years, due to gas
exploration in Mexico.
UBCIC NEWS 26
UIO}SUIOM “WW :0}0Ud
_ of Non-Status
Photo: P. Douglas
The location of the hearings has not yet been determined
because the places proposed: by the Agency are
unacceptable.
Some people have expressed the opinion ‘So What!
They’re going to build the pipeline anyway. What can
YOU do about it?’ Well, I do know one thing: people in
the north-east and the south-east are going to fight it.
What people have said at the last hearings is being repeated
again, which shows that people have not changed their
minds. This was revealed in the testimony given by John
Dokkie at another hearing.
‘*Many promises have been made but very few have been
kept.”
This is an excerpt from John Dokkie’s testimony, W.
Moberly, given to the Special Committee on a Northern
Gas Pipeline in regards to Bill C-25, Northern Pipeline
Act, in Ottawa, March 6, 1978. There were Chiefs, Elders
and staff members from the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs.
Other organizations present were Council of Yukon
Indians; Yukon Native Brotherhood; Yukon Association
Indians and the: Indian ‘Women’s
Association.
‘‘When the white people first came they would shake
your hand and promise you something, and that was
SER = =
Promises don’t mean much anymore.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
" * €
iy
cE
a te.
Photo: M. Weinstein
by Dinah Schooner
The Indian Terms and Conditions are being drawn up from the results of the mapping research and interviews of the
last few months.
everything. But now we shake hands with the white person
and the next day he denies his promise. But today we still
live by that rule, because that was the way we were taught
by our elders and that is the way I taught my children. So
what will you promise us now? How do you intend to
compensate us for the loss of our culture? Our culture has
been with us for a long time and you cannot expect us to
change so quickly. If we took you into the woods and left
you, you would be lost. It would take you a long time to
survive in the woods, and that is what I see you trying to do
to us now.’”’
Mr. Dokkie further stated:
4
**Why are you in such a rush to build the pipeline? Why
were not our people first consulted? It is our lives and our
land that is going to be affected. It our culture and it is our
lifestyles that is at stake. It is like me selling your house
without your permission. The only difference is that you
can build another house, but once our land is ruined and
the game and berries are gone, then there is nothing we can
do to get them back. We could take your jobs and money.
and they could all be lost in a day, but our land will be with
us forever. If you treat the land right, it will give you life
forever.”
I have really been impressed by many of the testimonials
given at Ottawa and at Ft. ‘St. John, and will from time to
time share other testimonials with you.
I reflect on those hearings as we approach the date for
Terms and Conditions hearings this summer.
UBCIC NEWS 27
INDIAN MEDICINE |
Recent efforts to cut off health ser-
vices to Indians by the Department
of National Health and Welfare) have
put the spotlight on Indian health.
And an important aspect of Indian
health is traditional Indian medicine.
Louise Dudoward is a long-time
resident of Port Simpson (20 miles.
north of Prince Rupert) and has been
practicing Indian medicine most of
her life. ‘“‘Indian medicine is. . . you
have to go in the bush to get the medi-
cine. Sometimes you have to walk for
hours before you find this medicine,’’
Mrs. Dudoward says.
“And when you find it’’ she
explains, ‘‘we chop them down, bring
it down, and then you’ll have to sit
there for, oh. . . . maybe an hour or
two to clean the medicine and then
chop it up with the sticks and put it in
a bowl. And you pour warm water,
not boiling water—warm, just pour
this water over it and let it sit over-
night. Put a cover on. The next day
you strain it with cheesecloth, and
then it’s ready for use, and it will
really help you. It cured alot of
people from diabetes, this certain
medicine. . . Devil’s Club is the name.
And this is the medicine I make. I
make it,oh. . . twice a week in my own
home, and I drink it now and again.
And. . . the winter’s almost over now
and | haven’t had a cold, so I think it
really helps.’’
Mrs. Dudoward says Devil’s Club
is the most common and accessible
form of Indian medicine. There are,
however, other types. ‘*This is kind
of hard to make. You’d have to go
out and get the bark off the tree.
Anybody with lung trouble or throat
trouble, this medicine will help you.
And this is off a bark on the tree and
some roots. We dig it out of the
earth, this root; there are little ferns ©
on top the leaves. You clean them and
pound the roots, and then put them in
the pot with the bark, put some water
in and put it on the stove to boil three
to four hours. Then when that’s
done, you strain it and you drink it. If
UBCIC NEWS: 28
anybody had lung trouble, T.B. (tu-
berculosis), this medicine will help
you; it will cure your sickness.’’
Mrs. Dudoward makes these two
kinds of medicine, and many others,
for the people of Port Simpson.
‘“I’ve witnessed so many in the past
years that I’ve. . . . I’ve helped alot of
people. Some people give me a little
money, some don’t, but I still help
them. It’s my nature to do this. Es-
pecially old people. It’s worth all the
effort to go out and get the stuff. It’s
not hard.”’
Indian medicine is sometimes used
as a substitute for or a supplement to
‘“‘modern’”’” medicine, and Mrs.
Photo: Courtesy V.Dudoward
su
I’ll ask the doctor if the boys can take
this Indian medicine’. So she went,
she didn’t stay very long, and she said |
the doctor told me to bring all the
Indian medicine I could get, if it
helped the boys. So I made the medi-
cine right away. I took it over to her
place and she took it to the hospital.
- And the boys started taking this
medicine, and they’re two healthy
men today, from taking that medi-
cine.
They didn’t have to go to a place
where people go, you know, if they
have T.B. And they were cured right
here. And it proved it right there that
the medicine helped.’”’
The cures for sicknesses, from T.B. to rheumatism, can still be found in the
woods, among the roots and barks of the trees.
Dudoward recalls a time that her
medicine received the approval of an
“*M.D.”’ doctor. ‘‘Many years ago, I ©
helped a family here. A woman came
to me and she was in tears when she
came. Two of her boys landed in the
hospital with T.B. and she came in
tears and said to me, ‘I want you to
make my boys some medicine.’ They
(the boys) were so badly run down
that they had to be in the hospital. So
I said to her, ‘Look,’ I said, ‘I can’t
just make the medicine and, uh, ‘I
don’t want to interfere with the doc-
tor.’ So, she said, ‘I’ll go back right
now and I'll go up to the hospital and
It makes Mrs. Dudoward sad,
though, that no young Indian people
that she knows of practice Indian
medicine in Port Simpson, and she
hopes that they will make an effort to
strengthen this link with their ances-
tors.
‘*The thing is to go out and get this
medicine and try and fix it yourself,’
she advises. ‘‘This is our drawback.
We depend on other people to make
it. Try and make it yourself, because
it’s not that hard.’’
PROTECTING
MEDICINE LAKE
The Okanagan Tribal Council is ask-
ing for the support of all Bands and
Tribal Councils in their battle to have
the medicine lake, ‘‘Spotted Lake,”’
returned into their caretakership for
posterity. Some of the lake area and
the land around the lake was sold toa
non-Indian and he also owns mineral
and sub-surface rights to the bed of
the lake. While Ernest Smith was
content to leave the lake and the land
in their natural state, all was well.
Now, however, he wants to sell the
land to a Calgary concern who wants
to rezone the land for a health spa or
tourist development. About thirty
Indian people attended the rezoning
application hearings at Osoyoos on
January 22nd, to give reason why this
lake shound not be rezoned for
tourist exploitation:
Jeannette Bonneau prepared and
presented a submission to the
hearings on behalf of the Council:
“Since the dawn of our history,
Spotted Lake or ‘“‘Klilok,’’ as we call
it, has been a medicine lake. Indians
from all tribes came to visit the lake
for the medicine that the lake
contained. The ceremonial cairns and
tombs that surround the lake testify
to that. Some of these are so ancient
that they have sunk underground and
only the tops are above ground. Some
are buried altogether. There are many
stories told by our ancestors about
the cures this lake has provided,
physically and spiritually, through its
medicinal powers. Its medicine
powers are not to be taken lightly.
This lake is a Chief among lakes. Its
powers are above the purely physical.
It contains 365 circles of various
shapes, sizes and depths. Each
particular circle contains a particular
healing quality that can be used on a
particular day of the year. Anyone
who goes to this lake will find the
right circle he seeks. The medicine in
this lake is for everyone, all people
alike. When the Creator gave it to us,
he asked nothing in return. . . There-
fore we hold the lake to be sacred and
oa
a
ee
‘ae ‘
a
pr
Photo: Province
Indians from all nations come to ‘‘Klilok”’ for its spiritual strength and
healing powers.
we, as well as many from other
nations, continue to use the lake to
strengthen ourselves spiritually and to
heal ourselves physically.’
She spoke of the new culture with
new values that took over and used :
the land. i
“Yet there is not a concensix in
this world. Yet there is a growing
discontent, characterized by an ever-
increasing crime rate, suicide, drug
addiction, alcoholism, mental
disorder and physical diseases. The
people grow sick with the land.”’
She asked the court what could be
more valuable than the lake:
Can you buy health? Can you pur-
chase spiritual strength? Can you
purchase contentment? How do spir-
itual things weigh against these?
You need reverence and respect for
this land that is your body. You need
to learn to use it without abuse if it is
to continue to give life to many
generations of your children. This is a
new land for you, we recognise
that...that you are not yet able to
recognise and therefore preserve
certain features of the land that are
important for the well-being of all.
Therefore, we must speak now. That
lake is sacred and must be preserved
in its natural state. It cannot be
disturbed, It is the central point of the
Okanagan. All the waters, minerals
and salts converge here. It is many
many many lakes in one. The
heaviness of the water is the physical
manifestation. We are therefore
opposing the rezoning of the area
around the lake and the lake itself,
because of the kind of development
that will take place. We request that
the proposed rezoning of the
properties around the lake and the
lake itself not take place. Enough
land has been taken and _ used,
sometimes for developments that
were detrimental to the land and its
inhabitants. Our great lake,
Okanagan, and the Skaha, the
Vaseux and Osoyoos Lakes are
diseased almost beyond hope because
of the quantities of waste emptied
into the system. ”’
‘“‘We are taking further steps to
ensure the preservation of this lake
for the purpose that was intended.
We cannot presume to claim owner-
ship over anything that the Creator |
has given. However, we are keepers
of this land, and for that reason, we
are seeking to have the lake and the —
lands surrounding it returned to our
caretakership.
Then the elders spoke. They
dominated the hearings. More young
people spoke up to support their
elders. The City Council agreed to
negotiate a tripartite agreement,
between the City Council, the owner
and the Tribal Council, so that the
Indian people can still control the
medicine lake. They decided
therefore, to put off the rezoning
application until this agreement has
been reached. Negotiations begin on
March Sth. The Tribal Council is
assisted by the UBCIC Task Force.
UBCIC NEWS 29
CANNERIES:
‘‘The Work is there for Us’’
Hundreds upon hundreds of
people—mainly women—are em-
ployed in the fish canneries of Prince
Rupert during the two busy seasons
every year: the herring season, which
has just started and will continue for
another month, and the salmon sea-
son, which starts in early summer and
ends in the fall.
Many of these cannery workers are
Indian women. Historically most
cannery workers were Indian, and
they did not enjoy a high level of pay
or good working conditions.
Today, however, wages have risen
to a level which many people find
tempting and attractive, and now
Indian women find themselves com-
peting for jobs with women of every
nationality and background,
although in almost all salmon and
herring plants Indian women still out-
number other workers.
What is it like being an Indian fish
plant worker? We talked toa woman
who works on flatfish (sole, halibut,
etc.) in a plant in Prince Rupert. Her
job is year round, as opposed to the
seasonal jobs of herring and salmon
cannery workers.
What work do you do?
I’m a filleter—cutting fish, you
know. That’s mostly what I do. But
when we're finished
candle, you know that’s cleaning the
fish, and then it goes through to a ~
sizing machine that measures it and
then it goes through the freezer and
then they put it on a great big
thing—we call it ‘‘the tunnel’’—and
it comes out and it just goes in
boxes. . . . 50-pound boxes. I work
every month—right through the year
—when there’s fish.
How long have you worked
at this?
Four years.
Do you think it’s true that
indian cannery and fish plant
workers are being pushed out
of their traditional work?
Canneries have been operated by Indian women since the beginning of the
century. Today, better pay and working conditions attract strong compe-
tition.
cutting we
oc
lee
2
3
a
oS
5
3
io
I think so. Quite a bit. Well, we’re
more or less pushed aside, you know.
They say that we’re Indian, eh, and
we’re not more or less good enough
_ to do this job and that job, you
know. They pick out more or less
who they want to. They see an Indian
come along, they think, well, she’s
not capable of doing the job. That’s
the way I look at it really. I see a lot of
it going on down there at work my-
self. Like if they see this Indian lady
come along, you know, and she’s big
or something like that, well she’s just
good for candling (a job for slower
workers). That’s what I think any-
way.
Do many of your friends feel
the same way?
I think so, because we sometimes
discuss it in the lunchroom and stuff
like that, and most of us feel that
way.
Are there many Indian women
working at the fish plant
where you work?
In our department, not too many,
—that’s the fillet department. But in
the cannery side it’s. . . . there’s quite
a few Native people there. See, we’re
on the fillet department, and then
there’s the cannery. The cannery’s the
salmon, and we don’t work on that
side, we got our own department.
And the cannery side’s mostly Indian.
Most of them have the top seniority
there, the Native people. (Seniori-
ty—how long a person has worked
there—is the system used to deter-
mine who is called into work first,
who has first chance at overtime, etc).
But in the cannery side, maybe 80 out
of the 100 are Indian. There’s about
100 people in filleting, and maybe 10
are Native. When I first went to the
cannery, I started off on salmon and I
lasted two days and I couldn’t stand
it. (Chuckles) So I quit, and they
called me back to work fulltime (fillet
work) down there, and I went back,
and I like it better than working just
the salmon and the herring, you
know.
I don’t like shift-work (common to
seasonal cannery work). You know, I
like working my eight hours a day,
and going home. There’s overtime for
us sometimes filleting but not that. .
. » much. We work our eight hours,
then go home.
What about the herring season?
When the herring season comes
along, we go together, (filleters and
and salmon landings.
cannery workers) like we all work on
the herring.
Is it noisy where you work?
Really noisy. They’re just going
through that (hearing tests) now. We
just filled out forms yesterday to see
about that.
Have you noticed a difference
in your hearing ability since
you started filleting work?
I think I have. Like, sometimes
somebody’d be talking to me and I'd
have to say ‘huh?’ ‘Pardon me?’ or
something like that, because I don’t
hear. You come out of that... . espe-
cially during coffee breaks. . «. you
come out of the plant and. . . it’s still
ringing in your ears. By the time you
Canneries are busy March and April, and June to August with the herring
get back down there, it’s only fifteen
minutes. . . . it’s back to the same old
noise again. We talked it over after
we filled out our forms to check our
hearing and there is a lot of people
who’d say ‘huh?’ when we’re talking
to them after coffee, because they
don’t hear.
Do you wear any protectors?
No.
Are there any other physical
problems you suffer from asa
result of your work?
Not so much now that I fillet most
of the time, but before, I think so,
because alot of people have back
problems (the work involves standing
all the time), and their hands—you
know from lifting, and using them
for too many hours in one day. Like
when we work 13 hours a day for 3
days. When you get home all you
want to do is jump in a bathtub and
go to bed, whereas alot of us can’t be-
cause we got kids at home. And
there’s a lot of rheumatism and arthri-
tis. Now, though, with ‘‘the tunnel’’
there’s not that much lifting in our
filleting department.
How about pay?
Photo: V. Dudoward
UBWMOg'd AseJINOD :oO}OuUd
£
=
¥
Noisy machinery can damage the
workers’ hearing.
When I first started in the cannery
-more.than four years ago I think |
was getting 1.98. .. . an hour, where-
as now we're 7.85 and a filleter’s
8.42, so I think we’ve improved alot.
How about cannery work
generally for indians?
ihe work is there for us, and most
of the canneries you go into. .. . for
the salmon, they’re mostly all
Natives. And a lot of people do come
from other villages. . . all over. . . to
work here in Rupert.
UBCIC NEWS 31
WESTERN INDIAN
AGRICULTURAL CORPORATION
WIAC LIMITED GET $415,000
FOR EXTENSION AND TRAINING
SERVICES TO INDIAN FARMERS
The Parliamentary Secretary to the
Minister of Indian Affairs, Hugh
Anderson, announced approval of
funding totalling $415,000 for the
first stage of the Agriculture Develop-
ment Program in British Columbia.
The program will be administered
by the Western Indian Agricultural
Corporation, which is wholly-owned
by the U.B.C.1.C. The program is di-
rected towards training Indian
farmers so that the unused agricultur-
al potential of B.C. reserves can be
utilized.
The first stage will concentrate on
providing farmers and would-be
farmers with training and extension
services. Already a series of work-
shops have been held around the pro-
vince and others are being planned.
The workshops have covered a
variety of topics including small scale
community agriculture and planning
a cattle operation.
Our four fieldworkers and one
agrologist are working out of the
Vancouver office under the direction
of the General Manager, Gordon
Antoine. Our staff are available to
any band or individual who requests
assistance with any phase of agricul-
ture.
The total 5-year program calls for
substantial loan and contribution
funding for projects. However, at this
stage the tunds are not available. We
will have to continue to press govern-
ment for adequate funding for de-
velopment. In the meantime the
corporation will concentrate on lay-
ing the foundation for successful pro-
jects. We will work to provide
farmers with on-going training. We
will provide extension services to
farmers to improve existing farms
and ranches.
Work is underway on a 4-H pro-
gram to introduce young people to
modern agriculture techniques.
Photo: P. Doualas
Happy at last. It took Bob Pascoe a
long time to get hold of those papers
promising $415,000 to WIAC.
.“DENNIS SAM, Box (1,
Fieldmen:
George Saddleman—Merritt Area
General Delivery
Quilchena, B.C. VOG2RO0
Phone: 378-4235 NV; 378-2788 Home
Jimmie Quaw—Vanderhoof, Prince
George, Fort St. John Area
Box 742
Vanderhoof, B.C. VOJ3A0
Phone: 567-9724
Mike Van Joseph—Mount Currie, Is-
land, Lower Mainland Area
Box 91, Mount Currie, B.C.
VON 2K0
Phone: 894-6415 Band Office
894-6394 Home
Cecil P. Louis—Okanagan and
Kootenays Area
R.R. #7, Westsyde Road
Site 9, Camp 28,
Vernon, B.C. V1T7Z3
Phone: 542-4527
Board of Directors
* BOB PASCO, Box 283, Ashcroft,
B.C. VOK 1A0
e ERNIE LEZARD, R.R.#2 Green
Mountain Road, Penticton, B.C.
V2A 6)7
* PHILIP: PAUL... Box’. 250,
Brentwood Bay, B.C. VOA 1A0
*GORDON JAMES, Box 938,
Lillooet, B.C. VOK 1V0
*MARY LOUISE WILLIAMS,
Mount Currie, B.C., VON 2K0
* TOM ELKINS, Alexis Creek, B.C.
VOL 1A0
*BARNEY ALLISON, Cawston,
B.C. VOX 1C0
Lower
Nicola, B.C. VOK 1Y0
HIGH LIGHTS
Agriculture News
W.L.A.C. Ltd. Feb. 1979
* George Saddleman W.1.A.C. Field-
man, Merritt, arranged a three day
workshop on beef cattle and manage-
ment Jan 30-31, Feb Ist.
® Mount Currie, has a series of work-
shops arranged for every second
week, working with Provincial Agri-
culture, Cloverdale.
* Cecil Louis attended the workshop
at Merritt and is working on having
one in. the Vernon area—dates to be
arranged.
* Jimmie Quaw, W.I.A.C. repre-
sentative, Wanderhoof, has been
covering the Northern areas of the
Province contacting Bands and ex-
plaining the purpose of W.I.A.C.
Ltd.
* Wayne Bob and Ciff Pettis from
Seabird, attended the mainland agri-
cultural improvement short course
Feb. 6-7-8.
¢ A meeting to co-ordinate the Agri-
cultural training in B.C. was held at
UBCIC NEW* 32
.
RESOURCE CENTRE
ORIGINAL PEOPLE’S LIBRARY
ASSOCIATION
In Vancouver on February 8, 9,
1979 a meeting was held of library
_workers of Indian organizations. Asa
result of this meeting the Original
People’s Library Association was
formed. Library workers from
Quebec, Ontario, Saskatchewan and
B.C. were at the meeting. The aims
and objectives of the association are
to promote library services and the
use of libraries and the preservation
and pooling of information for
Canadian Indian, Inuit, Metis.
Membership is made up of librari-
ans, library workers and information
officers whose prime function is pro-
viding library services to Indians,
Inuit and Metis.
At the meeting cataloguing and
classification were one of the topics
discussed. Many Indian libraries have
had difficulty with this area of library
work as the Library of Congress and
the Dewey Decimal system do not
adapt very well to Indian libraries.
The National Indian Brotherhood
Library has a classification system
developed by Brian Deer, a profes-
sional Indian librarian. This system
has proven to be very effective and
efficient for use in Indian libraries.
The UBCIC Resource Centre has
adapted the NIB system to meet B.C.
Indian libraries’ needs.
One of the main topics discussed at
the meeting was the status and future
of the Canadian Indian Rights Com-
mission Library. The CIRC Library
contains many important and rare
documents on aboriginal rights.
Funding was cut off to the library and
the library is now tentatively under
the National Library in Ottawa. An
Indian advisory group ‘has been
recommended to the National Libra-
ry to protect Indian interests in the li-
brary and to ensure continued de-
velopment of the library.
Anyone interested in the Original
People’s Library association,
membership or minutes of the meet-
ing may contact:
Gene Joseph
Provisional Secretary
3rd floor - 440 West Hastings
Vancouver, B.C. V6B ILI
684-0231
Above: Skeena River Chief and
_ Left: Tsawatenok girl: from the
Resource Centre copies of Public
Archives collection.
Tour of Ottawa’s Library Resources
The Original People’s Library
Association is organizing tours for its
members of information resources in
Ottawa; such as, The Canadian
Indian Rights Commission Library,
National IndianBrotherhood Library,
Public Archives of Canada, National
Library of Canada, _ National
Museum Library, Parliamentary Li-
brary, and the 5 DIAND resource
centres and libraries. The tours shall
be held in June 1979. If you are inter-
ested please contact Gene Joseph.
(continued from page 32)
Douglas College Feb. 12th. The pur-
pose of the W.I.A.C. Ltd. was ex-
plained and the various colleges were
-interested in assisting in having
Indian students attend.
*Cecil” Lous, W.LA:C. Ltd.
Fieldman, Vernon, reports workshop
arranged for Vernon March 26-30.
This will take place in the evening of
each day 6:30 to 9. p.m. Head of the
Lakes Council Hall. He has also
booked one in Cranbrook for March
19-22. Details to be reported by
Kootenay area council.
© Special A.R.D.A. representative
Irvine Harry, has been on steady call
to assist in making applications.
Anyone wishing this service should
try to book several weeks ahead, and
do as much of your own home work
as possible.
eThe new W.I1.A.C. Ltd. Farm
Account Book should be ready about
the end of February.
* In order to obtain loans, grants and
contributions, some type of inventory
and net worth statement with pro-
jected volume of production is usual-
ly required. Now is the time to get
started on this, Apply to your
W.I1.A.C. Ltd. Fieldman.
UBCIC NEWS 34
BASKETBALL FEVER
February 13th, 1979 marked the
beginning of the 20th All-Native Bas-
ketball Tournament in Prince Rupert,
and a welcome,though temporary, in-
crease in the local Native population.
Native people from villages in the
Prince Rupert area and as far away as
Alaska arrived in Prince Rupert with
basketball fever. At least 2500 Native
people, both fans and _ players,
squeezed into the hotels and motels in
Prince Rupert, and still there wasn’t
enough room—some people had to be
billeted into private homes. There are
about 18,000 people living in Prince
Rupert, and approximately 6,000 of
them are Native. With the ‘‘new ar-
rivals’’ in town, this meant that dur-
ing the week of the Basketball
Tournament, half of the people in
Prince Rupert were Native!
These basketball tournaments have
come to mean a lot to Native people,
and this year was no exception. It’s
not just the basketball games—al-
though these games certainly prove
how skillful and talented Natives are
and can be in sports such as basket-
ball. It’s seeing our friends and rela-
tives, and exchanging news and
GOSSIP (isn’t that what news is?),
and just getting a beautiful feeling
about being Native.
On the weekend, especially as the
final games were being played, the
basketball fever hit a high, and the
socializing that was being done every-
where—in restaurants, stores, homes,
bars, lounges and cabarets, and of
course at the basketball games
themselves—was unbelievable.
Eighteen basketball teams, and
their many, many, many fans trans-
formed Prince Rupert from a fairly
dead community, between fishing
’ seasons and in the middle of a tradi-
tionally quiet month for merchants
and businesspeople, into an exciting
- motels
and booming city.
But this wonderful event had its
darker side, with Native complaints
against at least one of the hotels and
in Prince Rupert. These
Native people believe they were not
given rooms when there were still
some available, and that racial dis-
crimination was involved. This is be-
ing looked into.
All in all, though, the tournament
was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone.
In addition to the basketball games,
some artists had their arts and crafts
on display and for sale, and a few
local Native organizations had
information booths set up. Because
of the success of these displays, an
Arts and Cultural Event is being
planned.
The Native Outreach Project also
I was a cheerleader when | was 15
years old. It was very difficult, but
was it ever a lot of fun!
It was difficult, because we had to
| raise our own money and try to keep
up our grades in school (we were
successful in raising money). Another
thing we had to do was make up our
own movements to go with our
cheers; I guess you can say we were
pretty good at that.
Altogether, in our cheerleading
squad, there were seven of us. We
were successful in raising money,
because our mothers did all the
cooking & baking for us for pot-luck
suppers, and they also made our
| uniforms, because we didn’t know
| how to sew either.
After all our money-raising and
uniforms were ready, we were all
| prepared for that hand clapping, foot
stomping, spectacular Zone 5 All-
Native Basketball Tournament in
CONFESSIONS OF A TEENAGE CHEERLEADER
Prince Rupert.
We arrived in Prince Rupert all
excited, our hearts pounding fast,
butterflies in our stomachs, giggling
and telling jokes, and of course
flirting with all those gorgeous hunks
that play and attend the games.
We were all settled in our hotel
rooms talking about everything
(boys) and all of a sudden it was time
to go to the games and do our thing.
So five of us jumped in a cab, the
other two found rides. We. were all
bouncing around asking each other if
we had everything and telling each
other how scared we were because we
would have to cheer in front of
thousands of people. Then the
cabdriver looks at us and asks us
where we want to go. We all looked at
each other and realized that none of
us knew where the games were to be
held. The cabdriver started laughing
and we told him we wanted to get to
by Sylvia Woods
the All-Native games; we were lucky
he knew where it was.
We arrived at the gym, and we
watched the game that was on before
our team was scheduled to play.
We went to change into our
uniforms half an hour before our
team played so that we could practise
a few of our cheers. People were
surprised when we all went running
into the gym because they never
expected good old Kitamaat to have
cheerleaders. We started off with our
favourite, which goes:*
HOWDY CHIEFS HOWDY
HOWDY CHIEFS HOWDY
WE’RE HERE TO MEET YOU
HOPE TOBEAT YOU ©
HOWDY CHIEFS HOWDY !!
They all gave us a hand for that
and all the rest of the cheers that we
did.
The two years of cheerleading were |
the best two years of my life.
UBCIC NEWS 34
by ‘Terry Starr
conducted a Recreational Costs Sur-
vey among the Native people either
watching or playing in the games. The
survey indicates that each out-of-
town Native person attending or
playing in the games spent an average
of $367.80, which, over a six-day
period and for an average of 2400
Natives, amounts to a total of
$882,720 being spent by Natives in
Prince Rupert as a direct result of the
Tournament. That says a lot about the
economic contribution Native people
make to Prince Rupert, doesn’t it?
And who won the Basketball
Tournament? In the Senior Division,
Kitamaat beat Kitkatla to take the
title for another year, and the N.B.A.
Beavers defeated Kincolith to take the
Intermediate Title for another year.
But all the teams were great (and
I’m not just saying that because I
played for the Co-op Challengers),
and... . we’re all looking forward to
the 21st All-Native Basketball Tour-
nament next year!
Photo: V. Dudowaro
HELP WANTED
Trent University
Department of Native Studies
Applications are invited for the position of:
LECTURER
OR
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
Applicants should have expertise in at least two of
the following areas:
—History of the Canadian Indian, with emphasis on
Metis and non-status people.
—Research methodology
—Native community development
Desirable qualifications: Master’s or Ph.D. degree
with demonstrated teaching ability and experience in
Native communities.
Salary is negotiable within the current university
salary schedule. The appointment is for one year
commencing July 1, 1979. Applications should be
forwarded not later than March 31, 1979, to:
Professor M.J. Castellano,
Chairman, Department of Native Studies,
Trent University,
Peterborough, Ontario. K9J 7B8
ELECTRICAL WIRING.
and REPAIRS
residential
commercial
industrial
Frank Bull ‘‘Jr.’’
524-1280
1337 Kamloops Street
New Westminster, B.C.
V3M 1V5
UBCIC NEWS 35
ARE $$ THE ONLY CHOICE FOR A LAND
CLAIMS SETTLEMENT? THE FUTURE FOR
YOUR CHILDREN DEPENDS ON THE CHOICE
YOU MAKE TODAY...
SUBSCRIBE TO THE UBCIC NEWS, the fastest-
growing Indian news magazine in Canada. Dedicated to
building a strong foundation for a better choice:
INDIAN GOVERNMENT.
Keep informed. Know the issues. The right decision
today means our childrens survival tomorrow.
Subscription Prices:
$8.00/year for individuals
$12.00/year for institutions
Send your cheque or money order to:
UBCIC NEWS
440 W. Hastings
Vancouver, B.C.
VoB 1L1
| THE UBCIC NEWS WANTS TO
KNOW ABOUT YOU AND YOUR
COMMUNITY. DO YOU HAVE A
STORY TO TELL? A JOKE, A
POEM, PICTURES TO SHARE?
THE UBCIC NEWS IS ALWAYS
OPEN TO YOUR SUGGESTIONS,
OPINIONS, NEWS AND PHOTOS,
THIS MONTH
TERRY STARR, co-ordinator of the
North Coast District Council Native
Outreach Project, wrote a_ story
about the All-Native Basketball
Tournament’s effect on the Indian
and non-Indian people of Prince
Rupert.
JEANNETTE BONNEAU of the
Okanagan Tribal Council gave us a
recording of the submission she pre-
sented to the Osoyoos city council for
the return of Spotted Lake to Indian
caretakership.
FROM THE UBCIC NEWS....
THANKS! to Terry Starr and
Jeannette Bonneau for their contribu-
tion. They will be receiving a free sub-
scription of the UBCIC NEWS as a
token of our appreciation.
UBCIC NEWS is published monthly by the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs.
5
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“LS SONILSVH LSAM OFF
ITl €9A ‘O'd ‘YAANOONVA
SAaIHO NVIGNI ‘0° JO NOINN ‘WOU
Part of UBCIC News - volume 1, number 9 (February, 1979)