Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Newsletter (Winter 1996)

1.06-01.08 Union of BC Indian Chiefs Newsletter

1.06.-01 Newsletters and bulletins sub-series

December 1996

english

1.06-01.08-07.03

14

INSIDE THIS ISSUE...

2. Message from the President

3. Royal Commission on Aboriginal
Peoples

4. Health

5. IIG / Resource Centre Update

6. Indian Water Rights in B.C.

7. The U.N. Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples

8. Legal Update

9. Treaty 8 Tribal Association

12. "QATUWAS-PEOPLE
GATHERING TOGETHER"

13. The David Suzuki Foundation

Chief Saul Terry

David Roth

periodical

Union of B. C. Indian Chiefs NEWSLETTER WINTER 1996 IRWIN IGNORES OVER 70% OF FIRST NATIONS Intends to Proceed Unilaterally with Indian Act Amendments V A N C O U V E R , December 3, 1996 - The federal Liberal government, under the direction of Indian Affairs Minister, Ron Irwin, has proposed significant changes to the Indian Act. The proposed changes will significantly alter the relationship between Indian Peoples and the federal government. The proposed changes will drastically INSIDE THIS ISSUE... 2. Message from the President 3. Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples 4. Health 5. IIG / Resource Centre Update 6. Indian Water Rights in B.C. 7. The U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples 8. Legal Update 9. Treaty 8 Tribal Association 12. "QATUWAS-PEOPLE GATHERING TOGETHER" 13. The David Suzuki Foudation WINTER 1996 reduce the fiduciary duties owed by the federal government to Indian Peoples, do not recognize the inherent aboriginal right of self determination, nor do they restructure the relationship between Indian nations and the federal government to one of equality. Indian Peoples have said a resounding " N o " to these changes. Minister Irwin continues to refuse to heed the voice of the Indian Peoples. Resolutions and letters from over 70% of First Nations in Canada have clearly rejected the proposed amendments. The Minister deems Indian Peoples' rejection of the proposed changes irrelevant and is determined to push these through the House of Commons. Indian Peoples have stated very clearly that fiddling with the Indian Act will not rectify the situation in which Indian Peoples f i n d themselves today. Restructuring the Indian Act will not recognize our inherent right to self determination nor our aboriginal title and right to our ancestral Lands. With these changes the federal government is imposing a policy of self administration and self termination. Even the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, released November 21, 1996, which the federal government spent a considerable amount of money on, clearly states that amendments to the Indian Act are not the solution and that the only means of improving the situation of Indian Peoples is a fundamental restructuring of the relationship between the Canadian government and Indian Peoples. Minister Irwin avoids dealing with the substance of why the situation of Indian Peoples' political, social and economic misery does not change. Instead of rolling up his sleeves and addressing the real problems with real solutions, he simply pays lip service to the problems faced by Indian People by proposing these changes. He hides the truth while he seeks title to our homelands. He denies our voice and any real hope of substantive and lasting change, instead choosing to proceed with his unilateral and assimilationist policy. The M i n i s t e r is using every manipulative tool, including a few of our leaders, to impose these changes. The only solution to the problems faced by Indian Peoples is for the federal government to accept our right to self determination and recognize our title and rights to our ancestral lands. We must act now. We will be heard. There is no other way. Since the Minister is not telling his caucus the truth - we must do that ourselves. The UBCIC is calling on all peoples to help stop the manipulation, denial and avoidance of real solutions. Write, fax, and/or phone the Prime Minister and your member of parliament at their constituency offices or to their offices in Ottawa. Contact: Chief Saul Terry, President (604) 684-0231 INDIAN ACT AMENDMENTS (Continued on page 8) 1 UBCIC NEWS Message From The President: Dear Editor: Much has been and continues to be made in the print, audio and video media of the B.C. Treaty Commission. So much time, money and effort expended on the process. The B.C. Treaty Commission, however, is seen by many of our Peoples as simply another termination initiative to have our people to utterly and completely surrender to Canada. It is another government designed S.W.A.T. (Special Words and Tactics) to distract us from the real issue of attaining selfreliance, self-determination and decolonization. When we stop and look about at the political statements on policy and legislation, one can not help but shudder at what we are permitting to go on. M r . Chretien, now Prime Minister, was determined in 1971 to implement the White Paper Policy regardless of our opinions and aspirations, by using different approaches, at different paces, with different groups, at different times. So when we stop and take that look about, that is exactly what we see. A l l the governments' terms of reference to negotiate the unresolved Land Question in British Columbia are based on the extinguishment of Title for money, and recognition of our Title is rejected as a basis of agreement. Indigenous Peoples authorities are to be based on nonIndian institutions. Self-determination is to be rejected and self-sufficiency is to be realized only through employment or prudent money management of fixed settlement dollars. Provincial participation in all negotiations is made essential, so we do not have a nation-to-nation treaty-making process but a process for a tripartite agreement with a local government holding a veto power over our title, rights and interests. If they can be called treaties, then they are treaties of total capitulation and I know our people cannot accept that. The cabinet document of 1979 (outlining the Liberal strategy for termination), the Nielsen Task Force recommendations of 1985 and the Charlottetown Accord of 1992 all display a similar strategy and intent to weaken and discredit Indigenous Peoples. Such termination policies outlined an unwillingness to waste time with unacceptable matters such as Title, and Self-determination. Also to be avoided are those people committed to fighting for Indian 2 "Public relations S.W.A. T. Teams, especially for the federal government, are in constant overtime to show government proposals as fair, just, generous and economical." Rights but encouragement is offered to those willing to deliver government-designed programs. Negotiation time-limits are set and enforced by threats of legislated settlements. Public relations S.W.A.T. teams, especially for the federal government, are in constant overtime to show government proposals as fair, just, generous and economical. This then is the legacy that the B.C. Treaty Commission brings, the continued policy of termination through its modem beads and trinkets settlement agreements. It is a bogus treaty making process. Chief Saul Terry President UBCIC CHRISTMAS OFFICE CLOSURE The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs offices w i l l be closed for the Christmas Break Monday, December 2 3 , 1 9 9 6 and w i l l Reopen on Thursday, January 2nd, 1997. The Members, Executive and Staff of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs wishes you all a Peaceful, Safe and Happy Holiday Season. We look forward to working with you all in the New Year for the recognition of our Aboriginal Title & Rights and the betterment of our Peoples... WINTER 1996 Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples R O Y A L COMMISSION ISSUES A C H A L L E N G E November 22, 1996 - Ottawa - Yesterday the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples released its final report. It calls for a fundamental change i n the relationship between Indian nations and Canada, one that would turn dependency into productivity and prosperity. The eyes of the Indian citizens and of Canadians are now upon their respective governments. Major changes are expected, but once again it is dependent upon the political will of the federal government. The Indian Peoples of British Columbia are united in calling for Minister Ron Irwin to abandon his proposed Indian Act amendments, and deal instead with the substantive issues recommended by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. If this were done, the political, social, economic, cultural and spiritual violation which our families have endured for generations may be alleviated. The near annihilation our people by federal policies such as the Indian Act of 1876, the anti-potlatch laws of 1884, the Buffalo Jump policies of the 1980's, and the current off-load-and-run policies of the current federal government must cease. Immediate dialogue with our nations must begin. Our nations are ready. We agree with the Commission in their view that substantive progress cannot take place with - or through- the Department of Indian Affairs. It is badly tainted with colonial history and does not have the confidence of our Peoples, or the capacity, to address the fundamental changes which the Commission has called for. The position of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs took after the White Paper of 1969, and which we have maintained since that time, has been vindicated by this report. For example, the Commission has rejected the notion that extinguishment is the price to be paid for resolving the Land Question. It has stated that treaty-making is the "exclusive preserve of nations", and added that to do otherwise' 'would detract from the nature of treaties and the integrity and status of the nations that make them.'' The process currently being promoted in British Columbia by the Liberal government will result i n less-than-treaties. In the Commission's final report, they are referred to as merely "Intergovernmental agreements" - not authentic nation-to-nation agreements. This is not what our elders and past leaders struggled so hard to protect. Our people must have a close look at the recommendations contained in this five volume document. It is the blueprint for profound changes. We the citizens of our Indian nations, together with the Canadian public, cannot permit the Commission's final report to collect dust Too much is at stake, especially for the youth who must bear the burden of assuring the survival of future generations. We all have a responsibility to rise to the challenges that face us, and the Royal Commission has focused the dialogue on many of the fundamental issues. We look forward to discussing these issues with our elders, our youth, and all of our citizens in the weeks to come, so that together we can press the federal government to embrace a new path. -30Contact: Chief Saul Terry, President U B C I C (604) 684-0231 Assembly of First Nations Responds to Royal Commission Report November 21, 19% - The National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Ovide Mecredi, called the Royal Commission Report on Aboriginal Peoples, "Too valuable to ignore, too far-reaching to disregard, and too historic to neglect. The commission report represents the last chance this century to achieve economic equality and social justice for aboriginal peoples," said Chief Mercredi. "It is a good opportunity for Canadians to end a century of dishonour". The report, entitled "People to People: Nation to Nation" is the "most comprehensive consultation, extensive research and detailed analysis ever sanctioned by the Government of Canada", said Chief Mecredit. "For First Nations peoples, the report can only inspire hope for the future. If ther is political will on the part of the government to succeed where others have failed, this report can provide the blueprint for recovery." National Chief Mercredi said that Prime Minister Jean Chretien must now meet with the First Nations' leadership to ensure that the report is acted upon. "Recentiy, the Prime Minister has shown international leadership to end hardship in foreign lands," said Chief Mecredi. "We are confident that he will show the same attention to help improve conditions for aboriginal peoples here at home." "I will convene a Nation-to-Nation Summit on January 21-23 as a first step to begin implementing this report," said the National Chief. "On behalf of First Nations and over one million aboriginal peoples, I invite the Prime Minister to attend and represent the people of Canada." Chief Mecredi said a formal invititation to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet to attend the summit will be extended on Tuesday, November 26 at the end of a Special Chiefs' Confederacy Meeting. AFN PRESS R E L E A S E (Continued on page 7) WINTER 1996 3 UBCIC NEWS HEALTH REPORT In the 1995-19% fiscal year, the Indian communities discovered that there were changes to their health benefits. Health and Welfare, Canada failed to notify aboriginal peoples regarding their plans. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs organized to inform as many aboriginal citizens as possible - both on and off-reserve. A Health Bulletin was produced and mailed to them. Up to 70 concerned aboriginal people came to the Chiefs Council meeting on March 13th and marched to the Medical Services Branch offices in Vancouver to confront the Regional Director regarding cut-backs to the Non-Insured Health Benefits. People were assured that immediate changes were made only to the dental services. Updates were mailed out on April 11th and May 2nd. The UBCIC Newsletter carried the issue and was distributed widely. On May 9, 1996 a press conference was called. At least another 50 aboriginal people including Chiefs attended. On July 5th a pressreleasewas issued by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs and the Indian Homemakers Association of B.C. during the International AIDS Conference to announce cutback to health services to aboriginal people while the AIDS virus is spreading in the Indian communities. This press release was distributed to delegates of the Indigenous peoples session at the First Nations House of learning at the University of British Columbia. The last update on the NTHB issue appeared in the UBCIC Newletter in August. Letters have been written to David Dingwall, Minister of Health and Welfare, Canada; Mr. Larry McCafferty, Regional Director of Pacific Region for Medical Services Branch; and the Human Rights Commission in Geneva, Switzerland. Petitions were signed by aboriginal people both on and off-reserve and included in the package to the Human Rights Commission. This year the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs submitted a budget proposal for a Health Services Monitoring Program in B.C. Larry McCafferty, Regional Director rejected this proposal despite the fact that his department budgeted and committed $123,000 for consultation and liaison work. It was interesting to learn that the Canadian Dental Association were not consulted and that the changes also came as a surprise to the insurance carriers who administer the plan. The Medical Services failed to meet or even discuss changes to the dental plan with dentists across the country. The following gives a good example of some calls to the UBCIC: 1. Members of an Indian Band who were invoiced for the amount not covered or paid by insurance and told it is the patient's responsibility. 2. A patient, living off reserve, has terminal illness. This patient requires counselling to deal with the situation. Medical Services wrote to the doctor stating "MSB's mandate in this area is to provide funding for service only as a last resort where other ministries' mandates or statues do not provide coverage. Services we fund must be crises-oriented and short term; the Branch has no authority to provide funding for ongoing support or counselling". 4 3. A letter from Masset in which the family expressed concern that in order toreceivehealth care, they must reside on areserveand yet they have been waiting four years to get a house on their reserve. They also have a son with allergies. They state that they feel discriminated against because they cannot receive any benefits from living on the reserve and cannot live onreservefor lack of housing. 4. Copy of a prescription from a clinic whichrefusedto process it after calling MSB for authorization. 5. Copy of statement mailed to family of a student who had a physical examination in order to participate in interscholastic athletics at school. 6. Invoice sent to patient, off-reserve, because his medical plan stated that his coverage was cancelled. 7. Many phone calls from people who were embarrassed when they went for dental or medical exams and were told there was cut-backs to their health benefits. The UBCIC received copies of letters from a dental association to Indian bands in Ontario in which they were told that they would have to pay up front with cash, cheques or charge cards. The Assembly of First Nations held several national meetings to address this issue. As of this date, they informed the UBCIC that more cut-backs are pending. Re: Canada Changes Position on Self-Determination and "Peoples" To: Ovide Mercredi, National Chief From: Rolland Pangowish (In Geneva) Date: Oct 3 1 / % 1. Canada is now announcing an official change in its position. It will now use the term "Peoples", both with the respect to the Draft Declaration and in all other respects, including domestic use. 2. Canada will also support "Self-Determination", except it is qualified that it does not entail ' 'dismemberment'' of existing states and respects "territorial integrity". Also involves "negotiations" (i.e. "self-gov't.). 3. The Draft Final Report of this Session appears to include all the points raised by the Indigenous Caucus regarding equal participation. Next battle will be at the Commission on Human Rights, where states opposed may take moves against. ~ Further updates to follow on Friday. c.c. Perry Belgarde International Instruments Cttee. WINTER 1996 UBCIC NEWS Institute of Indigenous Government NEWS FROM THE UBCIC RESOURCE CENTRE Extension Programs The Institute of Indigenous Government is committed to expanding extension and off-campus programming to enhance First Nations' access to unique education programs in British Columbia, Canada, and around the world. The IIG's goal is to deliver up to 80% of our courses "off-campus" in regional centers and Indigenous communities through the extension program and by innovative distance learning strategies. The Institute of Indigenous Government is the first in Canada to have independent power to grant a one-year Certificate and a two-year Associate of Arts degree in Indigenous Government Studies. A four-year Bachelors of Arts degree is expected to commence within the next 3 years. The IIG's first extension program commenced in the Spring of 1996 at the Saanich Nation Adult Education Center. The extension arrangement enables students from the Saanich Nation to access instruction, student development workshops, and community support while pursuing their post-secondary studies. Elders from the community have enriched the courses through their cultural, social and spiritual guidance to the students and staff. The second extension program started in the Fall of 1996 at Lillooet, B.C. Majority of the students are employed fulltime in the community while taking a full day of instruction one day a week. IIG is committed in providing quality programs to communities who are interested in establishing an Extension Program. If you would like more information about the Extension Program, courses, enrollment criteria, transferable, equivalency credits or potential locations, contact: Jennie Blankinship, Director of Extension Programs 342 Water Street, Lower Level Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1B6 Phone (604) 602-9555 Fax (604) 602-3432 UBCIC Newsletter Deadline If you have any material that you would like to see in the next edition of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Newsletter, please forward to our Vancouver office by fax or mail as soon as possible to the attention of "UBCIC NEWS LETTER". We would appreciate the volume of information be kept to a minimum so others can benefit from this service. Please do not fax business cards. Suggestions or comments are always welcome. Next deadline is January 15, 1997. Remember, our new address is 5th Floor - 342 Water Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1B6. Our phone and fax number remain the same. Phone (604) 684-0231 Fax:(604) 684-5726. WINTER 1996 Recent special visitors to the Resource Centre include Renae Morisseau, singer/film producer; twenty Chilean professors; a small group of Ainu people from Japan; and First Nation researchers from all over B.C. For researchers, we recently put RG-10 Finding Aids on one of our computer workstations so that these Finding Aids can be keyword searched and we have ordered several new reels of RG-10 film. We have also acquired the reels of film from the Surveyor General of B.C. which hold the Indian reserve survey maps for the province. A new First Nations business magazine is being published out of Vancouver and just came out with its second issue. Twelve issues of First Nations Business can be subscribed to for $45. Subscription requests can be sent to 526 - 119 West Pender, Vancouver V6B 1S5. Phone (604) 669-5208 FAX 488-1251. The publishers welcome submissions. Everyone who has seen it in our Resource Centre has commented on the professional quality of this new magazine. The final report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples will be out before the end of November. We tried to reserve free copies through the RCAP office but were referred to Canada Communications, the federal government's publishing office in Ottawa. The cost of the report has not been made public When the newspaper reports that the publication is available, contact: Canada Communications Group, Publishing Division, Ottawa. Phone: (819) 994-5389 or, if you live near a centre where there is a University or large enough bookstore, they may carry copies. A word of personal advice from the Library staff for those who have important documentation on their computer hard drives...make sure you backup regularly. We experienced the dreaded hard drive "crash" but a magnetic tape backup made on a daily basis saved our information. What might have been a disaster was only a short term inconvenience because we had a full backup for the hard drive. I suspect that we wont get out another issue of the Newsletter before Christmas so the Resource Centre staff want to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Safe and Happy Holiday Season. 5 UBCIC NEWS INDIAN WATER RIGHTS IN BRITISH C O L U M B I A The history of Indian water rights in B.C. is the history In that same sixty year period the provincial economy was increasingly dominated by industrial production and commercial agriculture and Indian peoples hadgone from 70% - 4% of British Columbia's population. of the provincial government's refusal to allot Indian water rights and the government of Canada's failure to act within its power to assert those rights. From the 1860s to the 1920s the governments of British Columbia and Canada "managed" water rights i n a manner that effectively negated B . C . Indian Nations' access to and control of precious water resources. As early as 1859 the Colony of British Columbia had developed a water rights policy of sorts. The policy stipulated that users of water (for the most part gold miners) had to register their right to water with the local magistrate or Gold Commissioner. This served to limit disputes over access to water and maintain order in the gold rush period. Indian water rights did not concern Colonial Administrators; their primary motivation was an orderly exploitation of mineral resources i n the " G o l d Colony". In 1871 British Columbia became part of Canada and almost immediately a debate ensued between the province and the federal government regarding the allotment of Indian Reserves. The province insisted that the federal government's allotment policy was too generous while the federal government claimed that the provincial allocations were too small. The ongoing debate resulted, in 1876, in the formation of a joint federal-provincial body called the Indian Reserve Commission which was empowered to allot Indian reserves in B.C. The Indian Reserve Commissioners allotted many Bands water rights along with land, especially in the interior where assured access to water was crucial to agricultural activities. In 1878 the Indian Reserve Commission approached the province in an attempt to ascertain the legal status of the Commissioner's water allotments. It received no reply. In 1884 the British Columbia legislature finally articulated its stance when it approved a Land Act that made absolutely no provision for Indian water rights. In December of 1884 B.C.'s Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works told federal officials that individual Indians could apply for water rights under the Land Act like any other British Columbian, but that the Indian Reserve Commissioners "had not the slightest authority to confer any rights to water upon the Indians". In 1888 the province amended the Land Act to allow for reservebased water rights on any unrecorded and unappropriated water applied for under the Act. It is important to note that the amendment still did not accept the earlier rights granted by the Reserve Commissioners; it only stipulated that as of 1888 applications for water rights coming from Indian Reserves would be considered by the province. While federal officials stated their opposition to provincial policy, they made no effort to force the p r o v i n c e , through p o l i t i c a l pressure or 6 constitutional measures, to reverse its position. Under provincial legislation water rights were administered by the Water Rights Board of Investigation. The Board decided on the amount of water any applicant would receive based on the amount of water available from a given source and the priority of the application (applicants were given priority on a given water source based on the date of their application). However the Board of Investigation refused to deal i n any substantive way with Indian water rights until 1921 when the province, after forty-plus years, passed the Water Claims Act. The Water Claims Act did not recognize any Indian water claims based on Indian Reserve Commission allotments. Instead the act stipulated that it would utilize lists of Indian water rights submitted by Indian Agents in the 1888-1889 period to make water rights allotments to Indian Bands. These lists usually included the Reserve Commissioner's water allocations but in many cases errors were made in the transfer of information. Furthermore, the Board of Investigation was not i n any way bound by the earlier allocations. The 1888 lists were considered but the Board's final decision was also based on the status of existing licences, water availability and beneficial use. This often resulted i n a significant reduction of the water right initially allotted by the Indian Reserve Commission. From the 1860s to the 1920s, successive colonial and provincial administrations had steadfastly refused to acknowledge Indian peoples right to water resources. In that same sixty year period the provincial economy was increasingly dominated by industrial production and commercial agriculture and Indian peoples had gone from 70% to 4% of British Columbia's population. In tight of these developments the Water Claims Act was criminally inadequate. The federal government's performance was no better. In a period when the Dominion Government was willing to fight constitutional battles on such issues as French language rights i n Ontario, New Brunswick and Quebec and control of forests, streams and rivers in Ontario it could not garner the energy, money or political will to battle British Columbia on the issue of Indian water rights. Even after water licences were finally issued to Indian Bands secure access to water was not assured. Water rights legislation has never recognized an aboriginal right to water nor has traditional use of water resources ever been a consideration in licensing. This has meant that water licences can be reduced or lost i f a Band does not meet the criteria of "beneficial use". Beneficial use in this context means water for domestic use or INDIAN WATER RIGHTS (Continued page 7) WINTER 1996 UBCIC NEWS INDIAN WATER RIGHTS (Continuedfrompage 6) for narrowly defined European style agriculture. In the 1930s and 1940s many Indian Bands lost water licences when DIA failed to construct the water works needed to meet beneficial use criteria. Sometimes DIA simply allowed licences to lapse and in other cases licences were lost or reduced if water inspectors judged that Indian Bands did not have enough land under agricultural production to justify the water licence. The history of Indian water rights in B. C. in many ways parallels the history of Indian land in the province. It is the same old story of arrogance and disregard of Indian peoples, their land and their resources. As Chief Saul Terry has previously stated, "today, as in years past, Indian water rights mean survival for our people and our future generations". Understanding the history of Indian water rights will help in protection and extension of Indian water rights in the future. Publications Indian Water Rights in British Columbia, UBCIC (1991). Since Time in Immemorial: Indian Water Rights in British Columbia, Susan Abs, Indian Water Rights Committee (1989). Want to learn more about your Band's water rights? * The provincial Water Management Branch can provide you with information regarding licences held by your Band. There is a fee for computer time but it is not prohibitively expensive. Telephone (250) 387-5981 * If you believe that the Department of Indian Affairs has not effectively protected your water rights the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Specific Claims Department can research the issue on your behalf at no cost to your Band. Contact UBCIC Specific Claims at (604) 684-0321. What can you do to protect the water rights you now hold? * Learn as much as you can about the provincial water rights process. Knowledge of the system allows for the development of strategies that will help you protect your rights and fight for change. * Designate a contact person at a Band or Tribal Council level to deal with water rights issues. This person would keep track of existing licences as well as be knowledgeable regarding the history of the Band's water rights in order to protect those that now exist and attempt to regain those rights lost. * Ensure that the ' 'beneficial use'' criteria is met. Until such time as the system of licensing is changed the province has within its power the right torevokewater licences where water use criteria is not met. David Roth, UBCIC Research THE U.N. DECLARATION O N THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs held their 28th Annual General Assembly on October 23-25, 1996 at which time the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was to be discussed and ratified i f necessary. In the meantime, meetings were being held i n Geneva, Switzerland by the U . N . Inter-Sessional Working Group on the U . N . Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. After two days of discussions, Indigenous participants agreed to present a proposal to the chairman suggesting that the existing declaration be immediately adopted without changes or amendments. This was ignored by the chairman and States representatives. Several attempts were made to reintroduce the proposal by other Indigenous delegates but were dismissed by the chair. This left no alternative but for the Indigenous delegations to leave the proceedings. They did not want States to dilute or change the Declaration. A message was received at the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Assembly on Oct. 23 rd and a letter of support was immediately released to the Indigenous delegates in Geneva. The delegate for the Assembly of First Nations issued an update on October 31,1996 reporting that Canada announced it will now use the term "peoples" and support "self-determination". However Canada qualified this by requesting development of a common understanding, consistent with evolving international law, of how this right is to apply to indigenous collectivities, and what the content of this right includes. Canada stated further that the right shall not be construed as authorizing or encouraging any action which would dismember or impair, totally or i n part, the territorial integrity or political unity of sovereign and independent states. Canada's position to the Inter-Sessional Working Group is that self-government be based on negotiated agreements and that their jurisdiction and authority are exercised in harmony with those of other governments. While Canada claims that it is sensitive to the importance of collective rights and responsibilities in indigenous societies, Article 34 which addresses this issue, could be interpreted as subordinating the rights of the individual to those of the collectively. // is important for the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs to adopt the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in order to maintain international ties between Indigenous Nations against States Governments who continue to allow destruction to the lands, resources and way of life A F N P R E S S R E L E A S E (Continued from page 3) The Confederacy meeting, which will be attended by over 100 aboriginal leaders from across Canada, will review the royal commission report. A special press conference will be held on that day to provide an in-depth response to specific recommendations contained in the report. For additional information please contact Jean LaRose at (613) 241-6789, ext. 251 WINTER 1996 7 UBCIC NEWS LEGAL UPDATE Opetchesaht Appeal: Supreme Court of Canada The sole issue which the Court must decide is whether a Section 28(2) permit is valid if it is worded so as to allow for a third party to use reserve land for as long as the land is needed for a stated purpose. Before the court in Opetchesaht was a permit to B.C. hydro which was issued by the Minister with the consent of Chief and Council to run for as long as Hydro needed the land for a transmission line. The case argued on behalf of the Opetchesaht Band, and on behalf of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs member bands was that such a permit is null and void because it does not state clearly a reasonable and definable time for the permit to end. As worded, the permit grants an indefinite interest in reserve land to a third party. This kind of interest, we argued, can only be granted through the surrender provisions of the Indian Act. Counsel for the Opetchesaht Band, also argued that such an interest in reserve land may be validity taken through the expropriation provisions, but on behalf of the UBCIC, I did not joint this argument. We argued that because the permit was bad from the beginning, the hydro line is in trespass. This situation could only be remedied through renegotiation of a s.28(l) permit with a fixed term, or by the company acquiring the land through a valid surrender. Should neither events occur, the company would berequiredto remove their lines, and relocate them off the reserve. Against us was Canada, B.C. Hydro, and a coalition of other utility companies, all of who hold Section 28(2) permits to use land on Indian reserves. The UBCIC intervention raised a number of points which the court clearly listened to. Our main points were these: - At a time when the permit was entered into 37 years ago, no one knew at that time, nor does anyone know today, when the permit would end. (Mr. Justice Cory put the question directly to Canada as well as to B.C. Hydro whether they could say when the permit would be terminated, and neither could say.) - The word "period" within the meaning Section 28(2) must mean a passage oftimewith a fixed termination point, and not a period of time which is never ending. B.C. Hydro's permit amounted to an alienation of an interest in reserve land. This kind of alienation could only be affected by a surrender. This is so, because as a matter of common law and statute, it is Band members who hold a collective interest in the reserve. Chief and Council is not the owner, and has no power by themselves to alienate an interest in reserve. Since as far back as the Royal Proclamation of1763, and reflected in the Indian Act, the surrender provisions have been provided the process for Band members to consent to the alienation of their collective interest. The surrender provisions are conspicuously fair. Chief and Council does not have the authority to independently give consent on behalf of the Band to alienate an 8 interest inreserveland. Chief and Council's authority is circumscribed by the collective interest of the Band members in reserve land, a well as Crown fiduciary obligations which are embedded in the surrender provisions. B.C. Hydro and Canada argued that it is beneficial for Indian people that the court interpret Chief and Councils power broadly, so as to permit Chief and Council to consent to such an alienation. In reply , we pointed out the hollowness of this position by reference to the permit in issue. The Band averaged $3 per acre per year if the permit was to terminate immediately. How can this interpretation of the Indian Act be for aboriginal people's be good? Finally, we addressed Canada and B.C. Hydro's concern that the Court ruling against them would be prohibitively costly. We pointed out that aboriginal people get nothing from the permits, and there is no way torenegotiatethe permits based on the changed circumstances which will have occurred with the passage of time. We were left with the impression that the court would not be taking a great deal oftimeto render a decision. INDIAN ACT AMENDMENTS This year, the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs made a commitment to proceed with his initiatives to amending the Indian Act. Through the summer, Indian leaders met nationally and submitted a resolution to the Minister of Indian Affairs demanding to halt his amendment process. The majority of Indian people did not know of the amendments as consultation with them had not taken place. There is no doubt that the Indian Act requires changes but options that are Indian driven must be considered by the people. Our options encompasses our goals towards selfdetermination through the recognition of our Aboriginal Title and Rights. Meetings were held between Department of Indian Affairs officials and the Chiefs Committee on Enforcement of the First Nations-Crown Relationship. At a second meeting on November 22, 1996 in Ottawa, the Chiefs were told that the Minister of Indian Affairs had every intention of going ahead with the amendments. There are up to 60 proposed amendments and are very dangerous to the aboriginal and treaty rights of our Peoples. On November 26, 1996 the Confederacy of Nations (A.F.N.) passed a resolution calling for the dismissal of the Minister of Indian Affairs because he is not listening to our message. The resolution expressed the Indian leadership's lack of confidence in the Minister. The relationship between the Federal Government and the Indian Nations has been driven further apart by the actions of this Minister. This Liberal government must support the directions and goals of Indian Peoples. WINTER 1996 UBCIC NEWS TREATY 6 TRIBAL ASSOCIATION Cantor Mistaking notification for Consultation, Say Treaty 8 Chiefs for immediate release November 28,1996 — In the wake of yesterday's confrontation between Natives and Canfor northwest of Fort St. John, at which Treaty 8 First Nations stopped a logging crewfromproceeding into an area claimed by them, Tribal Chief Judy Maas declared the renewed determination of the Halfway River First Nation to stop the planned cutting. "We're not going to give up, and we're not going to go away," she said. "We have nowhere to go; this is our home." According to recent press reports, Canfor explained they only want to cut based on the permit the Ministry of Forests issued to them, and felt the Halfway River First Nation had been adequately consulted. To this, Maas answered, "Canfor and the Minstry of Forests seem to be mistaking "notification' for 'consultation.'" "I have a stack of letters to the Ministry of Forests and to Canfor protesting the planned logging in this small area. For two years now, we have been telling them this place is vital to the continued exercise of our treaty and aboriginalrights,and for two years they have been ignoring or dismissing us." Maas said that if people were looking for someone to blame the confrontation on, they need look no turner than the Ministry of Forests, "They issued the permit illegally, over our objections, so what did they expect?" Maas also sought to allay concerns the public may have about the economic impact of the protest, "People have expressed concern that our opposition to a couple of cutting permits will cost jobs. What they don't understand is that these permits constitute only 3.4% of Canfor's five yeare plan in the Fort St John Forest District alone, and only afractionof 1 % of their overall timber supply." Maas said Canfor could easily get replacement cut blocks in less sensitive areas if they wanted to. Regardless, she felt that the costs to the Halfway River Native people would be far greater than to Canfor's profit margin. "It's only afreactionof 1% to Canfor, but it's everything to us. This patch of land is our grocery store, our bank, our drug store, and our home." "I find the Ministry of Forests' and Canfor management's insensitivity and callous disregard for Native people just obscene," she said. Maas constrasted the insensitivity of Foresty and Canfor management to the respectful way in which Canfor employees treated the Native people at the blockade. "When we explained our position, and why we could not allow them to pass, the Canfor workers shook hands with us in mutual respect and understanding that each of us was doing what we had to." Halfway River First Nation Chief Bemie Metecheah hoped for similar understanding from the public. "People have to understand we don't protest every cutting permit. We're only interested in sustainable, environmentally responsible development which respects ourrightsand specialtiesto our land." Metecheah pointed out that his band's membership enjoyed constitutionally WINTER 1996 protectedrighrtsto the land Canfor wants to log out, and that those rights become meaningless if the land is destroyed "Wedon'twant complete moratoriums, only a little resepect." Metecheah also asked the public to re-consider their stereotypes of Indians and Indian blockades. "People think First Nations are 'anti-development.' The opposite is true. Native people have as much stake in the local economy as anyone else; perhaps even more because we are in Northern B.C. to stay." Metecheah added that, while a healthy economy is important, "because of our spiritual and culturaltiesto this land, we're also worried about the sustainability of our economy. When the last tree is gone, and the last stream is polluted, we cant just retire and move to Florida." "Don't underestimate our determination to see this out," he concluded. Contact: Tribal Chief Judy Maas, Treay 8 Tribal Association (250)785-0612 Chief Bemie Metecheah, Halfway River First Nation (250) 772-5058 JOB POSTING Joint Policy Council Technician The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs requires a full-time Technician Coordinator to work with the Chiefs Council in the on-going development of the Joint Policy Council (JPC). Established in 1993 by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs and the Province of British Columbia, the purpose of the JPC is to identify a range of issues that require resolution through mutual development of policies which do not derogate from the bilateral nation-to-nationrelationshipbetween Indian Nations and the Government of Canada and to improve the social, economic and cultural life of the Indian Nations in British Columbia. Responsibilities: - to recommend agenda items to the UBCIC Chiefs Council; - to undertake technical analysis, research and development activities to further the objectives of the Joint Policy Council; - to prepare issue memoranda on specific agenda items as directed by the Chiefs Council; - to prepare options and set our recommendations for the resolution of policy issues between the Parties; - to establish and corrdinate small working committees as required; - to monitor on-going provincial policies affecting First Nations. Qualifications: Must have: - University degree and experience in political science and history, - highly developed analytical, research and communication skills with the ability to draft background documents, option reports/proposals and memoranda as required; - sound knowledge of Indian governments, goals of the UBCIC and the principles of the Aboriginal Title and Rights position. Closing Date: December 20, 1996 Salary: Negotiable Mail/Fax Resumes to: Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Halie Bruce, Administrative Assistant 5* Floor, 342 Water Street Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1B6 Fax: (604) 6S4-5726 9 UBCIC NEWS Indian Homemakers Association of B.C. Traditional Parenting Skills Program "WELCOME FIRST NATIONS WOMEN" Developing Positive Indian Parenting Skills Through: Personsal Development - Family Roots, Co-dependency, Talking Circle, Self Worth, Self Esteem. Life Skills - Anger Management, Family Violence, Problem Solving, Communication, Budgeting, Nutrition. Parenting Skills - Family History, Family Roles, Parent/Child Relationships, Early Childhood Education. Cultural Awareness - Native Spirituality, Beliefs/Values, Physical Fitness (Sing/Dance), Sewing, Honouring Our Children, Basic Native Concepts/Teachings/Principles. AMBUSHED The Legal Services Society Board made a decision to discontinue their funding to one of our Aboriginal organizations, The Vancouver Aboriginal Justice Center Society. The Justice Center had provided legal advice and services to Aboriginal people in need since 1994. The Center primarily serves the Lower Mainland's Aboriginal population of over 100,000, as well as Aboriginal people from across the country. This unique Aboriginal Organization is the only Aboriginal-specific service of its kind in the lower mainland. Our Brother and Sisters need your help at this time. We are the most over represented people in the Canadian Justice system and services like the Justice Center can help alleviate this huge problem. We cannot allow this necessary service be lost to bureaucratic red tape. The Aboriginal Justice Center needs your support! We are circulation a petition for all concerned people to sign. Please sign it when you see it! Any letters ofsupport would be greatly appreciated (please direct letters to the Board of the Aboriginal Justice Center Society, 191 Alexander Street, Vancouver, B.C., V6A 1N3. Please show your support! If you have and questions or comments, please call us at the above phone and fax numbers! Aboriginal Justice Center Society, Tel: (604) 684-2121 Fax: (604) 684-2177 Next Session Starts: January 6, 1997. Deadline for Applications: January 13, 1997 Interviews: January 6-8, 1997 12 weeks, Monday through Thursday, 9:30 am - 2:30 pm, Fridays: preparations For more information contact Ellen Antoine or Margaret Harris at (604) 876-0944. CITY-WIDE SHELL BOYCOTT TODAY! Local activists to demonstrate at 8 Vancouver Shell stations and counting... Vancouver-Today, Friday, November 8th between 4:156:00 pm, there will be protests at eight Shell stations in the Vancouver area. Demonostraters are protesting against the role of Shell in the murders of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni activists almost one year to the day they were hanged. The central location will be the Shell station at BURRARD and DAVIE where members of the Ogoni Solidarity Network will be making a statement to the media. There will also be major protest to the following stations: Broadway and Arbutus 41st and Granville King Edward and Oak Main and 12th Main and 2nd Victoria and Hastings #3 Road and Granville (Richmond) 10 Boycott participants will include high school, college and university students, human rights worker, environmentalists, union activists and many other concerned individuals throughout Vancouver. Shell Canada denies responsibility for the environmental crimes and human rights atrocities in Nigeria, despite the fact the it is a majority-owned by Shell International. However, according to Dr. Owens Wiwa, the brother of the late Ken Saro-Wiwa, "The name of Shell is Shell. If Shell Canada does not like what their parent company is doing, then they should make that very public and then change their name. It's simple" For more information, contact: The Ogoni Solidarity Network grassroots action to save Ogoniland Tel: 873-8554 * Fax: 872-0709 WINTER 1996 UBCIC NEWS URGENT TO ALL CHIEFS AND COUNCILS AND ALL INDIAN BANDS IN THE PROVINCE OF B.C. NATIVE SISTERHOOD Burnaby Correctional Center for Women August 8th, 1996 To: Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs On September 4th, 1996, Ann Williams, an elder, of the Pauquachin Band suffered an immeasurable loss when her home and all of a her personal belongings were destroyed by fire. To this day her home still sits as it was left the night of the tragedy with no windows, holes in the roof. Ann would like to return to her home for the remaining years of her life but the money required to repair it for her has not arrived. It is the beginning of winter and unless the house is repaired now the rain will destroy what is left of the structure and her memories of the happy times she has spent there with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Ann's family is giving assistance to their mother through this stressful time by giving donations for the repair of her home. If you can help in anyway please contact: Tammy Williams @ (604) 655-9310 Assembly of First Nations NATIONAL YOUTH CONFERENCE F E B R U A R Y 9-11, 1997 World Trade and Convention Centre Halifax, Nova Scotia ESSAY CONTEST - YOUTH ISSUES The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) has a limited amount of funds available to sponsor delegates to the National Youth Conference. If you, or someone you know, would like to take advantage of this opportunity, please read the criteria below and forward the required information to the AFN. Criteria: The ideal candidates should: - be between the ages of 14-25 (if under 18, must be accompanied by an adult); - submit a brief biography - submit a one page essay on what they feel are the current First Nations youth issues and how these issues could be addressed; a - be willing and able to speak in workshops and plenary sessions on the issues that are important to them and their communities. Candidates can submit the information on or before December 16, 1996 in order to be considered for sponsorship. Sponsorship includes travel, accommodation and per diem. Please send submissions to: Christian Garrow, Youth Coordinator, Assembly of First Nations, 1 Nicholas Street, 10th Floor, Ottawa - Ontario, K I N 7B7 or fax to (613) 241-5808. For more information, please contact Carolyn Hunter and Penny Jacko at the AFN, (613)241-6789. WINTER 1996 I am writing on behalf of the Native Sisterhood at the Burnaby Correctional Center for Women. A women who is imprisoned feels hurt, angry, mentally and spiritually lost, without family and friends. The Native Sisterhood would like to offer assurance that the Sisterhood of native prisoners are strong and supportive. We want to keep our sisters together, not only native, all nationalities are welcome to participate. We would appreciate, money, fabric for dresses, blankets and ceremonial items, leather scraps, big and small beads, nylon thread, wax for thread, big and small plastic hoops for dreamcatchers. Small hoops, Shepard hooks and other materials for making earrings. We also need short and long beading needles, sewing needles, wool, latch hook kits and cotton batting for blankets. Things like new cloths, cologne, hand soaps, shampoo, etc., are needed as raffle prizes. We are also asking for things we need for the sisterhood get together such as : A sewing machine, a cassette player, a television, a V.C.R , a party size coffee maker, an instimatic cameras, and a microwave. Your donation would help us women work together and get to know each other better, this is the reason we want to make the sisterhood strong. With God's help and your donations we can do it. On behalf of the Sisters, God Bless you and thank-you very much. Could you please address all donations to Marcia Monk, Native Sisterhood, 7900 Fraser park drive Burnaby B.C. V5J- 5B9 All my relations Marcia Monk, President Native Sisterhood Seasons Greetings 11 UBCIC NEWS THE HEILTSUK NATION PRESENTS: "QATUWAS - PEOPLE GATHERING TOGETHER" (Film Premier January 11, 1996) Qatuwas - People Gathering Together is the new feature documentary by award - winning "Namgis First Nations director Barb Cramner that records a remarkable journey of strength, spirit, and cultural revitalization among northwest coastal Native communities. The public is invited to the premier screening of Qatuwas - People Gathering Together, Saturday, January, 11th at 8 p.m., at the Squamish Nation Recreation Centre, 100 Capilano Road in North Vancouver. Tickets are $8-6$ at the door, children under 12 admitted free. Vibrant songs, dances, and ceremonies will be shared through the evening, as representatives from many First Nations join in celebrating this new film. For some 10,000 years, the ocean-going canoe has served as both practical vessel, and powerful cultural symbol for the First Nations peoples of the Pacific northwest coast. But in the 200 years since European contact, the canoe significance has been gradually displaced. Until recently, that is, when twenty-one tribal groups from British Columbia and Washington answered the Heiltsuk people's challenge to build great cedar canoes and prepare crews to paddle to a traditional canoe and cultural gathering in Bella Bella. Qatuwas- People Gathering Together is the inspiring story of the remarkable resurgence of community, spirituality, and custom that has accompanied this event. Communities worked together for four years to carve new canoes, and train paddlers. Three thousand people gathered on the shores of Bella Bella to welcome the communities that had paddled up to a month and 600 miles to get there. It has been a journey that has connected participants with their nations and their ancestors in deeply affirming ways. Director Barb Cranmer shows great sensitivity in bringing together the voices and different experiences of the canoe-communities and crews who've made this journey. She notes that, "As a filmmaker, I serve as the messenger. It is essential that our own people tell our own stories. This documentary is both areflectionon how far we've come, and a celebration of the hope that Qatuwas means for our communities.'' Cranmer's previous film Laxwesa wa-Strength of the River was also well-received by audiences last year. Co-producer Frank Brown, of the Heiltsuk Nation, has been an aspiring force for the resurgence of the canoe societies. The Voyage of Re-Discovery 12 video documented the canoe voyages Brown led to Expo '86 and the Seattle Centennial in 1989 which led up to the historic Qatuwas gathering. He emphasizes that, "Qatuwas - People Gathering Together documents an important new chapter in the continuing story of our peoples. It shows a living example of positive solutions coming from within our own communities. The canoe is a powerful symbol of our healing journey. It is a vessel for coastal community empowerment. First Nations have a very strong message to give to the rest of the world: how to live sustainabley. We had 10,000 years of continuous habitation within our territory to demonstrate this point." Ticket Reservations please call 940-0145 or 430-8424. Event information: Frank Brown at 604-957-2774 or the Heiltsuk Tribal Council Office at 604-957-2381. Fax 957-2544 Media: to arrange interviews, photos, video, copies, please call Teresa at 604-666-3838. 8TH Annual North American Native Arts and Crafts Fair December 21 & 22, 1996 10:00a.m.- 7:00 p.m. Aboriginal Friendship Center 1607EastHastings ARTS DISPLAYS CARVING DEMONSTRATION MAKE YOUR OWN DREAMCATCHER CULTURAL DANCE PERFORMERS' POETRY READING CONTEMPORARY ENTERTAINMENT WayneLavaleeSpakwausGlalumDancers&More HOOPDANCEEXHIBITIONS MEDICINE WHEEL WORKSHOPS WINTER SOLSTICE CEREMONY SATURDAY MORNING ADMISSION:$1.00SENIORS/KIDS FREE ARTISTS AND CRAFT TABLES: $40.00 PERDAY/$70.00PRE-PAID Sponsored bytheAboriginalExpressions CALL KAT(604)253-1020 WINTER 1996 UBCIC NEWS The David Suzuki Foundation (Vancouver, October 24, 1996 - for immediate release) O Salmon Farming Industry Threatens B.C.'s Wildlife Fish Stocks pen netcages, unregulated drug use, and imported Atlantic salmon eggs threaten wild fish stocks, according to a David Suzuki Foundation report released today. "The way it operates today, B.C.'s salmon netcage industry threatens the survival of fragile wild fish stocks, such as the Fraser River salmon, and may even put human health at risk. To manage these hazards we must immediately stop importing Atlantic salmon eggs, monitor drug use, and change the open fish cages, which release sewage and diseases, into closed pens," says the Foundation's Executive Director Jim Fulton. The Suzuki Foundation says B.C. industry stands in sharp contrast to the sound practices followed i n 85% of the world's fish farming, which is carried out on land and closely tied to agriculture. Fish wastes in Asia are used as crop fertilizer, but in B . C . become sewage. "The unsurpassed wild environment along the B . C . coast supports a multi-billion dollar commercial and sport fishery and tourism business. It is the foundation of Native culture, and it provides a home and recreation for hundreds of thousands of people. We appreciate the jobs salmon farming can bring. But this study tells us we stand to lose far more that we gain. We need to set this industry on a course which helps us, not hurts us," explained Fulton. The major risk is that wild fish could be decimated by the spread of virulent diseases. The problem starts with the netcage system itself. These cages float in the ocean, and are filled with high densities of farm fish. The jammed and stressful conditions of the netcages mean they can become breeding grounds for disease epidemics. The use of fish grown from imported Atlantic salmon eggs compounds this danger. Atlantic salmon are preferred by the industry because they grow more rapidly, and they are more docile. The trouble is, WINTER 1996 the imported fish can bring new diseases with them which can spread like wildfire among our native fish. To combat these threats, the industry injects fish with drugs and regularly mixes drugs with the feed. These measures don't always work. In Norway the industry uses similar netcage systems to those i n B . C . There, eggs imported from Scotland brought epidemics of such diseases as furunculosis, which spread rapidly among wild fish which had little resistance to the new pathogens. In fruitless efforts to control the spread of disease, the Norwegian government spent, i n one instance, $100 million of taxpayer's funds. In an earlier attempt to eradicate an epidemic, the government completely poisoned 20 rivers. The fundamental problem is that the netcages are open to the ocean environment. Escapes of farm fish are inevitable, leading to generic and other harmful interactions with wild fish. Sewage from fish feces and other wastes builds up i n the areas around the netcages, sewage which contain disease pathogens and drugs. In total the sewage is equivalent to the amount produced by a half million people. This refuse is deposited right i n the food chain along the B . C . coast to be picked up by fish such as black cod, herring and salmon. Eight disease outbreaks have already occurred, and many scientists report that a large-scale epidemic will eventually happen among both wild an farmed fish. The netcages are typically located i n sheltered bays such as Clayoquote Sound, areas with rich marine life. Close to fifty of the cages are found among the islands and bays along Johnstone Straight, right in the path of the most Fraser River spawning salmon. "At least 140 distinct salmon stocks i n B . C . are already extinct. To help rebuild salmon stocks, commercial, native and sport fishermen made big sacrifices this year. We need to make sure this sacrifice is not i n vain," says Fulton The netcage industry's use of drugs has been targeted by the Foundation because of its possible effects on human health. The repeated us of drugs to hold the fish diseases at bay has already led to diseases fully resistant to three types of antibiotics. This cavalier and largely unregulated overuse of drugs concerns scientists because it reduces the pool of antibiotics available for human medicine. The drugs also leave residues in the fish and shellfish i n the areas around the net cages which are used for food by local communities, particularly First Nations. There is no government monitoring of these health effects, or those on fish farm workers who are frequently exposed to antibiotics and other drugs. The David Suzuki Foundation makes 12 recommendations. They include using: - only native salmon - closed containment systems which fully treat sewage and prevent contact with wild fish - mandatory industry insurance covering full ecological restoration of catastrophic events - government monitoring of drug use and the spread of drug-resistant diseases. The foundation is submitting its report to the Salmon Aquaculture Review which is currently being conducted by B.C.'s Environmental Assessment Office. Contact: David Hocking Communications Director (604) 732-4228 13 UBCIC NEWS UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS SUBSCRIPTION FORM NAME: FOR OFFICE USE ONLY DATE RECEIVED: ADDRESS: CHEQ/M.O. # EXPIRY DATE:. POSTAL/ZIP CODE: PROVINCE/STATE: 1 YEAR SUBSCRIPTION NLETTER INDIVIDUALS: S35.00 NCLIPPING MEMBER BANDS: S75.00 TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED Please make cheque or money order payable to: INDIVIDUALS: $100.00 $ UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS, 5TH FLOOR - 342 WATER STREET, VANCOUVER, B.C., V6B 1A1 CHIEFS MASK BOOKSTORE & GALLERY ARTS & CRAFTS BOOKS - JEWELLY (GOLD AND SILVER) - FIRST NATIONS - ABORIGINAL ISSUES - POTTERY - INTERNATIONAL INDIGENOUS -PRINTS - LAND CULMS - T-SHIRTS -LAW - LEA THER WORK -ART -MASKS - CHILDREN'S BOOKS - BEAD WORK - TEACHING AIDS - TRADITIONAL MUSIC - POETRY CALL, WRITE OR DROP IN TODAY! - AND MUCH MORE! CONSIGNMENT ITEMS ACCEPTED Owned and operated by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs - 5th Floor 342 Water Street in Gastown (604) 684-0231 14 WINTER 1996  Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs NEWSLETTER WINTER 1996 IRWIN IGNORES OVER 70% OF FIRST NATIONS Intends to Proceed Unilaterally with Indian Act Amendments VANCOUVER, December 3, 1996 -- The federal Liberal government, under the direction of Indian Affairs Minister, Ron Irwin, has proposed significant changes to the Indian Act. The proposed changes will significantly alter the relationship between Indian Peoples and the federal government. The proposed changes will drastically INSIDE THIS ISSUE... 2. Message from the President 3. Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples 4. Health 5. IG / Resource Centre Update 6. Indian Water Rights in B.C. 7. The U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples 8. Legal Update 9. Treaty 8 Tnbal Association 12. “QATUWAS-PEOPLE GATHERING TOGETHER” 13. The David Suzuki Foudation reduce the fiduciary duties owed by the federal government to Indian Peoples, do not recognize the inherent aboriginal right of self determination, nor do they restructure the relationship between Indian nations and the federal government to one of equality. Indian Peoples have said a resounding *‘No’”’ to these changes. Minister Irwin continues to refuse to heed the voice of the Indian Peoples. Resolutions and letters from over 70% of First Nations in Canada have clearly rejected the proposed amendments. The Minister deems Indian Peoples’ rejection of the | proposed changes irrelevant and is determined to push these through the House of Commons. Indian Peoples have stated very clearly that fiddling with the Indian Act will not rectify the situation in which Indian Peoples find themselves today. Restructuring the Indian Act will not recognize our inherent right to self determination nor our aboriginal title and right to our ancestral Lands, With these changes the federal government is imposing a policy of self administration and self termination, Even the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, released November 21, 1996, which the federal government spent a considerable amount of money on, clearly states that amendments to the Indian Act are not the solution and that the only means of improving the situation of Indian Peoples is a fundamental restructuring of the relationship between the Canadian government and Indian Peoples. Minister Irwin avoids dealing with the substance of why the situation of Indian Peoples’ political, social and economic misery does not change, Instead of rolling up his sleeves and addressing the real problems with real solutions, he simply pays lip service to the problems faced by Indian People by proposing these changes. He hides the truth while he seeks title to our homelands. He denies our voice and any real hope of substantive and lasting change, instead choosing to proceed with his unilateral and assimilationist policy. The Minister is using every manipulative tool, including a few of our leaders, to impose these changes. The only solution to the problems faced by Indian Peoples is for the federal government to accept our right to self determination and recognize our title and rights to our ancestral lands. We must act now. We will be heard. There is no other way. Since the Minister is not telling his caucus the truth- we must dothat ourselves. The UBCIC is calling on all peoples to help stop the manipulation, denial and avoidance of real solutions. Write, fax, and/or phone the Prime Minister and your member of parliament at their constituency offices or to their offices in Ottawa. Contact: Chief Saul Terry, President (604) 684-0231 : INDIAN ACT AMENDMENTS (Continued on page 8) WINTER 1996  UBCIC NEWS Message From The President: lear Editor: = Much has been and continues to be made in the print, audio and video media of the B.C. Treaty Commission. So much time, money and effort expended on the process. The B.C. Treaty Commis- sion, however, 1s seen by many of our Peoples as simply another termination initiative to have our people to utterly and completely surrender to Canada. It is another government designed S.W.A.T. (Special Words and Tactics) to distract us from the real issue of attaining self- reliance, self-determination and decolonization. When we stop and look about at the political state- ments on policy and legislation, one can not help but shudder at what we are permitting to go on. Mr. Chretien, now Prime Minister, was determined in 1971 to implement the White Paper Policy regardless of our opinions and aspirations, by using different approaches, at different paces, with different groups, at different times. So when we stop and take that look about, that is exactly what we see. All the governments’ terms of reference to negotiate the unresolved Land Question in British Columbia are based on the extinguishment of Title for money, and recog- nition of our Title is rejected as a basis of agreement. Indigenous Peoples authorities are to be based on non- Indian institutions. Self-determination is to be rejected and self-sufficiency is to be realized only through employment or prudent money management of fixed settlement dollars. Provincial participation in all negotiations is made essen- tial, so we do not have a nation-to-nation treaty-making process but a process for a tnipartite agreement with a local government holding a veto power over our title, rights and interests. If they can be called treaties, then they are treaties of total capitulation and I know our people cannot accept that. The cabinet document of 1979 (outlining the Liberal strategy for termination), the Nielsen Task Force recommendations of 1985 and the Charlottetown Accord of 1992 all display a similar strategy and intent to weaken and discredit Indigenous Peoples. Such termination policies outlined an unwillingness to waste time with unacceptable matters such as Title, and Self-determination. Also to be avoided are those people committed to fighting for Indian hi “Public relations $.W.A.T. Teams, especially for the federal government, are in constant over- time to show government proposals as fair, just, generous and economical.” Rights but encouragement is offered to those willing to deliver government-designed programs. Negotiation time-limits are set and enforced by threats of legislated settlements. Public relations $.W.A.T. teams, espe- cially for the federal government, are in constant over- time to show government proposals as fair, just, gener- ous and economical. This then is the legacy that the B.C. Treaty Commission brings, the continued policy of termination through its modern beads and trinkets settlement agree- ments. It is a bogus treaty making process. Chief Saul Terry President UBCIC CHRISTMAS OFFICE CLOSURE The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs offices will be closed for the Christmas Break Monday, December 23, 1996 and will Re- open on Thursday, January 2nd, 1997. The Members, Executive and Staff of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs wishes you all a Peaceful, Safe and Happy Holiday Season. We look forward to working with you allinthe New Year forthe recognition of our Aboriginal Title & Rights and the betterment of our Peoples... ie WINTER 1996  Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples ROYAL COMMISSION ISSUES A CHALLENGE November 22, 1996 - Ottawa -- Yesterday the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples released its final report. It calls for a fundamental change in the relationship between Indian nations and Canada, one that would turn dependency into productivity and prosperity. The eyes of the Indian citizens and of Canadians are now upon their respective governments. Major changes are expected, but once again it is dependent upon the political will of the federal government. The Indian Peoples of British Columbia are united in calling for Minister Ron Irwin to abandon his proposed Jndian Act amendments, and deal instead with the substantive issues recommended by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. If this were done, the political, social, economic, cultural and spiritual violation which our families have endured for generations may be alleviated. The near annihilation our people by federal policies such as the Jndian Act of 1876, the anti-potlatch laws of 1884, the Buffalo Jump policies of the 1980’s, and the current off-load-and-run policies of the current federal government must cease. Immediate dialogue with our nations must begin. Our nations are ready. We agree with the Commission in their view that substantive progress cannot take piace with - or through- the Department of Indian Affairs. It is badly tainted with colonial history and does not have the confidence of our Peoples, or the capacity, to address the fundamental changes which the Commission has called for. The position of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs took after the White Paper of 1969, and which we have maintained since that time, has been vindicated by this report. For example, the Commission has rejected the notion that extinguishment is the price to be paid for resolving the Land Question. It has stated that treaty-making is the ‘‘exclusive preserve of nations’’, and added that to do otherwise ‘*would detract from the nature of treaties and the integrity and status of the nations that make them.”’ The process currently being promoted in British Columbia by the Liberal government will result in less-than-treaties. In the Commission’s final report, they are referred to as merely ‘‘Inter- governmental agreements’’ - not authentic nation-to-nation agreements. This is not what our elders and past leaders struggled so hard to protect. Our people must have a close look at the recommendations contained in this five volume document. It is the blueprint for profound changes. We the citizens of our Indian nations, together with the Canadian public, cannot permit the Commission’s final report to collect dust. Too much is at stake, especially for the youth who must bear the burden of assuring the survival of future generations. We all have a responsibility to rise to the challenges that face us, and the Royal Commission has focused the dialogue on many of the fundamental issues. We look forward to discussing these issues with our elders, our youth, and all of our citizens in the weeks to come, so that together we can press the federal government to embrace a new path. -30- Contact: Chief Saul Terry, President UBCIC (604) 684-0231 Assembly of First Nations Responds to Royal Commission Report November 21, 1996 - The National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Ovide Mecredi, called the Royal Commission Report on Aboriginal Peoples, "Too valuable to ignore, too far-reaching to disregard, and too historic to neglect. The commission report represents the last chance this century to achieve economic equality and social justice for aboriginal peoples," said Chief Mercredi. “It is a good opportunity for Canadians to end a century of dishonour". The report, entitled "People to Peopie: Nation to Nation" is the "most comprehensive consultation, extensive research and detailed analysis ever sanctioned by the Government of Canada”, said Chief Mecredit. "For First Nations peoples, the report can only inspire hope for the future. If ther is political will on the part of the government to succeed where others have failed, this report can provide the blueprint for recovery." National Chief Mercredi said that Prime Minister Jean Chretien must now meet with the First Nations’ leadership to ensure that the report is acted upon. "Recently, the Prime Minister has shown international leadership to end hardship in foreign lands," said Chief Mecredi. "We are confident that he will show the same attention to help improve conditions for aboriginal peoples here at home.” "I will convene a Nation-to-Nation Summit on January 21-23 as a first step to begin implementing this report,” said the National Chief. "On behalf of First Nations and over one million aboriginal peoples, I invite the Prime Minister to attend and represent the people of Canada.” Chief Mecredi said a formal invititation to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet to attend the summit will be extended on Tuesday, November 26 at the end of a Special Chiefs' Confederacy Meeting. AFN PRESS RELEASE (Continued on page 7) WINIER 1996 3  UBCIC NEWS HEALTH REPORT In the 1995-1996 fiscal year, the Indian communities discovered that there were changes to their health benefits. Health and Welfare, Canada failed to notify aboriginal peoples regarding their plans. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs organ- ized to inform as many aboriginal citizens as possible - both on and off-reserve. A Health Bulletin was produced and mailed to them. Up to 70 concerned aboriginal people came to the Chiefs Council meeting on March 13th and marched to the Medical Services Branch offices in Vancouver to confront the Regional Director regarding cut-backs to the Non-Insured Health Ben- efits. People were assured that immediate changes were made only to the dental services. Updates were mailed out on April lith and May 2nd. The UBCIC Newsletter carried the issue and was distributed widely. On May 9, 1996 a press conference was called. At least another 50 aboriginal people including Chiefs attended. On July 5th a press release was issued by the Union of B.C, Indian Chiefs and the Indian Homemakers Association of B.C. during the International AIDS Conference to announce cutback to health services to aboriginal people while the AIDS virus is spreading in the Indian communities. This press release was distributed to delegates of the Indigenous peoples session at the First Nations House of learning at the University of British Columbia. The last update on the NIHB issue appeared in the UBCIC Newletter in August. Letters have been written to David Dingwall, Minister of Health and Welfare, Canada; Mr. Larry McCafferty, Regional Director of Pacific Region for Medical Services Branch; and the Human Rights Commission in Geneva, Switzerland. Petitions were signed by aboriginal people both on and off-reserve and included in the package to the Human Rights Commission. This year the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs submitted a budget proposal for a Health Services Monitoring Program in B.C. Larry McCafferty, Regional Director rejected this pro- posal despite the fact that his department budgeted and commit- ted $123 000 for consultation and liaison work. It was interesting to learn that the Canadian Dental Association were not consulted and that the changes also came as a surprise to the insurance carriers who administer the plan. The Medical Services failed to meet or even discuss changes to the dental plan with dentists across the country. The following gives a good example of some calls to the UBCIC: 1. Members of an Indian Band who were invoiced for the amount not covered or paid by insurance and told it is the patient's responsibility. 2. A patient, living off reserve, has terminal illness. This patient requires counselling to deal with the situation. Medical Services wrote to the doctor stating "MSB's mandate in this area is to provide funding for service only as a last resort where other ministries’ mandates or statues do not provide coverage. Services we fund must be crises-oriented and short term; the Branch has no authority to provide funding for on- going support or counselling". 3. A letter from Masset in which the family expressed concern that in order to receive health care, they must reside on a reserve and yet they have been waiting four years to get a house on their reserve. They also have a son with allergies. They state that they feel discriminated against because they cannot receive any benefits from living on the reserve and cannot live on reserve for lack of housing. 4, Copy of a prescription from a clinic which refused to process it after calling MSB for authorization. 5. Copy of statement mailed to family of a student who had a physical examination in order to participate in interscho- lastic athletics at school. 6. Invoice sent to patient, off-reserve, because his medical plan stated that his coverage was cancelled. 7, Many phone calls from people who were embarrassed when they went for dental or medical exams and were told there was cut-backs to their health benefits. The UBCIC received copies of letters from a dental association to Indian bands in Ontario in which they were told that they would have to pay up front with cash, cheques or charge cards. The Assembly of First Nations held several national meetings to address this issue. As of this date, they informed the UBCIC that more cut-backs are pending. Re: Canada Changes Position on Self- Determination and ‘‘Peoples”’ To: Ovide Mercredi, National Chief From: Rolland Pangowish (In Geneva) Date: Oct 31/ 96 1. Canada is now announcing an official change in its position. It will now use the term ‘‘Peopiles’’, both with the respect to the Draft Declaration and in all other respects, including domestic use. 2. Canada will also support ‘‘Self-Determination’’, except it is qualified that it does not entail ‘‘dismemberment’’ of existing states and respects ““territorial integrity’’. Also involves ‘‘negotiations’’ (i.e. ‘‘self-gov’t.). 3. The Draft Final Report of this Session appears to include all the points raised by the Indigenous Caucus regarding equal participation. Next battle will be at the Commission on Human Rights, where states opposed may take moves against. ~ Further updates to follow on Friday. c.c. Perry Belgarde International Instruments Cttee. WINTER 1996  Institute of Indigenous Government Extension Programs The Institute of Indigenous Government is committed to expanding extension and off-campus programming to enhance First Nations’ access to unique education programs in British Columbia, Canada, and around the world. The IIG's goal is to deliver up to 80% of our courses “off-campus” in regional centers and Indigenous communities through the extension program and by innovative distance learning strategies. The Institute of Indigenous Government is the first in Canada to have independent power to grant a one-year Certifi- cate and a two-year Associate of Arts degree in Indigenous Government Studies. A four-year Bachelors of Arts degree is expected to commence within the next 3 years. The JIG's first extension program commenced in the Spring of 1996 at the Saanich Nation Adult Education Center. The extension arrangement enables students from the Saanich Nation to access instruction, student development workshops, and community support while pursuing their post-secondary studies. Elders from the community have enriched the courses through their cultural, social and spiritual guidance to the students and staff. The second extension program started in the Fall of 1996 at Lillooet, B.C. Majority of the students are employed full- time in the community while taking a full day of instruction one day a week. IIG is committed in providing quality programs to communities who are interested in establishing an Extension Program. If you would like more information about the Exten- sion Program, courses, enrollment criteria, transferable, equiva- lency credits or potential locations, contact: Jennie Blankinship, Director of Extension Programs 342 Water Street, Lower Level Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1B6 Phone (604) 602-9555 Fax (60-4) 602-3432 UBCIC Newsletter Deadline If you have any materia! that you would like to see in the next edition of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs News- letter, please forward to our Vancouver office by fax or mail as soon as possible to the attention of "UBCIC NEWSLETTER". We would appreciate the volume of information be kept to a minimum so others can benefit from this service. Please do not fax business cards. Suggestions or comments are always welcome. Next deadline is January 15, 1997. Remember, our new address is 5th Floor - 342 Water Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1B6. Our phone and fax number remain the same. Phone (604) 684-0231 Fax: (604) 684-5726. UBCIC NEWS NEWS FROM THE UBCIC RESOURCE CENTRE Recent special visitors to the Resource Centre include Renae Morisseau, singer/film producer; twenty Chilean professors; a small group of Ainu people from Japan; and First Nation researchers from all over B.C. For researchers, we recently put RG-10 Finding Aids on one of our computer workstations so that these Finding Aids can be keyword searched and we have ordered several new reels of RG-10 film. We have also acquired the reels of film from the Surveyor General of B.C. which hold the Indian reserve survey maps for the province. A new First Nations business magazine is being published out of Vancouver and just came out with its second issue. Twelve issues of First Nations Business can be subscribed to for $45. Subscription requests can be sent to 526 - 119 West Pender, Vancouver V6B 185. Phone (604) 669-5208 FAX 488-1251. The publishers welcome submissions. Everyone who has seen it in our Resource Centre has commented on the professional quality of this new magazine. The final report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples will be out before the end of November. We tried to reserve free copies through the RCAP office but were referred to Canada Communications, the federal government’s publishing office in Ottawa. The cost of the report has not been made public. When the newspaper reports that the publication is available, contact: Canada Communications Group, Publishing Division, Ottawa. Phone: (819) 994-5389 or, if you live near a centre where there is a University or large enough bookstore, they may carry copies. A word of personal advice from the Library staff for those who have important documentation on their computer hard drives...make sure you backup regularly. We experienced the dreaded hard drive “crash” but a magnetic tape backup made on a daily basis saved our information. What might have been a disaster was only a short term inconvenience because we had a full backup for the hard drive. I suspect that we won't get out another issue of the Newsletter before Christmas so the Resource Centre staff want to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Safe and Happy Holiday Season. WINIEK 1996  UBCIC NEWS INDIAN WATER RIGHTS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA aN ie In that same sixty year period the provincial economy a ind any was increasingly dominated by industrial production Teeeto dian water rights , 2 its position. Under in B.C. is the history and commercial agriculture and Indian peoples had gone provincial of the provincial from 70% - £% of British Columbia ‘s population. legislation water rights were government’s refusal © to allot Indian water rights and the government of Canada’s failure to act within its power to assert those nghts. From the 1860s to the 1920s the governments of British Columbia and Canada “‘managed’’ water rights in a manner that effectively negated B.C. Indian Nations’ access to and control of precious water resources. As early as 1859 the Colony of British Columbia had developed a water rights policy of sorts. The policy stipulated that users of water (for the most part gold miners) had to register their right to water with the local magistrate or Gold Commissioner, This served to limit disputes over access to water and maintain order in the gold msh period. Indian water rights did not concern Colonial Administrators; their primary motivation was an orderly exploitation of mineral resources in the ‘“‘Gold Colony’’. In 1871 British Columbia became part of Canada and almost immediately a debate ensued between the province and the federal government regarding the allotment of Indian Reserves. The province insisted that the federal government’s allotment policy was too generous while the federal government claimed that the provincial allocations were too small. The ongoing debate resulted, in 1876, in the formation of a joint federal-provincial body called the Indian Reserve Commission which was empowered to allot Indian reserves in B.C. The Indian Reserve Commissioners allotted many Bands water rights along with land, especially in the interior where assured access to water was crucial to agricultural activities. In 1878 the Indian Reserve Commission approached the province in an attempt to ascertain the legal status of the Commissioner’s water allotments. It received no reply. In 1884 the British Columbia legislature finally articulated its stance when it approved a Land Act that made absolutely no provision for Indian water rights. In December of 1884 B.C.’s Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works told federal officials that individual Indians could apply for water rights under the Land Act like any other British Columbian, but that the Indian Reserve Commissioners ‘‘had not the slightest authority to confer any rights to water upon the Indians’. In 1888 the province amended the Land Act to allow for reserve- based water nights on any unrecorded and unappropriated water applied for under the Act. It is important to note that the amendment still did not accept the earlier rights granted by the Reserve Commissioners; it only stipulated that as of 1888 applications for water nghts coming from Indian Reserves would be considered by the province. While federal officials stated their opposition to provincial policy, they made no effort to force the province, through political pressure or administered by the Water Rights Board of Investigation. The Board decided on the amount of water any applicant would receive based on the amount of water available from a given source and the priority of the application (applicants were given priority on a given water source based on the date of their application). However the Board of Investigation refused to deal in any substantive way with Indian water nghts until 1921 when the province, after forty-plus years, passed the Water Claims Act. The Water Claims Act did not recognize any Indian water claims based on Indian Reserve Commission allotments. Instead the act stipulated that it would utilize lists of Indian water rights submitted by Indian Agents in the 1888-1889 period to make water rights allotments to Indian Bands. These lists usually included the Reserve Commissioner’s water allocations but in many cases errors were made in the transfer of information. Furthermore, the Board of Investigation was not in any way bound by the earlier allocations. The 1888 lists were considered but the Board’s final decision was also based on the status of existing licences, water availability and beneficial use. This often resulted in a significant reduction of the water right initially allotted by the Indian Reserve Commission. From the 1860s to the 1920s, successive colonial and provincial administrations had steadfastly refused to acknowledge Indian peoples right to water resources. In that same sixty year period the provincial economy was increasingly dominated by industrial production and commercial agriculture and Indian peoples had gone from 70% to 4% of British Columbia’s population. In light of these developments the Water Claims Act was criminally inadequate. The federal government's performance was no better. In a period when the Dominion Government was willing to fight constitutional battles on such issues as French language rights in Ontario, New Brunswick and Quebec and control of forests, streams and rivers in Ontario it could not gamer the energy, money or political will to battle British Columbia on the issue of Indian water rights. Even after water licences were finally issued to Indian Bands secure access to water was not assured. Water nghts legislation has never recognized an aboriginal right to water nor has traditional use of water resources ever been a consideration in licensing. This has meant that water licences can be reduced or lost if a Band does not meet the criteria of ‘“beneficial use’’. Beneficial use in this context means water for domestic use or INDIAN WATER RIGHTS (Continued page 7) 6 WINTER 1996  INDIAN WATER RIGHTS (Continued from page 6) for narrowly defined European style agriculture. In the 1930s and 1940s many Indian Bands lost water licences when DIA failed to construct the water works needed to meet beneficial use criteria. Sometimes DIA simply allowed licences to lapse and in other cases licences were lost or reduced if water inspectors judged that Indian Bands did not have enough land under agricultural production to justify the water licence. The history of Indian water rights in B.C. in many ways parallels the history of Indian land in the province. It is the same old story of arrogance and disregard of Indian peoples, their land and their resources. As Chief Saul Terry has previously stated, ‘‘today, as in years past, Indian water nghts mean survival for our people and our future generations’. Understanding the history of Indian water rights will help in protection and extension of Indian water rights in the future. Publications Indian Water Rights in British Columbia, UBCIC (1991). Since Time in Immemorial: Indian Water Rights in British Columbia, Susan Abs, Indian Water Rights Committee (1989). Want to learn more about your Band’s water rights? * The provincial Water Management Branch can provide you with information regarding licences held by your Band. There is a fee for computer time but it is not prohibitively expensive. Telephone (250) 387-5981 * If you believe that the Department of Indian Affairs has not effectively protected your water rights the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Specific Claims Department can research the issue on your behalf at no cost to your Band. Contact UBCIC Specific Claims at (604) 684-0321. What can you do to protect the water rights you now hold? * Learn as much as you can about the provincial water rights process. Knowledge of the system allows for the development of strategies that will help you protect your rights and fight for change. * Designate a contact person at a Band or Tribal Council level to deal with water mghts issues. This person would keep track of existing licences as well as be knowledgeable regarding the history of the Band’s water rights in order to protect those that now exist and attempt to regain those nghts lost. * Ensure that the “‘beneficial use’’ criteria is met. Until such time as the system of licensing is changed the province has within its power the nght to revoke water licences where water use criteria is not met. David Roth, UBCIC Research UBCIC NEWS THE U.N. DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs held their 28th Annual General Assembly on October 23-25, 1996 at which time the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was to be discussed and ratified if necessary. In the meantime, meetings were being held in Geneva, Switzerland by the U.N. Inter-Sessional Working Group on the U.N. Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. After two days of discussions, Indigenous participants agreed to present a proposal to the chairman suggesting that the existing declaration be immediately adopted without changes or amendments. This was ignored by the chairman and States representatives. Several attempts were made to reintroduce the proposal by other Indigenous delegates but were dismissed by the chair. This left no alternative but for the Indigenous delegations to leave the proceedings. They did not want States to dilute or change the Declaration. A message was received at the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Assembly on Oct. 23rd and a letter of support was immediately released to the Indigenous delegates in Geneva. The delegate for the Assembly of First Nations issued an up- date on October 31, 1996 reporting that Canada announced it will how use the term ‘‘peoples’’ and support “‘self-determination’’. However Canada qualified this by requesting development of a common understanding, consistent with evolving international law, of how this right is to apply to indigenous collectivities, and what the content of this right includes. Canada stated further that the nght shall not be construed as authorizing or encouraging any action which would dismember or impair, totally or in part, the territorial integrity or political unity of sovereign and independent States. Canada’s position to the Inter-Sessional Working Group is that self-government be based on negotiated agreements and that their jurisdiction and authonity are exercised in harmony with those of other governments. While Canada claims that it is sensitive to the importance of collective nights and responsibilities in indigenous societies, Article 34 which addresses this issue, could be interpreted as subordinating the nghts of the individual to those of the collectively. It is important for the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs to adopt the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in order to maintain international ties between Indigenous Nations against States Governments who continue fo allow destruction to the lands, resources and way of life AFN PRESS RELEASE (Continued from page 3) The Confederacy meeting, which will be attended by over 100 aboriginal leaders from across Canada, will review the royal commission report. A special press conference will be held on that day to provide an in-depth response to specific recommen- dations contained in the report. For additional information please contact Jean LaRose at (613) 241-6789, ext. 251 WINTER 1996  UBCIC NEWS LEGAL UPDATE Opetchesaht Appeal: Supreme Court of Canada The sole issue which the Court must decide is whether a Section 28(2) permit is valid if it is worded so as to allow fora third party to use reserve land for as long as the land is needed for a stated purpose. Before the court in Opeichesaht was a permit to B.C. hydro which was issued by the Minister with the consent of Chief and Council to run for as long as Hydro needed the land for a transmission line. The case argued on behalf of the Opetchesaht Band, and on behalf of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs member bands was that such a permit is null and void because it does not state clearly a reasonable and definable time for the permit to end. As worded, the permit grants an indefinite interest in reserve land to a third party. This kind of interest, we argued, can only be granted through the surrender provisions of the Indian Act. Counsel for the Opetchesaht Band, also argued that such an interest in reserve land may be validity taken through the expropriation provisions, but on behalf of the UBCIC, I did not joint this argument. We argued that because the permit was bad from the beginning, the hydro line is in trespass. This situation could only be remedied through renegotiation of a s.28(1) permit with a fixed term, or by the company acquiring the land through a valid surrender. Should neither events occur, the company would be required to remove their lines, and relocate them off the reserve. Against us was Canada, B.C. Hydro, and a coalition of other utility companies, all of who hold Section 28(2) permits to usé land on Indian reserves. The UBCIC intervention raised a number of points which the court clearly listened to. Our main points were these: - Ata time when the permit was entered into 37 years ago, no one knew at that time, nor does anyone know today, when the permit would end. (Mr. Justice Cory put the question directly to Canada as well as to B.C. Hydro whether they could say when the permit would be terminated, and neither could say.) - The word "period" within the meaning Section 28(2) must mean a passage of time with a fixed termination point, and not a period of time which is never ending. B.C. Hydro's permit amounted to an alienation of an interest in reserve land. This kind of alienation could only be affected by a surrender. This is so, because as a matter of common jaw and statute, it is Band members who hold a collective interest in the reserve. Chief and Council is not the owner, and has no power by themselves to alienate an interest in reserve. Since as far back as the Royal Proclamation of 1763, and reflected in the /ndian Act, the surrender provisions have been provided the process for Band members to consent to the alienation of their collective interest. The surrender provisions are conspicuously fair. Chief and Council does not have the authority to inde- pendently give consent on behalf of the Band to alienate an interest in reserve land. Chief and Council's authority is circumscribed by the collective interest of the Band members in reserve land, a well as Crown fiduciary obligations which are embedded in the surrender provisions. B.C. Hydro and Canada argued that it is beneficial for Indian people that the court interpret Chief and Councils power broadly, so as to permit Chief and Council to consent to such an alienation. In reply , we pointed out the hollowness of this position by reference to the permit in issue. The Band averaged $3 per acre per year if the permit was to terminate immediately. How can this interpretation of the Jndian Act be for aboriginal people's be good? Finally, we addressed Canada and B.C. Hydro's concern that the Court ruling against them would be prohibitively costly. We pointed out that aboriginal people get nothing from the permits, and there is no way to renegotiate the permits based on the changed circumstances which will have occurred with the passage of time. We were left with the impression that the court would not be taking a great deal of time to render a decision. INDIAN ACT AMENDMENTS This year, the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs made a commitment to proceed with his initiatives to amending the Indian Act. Through the summer, Indian leaders met nationally and submitted a resolution to the Minister of Indian Affairs demanding to halt his amendment process. The majority of Indian people did not know of the amendments as consultation with them had not taken place. There is no doubt that the Indian Act requires changes but options that are Indian driven must be considered by the people. Our options encompasses our goals towards self- determination through the recognition of our Aboriginal Title and Rights. Meetings were held between Department of Indian Affairs officials and the Chiefs Committee on Enforcement of the First Nations-Crown Relationship. Ata second meeting on November 22, 1996 in Ottawa, the Chiefs were told that the Minister of Indian Affairs had every intention of going ahead withthe amendments. There are up to 60 proposed amendments and are very dangerous to the aboriginal and treaty nights of our Peoples. On November 26, 1996 the Confederacy of Nations (A.F.N.) passed a resolution calling for the dismissal of the Minister of Indian Affairs because he is not listening to our message. The resolution expressed the Indian leadership’s lack of confidence in the Minister. The relationship between the Federal Government and the Indian Nations has been driven further apart by the actions of this Minister. This Liberal government must support the directions and goals of Indian Peoples. WINTER 1996  UBCIC NEWS TREATY 8 TRIBAL ASSOCIATION Cantor Mistaking Notification for Consulstion Say Treaty & Chiefs for immediate release November 28, 1996 -- In the wake of yesterday's confronta- tion between Natives and Canfor northwest of Fort St. John, at which Treaty 8 First Nations stopped a logging crew from pro- ceeding into an area claimed by them, Tribal Chief Judy Maas declared the renewed determination of the Halfway River First Nation to stop the planned cutting. “We're not going to give up, and we're not going to go away,” she said. "We have nowhere to go; this is our home." According to recent press reports, Canfor explained they only want to cut based on the permit the Ministry of Forests issued to them, and felt the Halfway River First Nation had been ad- equately consulted. To this, Maas answered, "Canfor and the Minstry of Forests seem to be mistaking ‘notification’ for ‘consulta- tion.” "I have a stack of letters to the Ministry of Forests and to Canfor protesting the planned logging in this small area. For two years now, we have been telling them this place is vital to the continued exercise of our treaty and aboriginal rights, and for two years they have been ignoring or dismissing us." Maas said that if people were looking for someone to blame the confrontation on, they need look no furner than the Ministry of Forests, "They issued the permut illegally, over our objections, so what did they expect?" Maas also sought to allay concerns the public may have about the economic impact of the protest, "People have expressed concern that our opposition to a couple of cutting permits will cost jobs. What they don't understand is that these permits constitute only 3.4% of Canfor's five yeare plan in the Fort St. John Forest District alone, and only a fraction of 1% of their overall timber supply.” Maas said Canfor could easily get replacement cut blocks in less sensitive areas if they wanted to. Regardless, she felt that the costs to the Halfway River Native people would be far greater than to Canfor’s profit margin. “It's only a freaction of 1% to Canfor, but it's everything to us. This patch of land is our grocery store, our bank, our drug store, and our home.” "I find the Ministry of Forests! and Canfor management's insensitivity and callous disregard for Native people just obscene," she said. Maas constrasted the insensitivity of Foresty and Canfor management to the respectful way in which Canfor employees treated the Native people at the blockade. "When we explained our position, and why we could not allow them to pass, the Canfor workers shook hands with us in mutual respect and understanding that each of us was doing what we had to." Halfway River First Nation Chief Bemmie Metecheah hoped for similar understanding from the public. "People have to understand we don't protest every cutting permit. We're only interested in sustainable, environmentally responsible development which respects our rights and special ties to our land." Metecheah pointed out that his band's membership enjoyed constitutionally protected righrts to the land Canfor wants to log out, and that those Tights become meaningless if the land is destroyed. “We don't want complete moratoriums, only a little resepect." Metecheah also asked the public to re-consider their stereotypes of Indians and Indian blockades. “People think First Nations are 'anti-development.' The opposite is true. Native people have as much stake in the local economy as anyone else; perhaps even more because we are in Northern B.C. to stay." Metecheah added that, while a healthy economy is important, “because of our spiritual and cultural ties to this land, we're also worried about the sustainability of our economy. When the last tree is gone, and the last stream is polluted, we can't just retire and move to Florida." "Don't underestimate our determination to see this out,” he concluded. Contact: Tribal Chief Judy Maas, Treay 8 Tribal Association (250) 785-0612 Chief Bernie Metecheah, Halfway River First Nation (250) 772-5058 JOB POSTING Joint Policy Council Technician The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs requires a full-time Technician Coordinator to work with the Chiefs Council in the on-going development of the Joint Policy Council (JPC). Established in 1993 by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs and the Province of British Columbia, the purpose of the JPC is to identify a range of issues that require resolution through mutual development of policies which do not derogate from the bilateral nation-to-nation relationship between Indian Nations and the Government of Canada and to improve the social, economic and cultural life of the Indian Nations in British Columbia. Responsibilities: - to recommend agenda items to the UBCIC Chiefs Council; - to undertake technical analysis, research and development activities to further the objectives of the Joint Policy Council; - to prepare issue memoranda on specific agenda items as directed by the Chiefs Council; - to prepare options and set our recommendations for the resolution of policy issues between the Parties; - to establish and corrdinate small working committees as required; - to monitor on-going provincial policies affecting First Nations. Qualifications: Must have: - University degree and experience in political science and history, - highly developed analytical, research and communication skills with the ability to draft background documents, option reports/proposals and memoranda as required; - sound knowledge of Indian governments, goals of the UBCIC and the principles of the Aboriginal Title and Rights position. Closing Date: December 20, 1996 Mail/Fax Resumes to: Salary: Negotiable Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Halie Bruce, Administrative Assistant 5® Floor, 342 Water Street Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1B6 Fax: (604) 684-5726 WINTER 1996  UBCIC NEWS Indian Homemakers Association of B.C. Traditional Parenting Skills Program “WELCOME FIRST NATIONS WOMEN" Developing Positive Indian Parenting Skills Through: Personsal Development - Family Roots, Co-dependency, Talking Circle, Self Worth, Self Esteem. Life Skills - Anger Management, Family Violence, Problem Solving, Communication, Budgeting, Nutrition. Parenting Skills - Family History, Family Roles, Parent/Child Relationships, Early Childhood Education. Cultural Awareness - Native Spirituality, Beliefs/Values, Physical Fitness (Sing/Dance), Sewing, Honouring Our Chil- dren, Basic Native Concepts/Teachings/Principles. Next Session Starts: January 6, 1997. Deadline for Applications: January 13, 1997 Interviews: January 6-8, 1997 12 weeks, Monday through Thursday, 9:30 am - 2:30 pm, Fridays: preparations For more information contact Ellen Antoine or Margaret Harris at (604) 876-0944. AMBUSHED The Legal Services Society Board made a decision to discontinue their funding to one of our Aboriginal organizations, The Vancouver Aboriginal Justice Center Society. The Justice Center had provided legal advice and services to Aboriginal people in need since 1994. The Center primarily serves the Lower Mainland’s Aboriginal population of over 100,000, as well as Aboriginal people from across the country. This unique Aboriginal Organization is the only Aboriginal-specific service of its kind in the lower mainland. Our Brother and Sisters need your help at this time. We are the most over represented people in the Canadian Justice system and services like the Justice Center can help alleviate this huge problem. We cannot allow this necessary service be lost to bureaucratic red tape. The Aboriginal Justice Center needs your support! We are circulation a petition for all concerned people to sign. Please sign it when you see it! Any /effers of support would be greatly appreciated (please direct letters to the Board of the Aboriginal Justice Center Society, /9/ Alexander Street, Vancouver, B.C.,V6A 1N3. Please show your support! If you have and questions or comments, please call us at the above phone and fax numbers! Aboriginal Justice Center Society, Tel: (604) 684-2121 Fax: (604) 684-2177 CITY-WIDE SHELL BOYCOTT TODAY! Local activists to demonstrate at 8 Vancouver Shell stations and counting... VANCOUVER-Today, Friday, November 8th between 4:15- 6:00 pm, there will be protests at eight Shell stations in the Vancouver area. Demonostraters are protesting against the role of Sheil in the murders of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni activists almost one year to the day they were hanged. The central location will be the Shell! station at BURRARD and DAVIE where members of the Ogoni Solidarity Network will be making a statement to the media. There will also be major protest to the following stations: Broadway and Arbutus 41st and Granville King Edward and Oak Main and 12th Main and 2nd Victona and Hastings #3 Road and Granville (Richmond) Boycott participants will include high school, college and university students, human rights worker, environmentalists, union activists and many other concerned individuals throughout Vancouver. Sheli Canada denies responsibility for the environmental crimes and human rights atrocities in Nigeria, despite the fact the it is a majority-owned by Shell International. However, according to Dr. Owens Wiwa, the brother of the late Ken Saro-Wiwa, ““The name of Shell is Shell. If Shell Canada does not like what their parent company is doing, then they should make that very public and then change their name. It’s simple”’ For more information, contact: The Ogoni Solidarity Network grassroots action to save Ogoniland Tel: 873-8554 * Fax: 872-0709 10 WINTER 1996  URGENT TO ALL CHIEFS AND COUNCILS AND ALL INDIAN BANDS IN THE PROVINCE OF B.C. On September 4th, 1996, Ann Williams, an elder, of the Pauquachin Band suffered an immeasurable loss when her home and all of a her personal belongings were destroyed by fire, To this day her home still sits as it was left the night of the tragedy with no windows, holes in the roof. Ann would like to return to her home for the remaining years of her life but the money required to repair it for her has not arrived. It is the beginning of winter and unless the house is repaired now the Tain will destroy what is left of the structure and her memories of the happy times she has spent there with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Ann’s family is giving assistance to their mother through this stressful time by giving donations for the repair of her home. If you can help in anyway please contact: Tammy Williams @ (604) 655-9310 Assembly of First Nations NATIONAL YOUTH CONFERENCE FEBRUARY 9-11, 1997 World Trade and Convention Centre Halifax, Nova Scotia ESSAY CONTEST - YOUTH ISSUES The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) has a limited amount of funds available to sponsor delegates to the National Youth Conference. If you, or someone you know, would like to take advantage of this opportunity, please read the criteria below and forward the required information to the AFN. Criteria: The ideal candidates should: - be between the ages of 14-25 (if under 18, must be accompa- nied by an adult); - submit a brief biography - submit a one page essay on what they feel are the current First Nations youth issues and how these issues could be addressed; a - be willing and able to speak in workshops and plenary sessions on the issues that are important to them and their communities. Candidates can submit the information on or before December 16, 1996 in order to be considered for sponsorship. Sponsorship includes travel, accommodation and per diem. Please send submissions to: Christian Garrow, Youth Coordina- tor, Assembly of First Nations, 1 Nicholas Street, 10th Floor, Ottawa ~ Ontario, K1N 7B7 or fax to (613) 241-5808. For more information, please contact Carolyn Hunter and Penny Jacko at the AFN, (613) 241-6789, UBCIC NEWS NATIVE SISTERHOOD Burnaby Correctional Center for Women August 8th, 1996 To: Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs I am writing on behalf of the Native Sisterhood at the Burnaby Correctional Center for Women. A women who is imprisoned feels hurt, angry, mentally and spiritually lost, without family and friends. The Native Sisterhood would like to offer assurance that the Sisterhood of native prisoners are strong and supportive. We want to keep our sisters together, not only native, all nationalities are welcome to participate. We would appreciate, money, fabric for dresses, blankets and ceremonial items, leather scraps, big and small beads, nylon thread, wax for thread, big and small plastic hoops for dreamcatchers. Small hoops, Shepard hooks and other materials for making earrings. We aiso need short and long beading needles, sewing needles, wool, latch hook kits and cotton batting for blankets. Things like new cloths, cologne, hand soaps, shampoo, etc., are needed as raffle prizes. We are also asking for things we need for the sisterhood get together such as: A sewing machine, a cassette player, a television, a V.C.R. , a party size coffee maker, an instimatic cameras, and a microwave. Your donation would help us women work together and get to know each other better, this is the reason we want to make the sisterhood strong. With God’s help and your donations we can do it. On behalf of the Sisters, God Bless you and thank-you very much. Could you please address all donations to Marcia Monk, Native Sisterhood, 7900 Fraser park drive Burnaby B.C, V5J- 5B9 All my relations Marcia Monk, President Native Sisterhood ABORIGTAL RIGHTS: RUOW them- EXERCISE them- DEFEND them! Seasons Greetings WINTER 1996 11  UBCIC NEWS THE HEILTSUK NATION PRESENTS: "OQATUWAS ~ PEOPLE GATHERING TOGETHER" (Film Premier January 11, 1996) ( J atuwas - People Gathering Together ™q__ is the new feature documentary by award - winning ‘Namgis First Nations director Barb Cramner that records a remarkable journey of strength, spirit, ae and cultural revitalization among northwest coastal Native communi- ties. The public is invited to the premier screening of Qatuwas - People Gathering Together, Saturday, January, 11th at 8 p.m., at the Squamish Nation Recreation Centre, 100 Capilano Road in North Vancouver. Tickets are $8-6$ at the door, children under 12 admitted free. Vibrant songs, dances, and ceremonies will be shared through the evening, as representatives from many First Nations join in celebrating this new film. For some 10,000 years, the ocean-going canoe has served as both practical vessel, and powerful cultural symbol for the First Nations peoples of the Pacific northwest coast. But in the 200 years since European contact, the canoe significance has been gradually displaced. Until recently, that is, when twenty-one tribal groups from British Columbia and Washington answered the Heiltsuk people's challenge to build great cedar canoes and prepare crews to paddle to a traditional canoe and cultural gathering in Belia Bella. Qatuwas- People Gathering Together is the inspiring story of the remarkable resurgence of community, spirituality, and custom that has accompa- nied this event. Communities worked together for four years to carve new canoes, and train paddlers. Three thousand people gathered on the shores of Bella Bella to welcome the communities that had paddled up to a month and 600 miles to get there. It has been a journey that has connected participants with their nations and their ancestors in deeply affirming ways. Director Barb Cranmer shows great sensitivity in bringing together the voices and different experi- ences of the canoe-communities and crews who've made this journey. She notes that, "As a filmmaker, I serve as the messenger. It is essential that our own people tell our own stories. This documentary is both a reflection on how far we've come, and a celebration of the hope that Qatuwas means for our communities.” Cranmer's previous film Laxwesa wa-Strength of the River was also well-received by audiences last year. Co-producer Frank Brown, of the Heiltsuk Nation, has been an aspiring force for the resurgence of the canoe societies. The Voyage of Re-Discovery ; Msispie aia within our own communities. The canoe is a ‘video documented the canoe voyages Brown led to Expo '86 and the Seattle Centennial in 1989 which led up to the historic Qatuwas gathering. He emphasizes that, “Qatuwas - People Gathering Together docu- yi ments an important new chapter in the continu- ing story of our peoples. It shows a living example of positive solutions coming from powerful symbol of our healing journey. It is a vessel for coastal community empowerment. First Nations have a very strong message to give to the rest of the world: how to live sustainabley. We had 10,000 years of continuous habitation within our territory to demonstrate this point." Ticket Reservations please call 940-0145 or 430-8424. Event information: Frank Brown at 604-957-2774 or the Heiltsuk Tribal Council Office at 604-957-2381. Fax 957-2544 Media: to arrange interviews, photos, video, copies, please call Teresa at 604-666-3838. 8TH Annual North American Native Arts:agd Crafts Fair Decemberf#i & 22, 1996 10:00 g.age - 7:00 p.m. Aborigifial#’ fiendship Center ast Hastings ARTS DISPLAYS £ LAS ING DEMONSTRATION MAKE YOUR’OWN, DREAMCATCHER CULT eag ogbcepreroemeer POrTeY REA aap “TEMPORARY rr Vay: LS Si WT Wayne Lavalee Spi me lum Dancers & More HOOP JANC} EXHIBITIONS MEDICINE, WHEEL{WORKSHOPS WINTER Si jest acy CEREMONY SATUR (ORNING ADMISSION: $18@SENFORS / KIDS FREE ARTISTS ABE TABLES $40.00 PER 00 PRE-PAID Sponsored by the F ginal Expressions CALL KAT (664) 253-1020 12 WINTER 1996  UBCIC NEWS The David Suzuki Foundation (Vancouver, October 24, 1996 - for immediate release) Salmon Farming Industry Threatens B.C.'s Wildlife Fish Stocks / pen netcages, unregulated drug use, and imported Atlantic salmon eggs threaten wild fish stocks, according to a David Suzuki Foundation report released today. "The way it operates today, B.C.'s salmon netcage industry threatens the survival of fragile wild fish stocks, such as the Fraser River salmon, and may even put human health at risk. To manage these hazards we must immedi- ately stop importing Atlantic salmon eggs, monitor drug use, and change the open fish cages, which release sewage and diseases, into closed pens,” says the Foundation's Executive Director Jim Fulton. The Suzuki Foundation says B.C. industry stands in sharp contrast to the sound practices followed in 85% of the world's fish farming, which is carried out on land and closely tied to agriculture. Fish wastes in Asia are used as crop fertilizer, but in B.C. become sewage. “The unsurpassed wild environ- ment along the B.C. coast supports a multi-billion dollar commercial and sport fishery and tourism business. It is the foundation of Native culture, and it provides a home and recreation for hundreds of thousands of people. We appreciate the jobs salmon farming can bring. But this study tells us we stand to lose far more that we gain. We need to set this industry on a course which helps us, not hurts us,” explained Fulton. The major risk is that wild fish could be decimated by the spread of virulent diseases. The problem starts with the netcage system itself. These cages float in the ocean, and are filled with high densities of farm fish. The jammed and stressful conditions of the netcages mean they can become breeding grounds for disease epidemics. The use of fish grown from imported Atlantic salmon eggs compounds this danger. Atlantic salmon are preferred by the industry because they grow more rapidly, and they are more docile. The trouble is, the imported fish can bring new diseases with them which can spread like wildfire among our native fish. To combat these threats, the industry injects fish with drugs and regularly mixes drugs with the feed. These measures don't always work. In Norway the industry uses similar netcage systems to those in B.C. There, eggs imported from Scotland brought epidemics of such diseases as furunculosis, which spread rapidly among wild fish which had little resist- ance to the new pathogens. In fruitless efforts to control the spread of disease, the Norwegian government spent, in one instance, $100 million of taxpayer's funds. In an earlier attempt to eradicate an epidemic, the government completely poisoned 20 rivers. The fundamental problem is that the netcages are open to the ocean environment. Escapes of farm fish are inevitable, leading to generic and other harmful interactions with wild fish. Sewage from fish feces and other wastes builds up in the areas around the hetcages, sewage which contain disease pathogens and drugs. In total the sewage is equivalent to the amount produced by a half million people. This refuse is deposited right in the food chain along the B.C. coast to be picked up by fish such as black cod, herring and salmon. Eight disease outbreaks have already occurred, and many scientists report that a large-scale epidemic will eventually happen among both wild an farmed fish. The netcages are typically located in sheltered bays such as Clayoquote Sound, areas with rich marine life. Close to fifty of the cages are found among the islands and bays along Johnstone Straight, right in the path of the most Fraser River spawning salmon. "At least 140 distinct salmon stocks in B.C. are already extinct. To help rebuild salmon stocks, commercial, native and sport fishermen made big sacrifices this year. We need to make sure this sacrifice is not in vain,” says Fulton The netcage industry's use of drugs has been targeted by the Founda- tion because of its possible effects on human health. The repeated us of drugs to hold the fish diseases at bay has already led to diseases fully resistant to three types of antibiotics. This cavalier and largely unregulated overuse of drugs concems scientists because it reduces the pool of antibiotics available for human medicine. The drugs also leave residues in the fish and shellfish in the areas around the net cages which are used for food by local communities, particularly First Nations. There is no government monitoring of these health effects, or those on fish farm workers who are frequently exposed to antibiotics and other drugs. The David Suzuki Foundation makes 12 recommendations. They include using: - only native salmon - closed containment systems which fully treat sewage and prevent contact with wild fish - mandatory industry insurance covering full ecological restoration of catastrophic events - government monitoring of drug use and the spread of drug-resistant diseases. The foundation is submitting its report to the Salmon Aquaculture Review which is currently being con- ducted by B.C.’s Environmental Assess- ment Office. Contact: David Hocking Communications Director (604) 732-4228 WINILR 1996 13  UBCIC NEWS UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS SUBSCRIPTION FORM NAME: FOR OFFICE USE ONLY ADDRESS: DATE RECEIVED: CHEQIN.O. # EXPIRY DATE: PROVINCE/STATE: POSTAL/ZIP CODE: 1 YEAR SUBSCRIPTION NLETTER INDIVIDUALS: $35.00 NCLIPPING MEMBER BANDS: $75.00 INDIVIDUALS: $100.00 TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED 3 Please make cheque or money order payable to: UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS, STH FLOOR - 342 WATER STREET, VANCOUVER, B.C., V6B 1A1 om - CHIEFSMASKBOOKS TORE BOOKS ARTS & CRAFTS - FIRST NATIONS G Al | ERY - JEWELLY (GOLD AND SILVER) - ABORIGINAL ISSUES - POTTERY - INTERNATIONAL INDIGENOUS - PRINTS - LAND CLAIMS - T-SHIRTS - LAW - LEATHERWORK - ART - MASKS - CHILDREN'S BOOKS - BEADWORK - TEACHING AIDS - TRADITIONAL MUSIC - POETRY CALL, WRITE OR - AND MUCH MORE! DROP IN TODAY! CONSIGNMENT ITEMS ACCEPTED Owned and operated by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs - Sth Floor 342 Water Street in Gastown (604) 684-0231 14 WINTER 1996