Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Newsletter (May 1997)

1.06-01.08 Union of BC Indian Chiefs Newsletter

1.06.-01 Newsletters and bulletins sub-series

May 1997

english

1.06-01.08-08.02

16

IN THIS ISSUE...

2. President's Message

3. Penticton Indian Band

4. Press Conference with
Ovide Mecredi

5. Specific Claims Update

6. B.C. Native Women's -
Society

7. MEP condemns BC
Forestry Practices

8. Resource Center Update

9. 12 Annual International
Pow-Wow

10. National Day of Action

12. Irwin Announces
Retirement

13. Insitutute of Indigenous
Government

14. UBCIC Mailbox

Chief Saul Terry

David Hunt

Robert Burr

Carmen-Anne Menegozzo

periodical

Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs NEWSLETTER MAY1997 Chiefs Announce "Voice of the Peoples" gathering commerating anniversary of Mohawk Crisis. On July 11 & 12,1997, the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, Stl'atVimx Nation and Cayoose Creek Indian Band w co-host the "Voice of the Peoples" gathering in Cayoose Creek,B.C. This year, Chiefs Council being. Therefore, they directed of the U n i o n of B . C . Indian Chiefs decided that the citizens in every community must have the opportunity to express their concerns on the issues affecting their well- IN THIS ISSUE... 2. President's Message 3. Penticton Indian Band 4. Press Conference with Ovide Mecredi 5. Specific Claims Update 6. B.C. Native Women's Society 7. MEP condemns BC Forestry Practices 8. Resource Center Update 9. 12 Annual International Pow-Wow 10. National Day of Action 12. Irwin Announces Retirement 13. Insitutute of Indigenous Government 14. UBCIC Mailbox MAY 1997 the U.B.C.I.C. to help facilitate a Gathering on July 11 & 12, 1997 at the Cayoose Creek Camp Grounds, home of the Stl'atl'imx Nation in Lillooet, B.C. The discussions and decisions must come from the people, therefore, communities will be asked to help organize the event. Federal Government's strategies to undermine the inherent rights of Indian people is being conducted without adequate communication with citizens of Indian nations. Politically in British Columbia, decisions are being made to force Indian Bands into selfgovernment agreements which will extinguish the Aboriginal Title and Rights and assimilate bands into mainstream Canadian society. How many people understand that well enough to agree to this process? This is one reason why we must gather together to become informed and develop plans of action to solve this problem i f we hope to contain our political rights as Indian nations into the future. It is time to be heard and as Nations of people find ways to defend and protect our lands and resources. The "Voice of the Peoples" will bring many people into a political action to express major concerns of the communities. The challenge is for Chiefs and Council and their people to take up the call for political action by holding information meetings before the Gathering and develop short and l o n g term goals on Aboriginal Title and Rights. Our past Elders, Political Leaders, Spiritual Leaders and Peoples had visions for Indian Government all over the North and South American continent - it is up to us to reaffirm our responsibility to care for and protect the land and build on the dreams they left for us to fulfill. We want the reservations to r e m a i n h o l i s t i c a n d productive but how can that remain intact in negotiating coexistence with the Canadian people? We want communities that are clean, safe, wholesome and provide opportunities for the families but the social ills appear to overpower any meaningful efforts we put into health and education services. There are a hundred and one organizations existing just on land claims and they interfere w i t h the a f f a i r s o f the communities. This type of interference confuses people and affects good decisions that have to be made. We cannot ask the citizens of Indian nations to join i n this Gathering just to talk - it is time for action. As Chiefs we are prepared to listen. Joint Policy Council What is it and what can it do for you? p. 7 Nuxalk Nation steal back timber, p. 8 Ahousaht Takes Aim at Illegal Fish Farm. p. 9 Seton Lake Indian Band Applies the Brakes to the "Budd Car" p.11 21st Annual Provincial Elders Conference' 97 p. 13 1 UBCIC NEWS Message From the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Submission on The Indian Act Optional Modification Act (Bill C-79) to Standing Committee On Aboriginal Affairs & Northern Development - Vancouver, B.C. March 11, 1997. President « Chief Saul Terry, X'wisten G ood evening Committee Members of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs. I am permitting myself to be transmitted to you via this rather impersonal i f not depersonalizing video teleconference technology. Permit me to introduce myself. I have been elected to the Council of my community for the last twenty-four years. Between 1978 and 19831 was elected Vice President of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs. The Chiefs, my colleagues, have honored me to be their President in the last fourteen years. I cite these facts not to brag but to illustrate that I have witnessed many politicians from your institutions come and go without addressing the issues that plague our Peoples between your elections. I am here, this day, to reiterate that there is a better way than B i l l C-79 to improve Indian/Canada relations. Some of those ideas are touched upon in the Assembly of First Nations' presentation by National Chief Ovide Mercredi. Therefor I want it put on record for you as the Committee on Aboriginal Affairs, for the Prime Minister, the Honorable John Chretien, for my fellow Chiefs and especially for the Peoples i n our territories that the Union of B. C. Indian Chiefs concur with the message the Assembly of First Nations presented to you on March 6, 1997. On another occasion I appeared before the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs on behalf of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs i n March 1991 because I felt strongly about the state of siege over our people in Indian country. That year I was heartened to witness actions taken by the Mohawk peoples in defending their territory and at that time I said to Committee Members: time and again we as Chiefs have to call your attention to the crisis situations facing our people in Canada. I am sorry to say that little has changed in the past few years. I also looked at the Discussion Notes on the Indian Act produced by the Department ofIndian&Northern Affairs in 1971 in which they state that "The Indian Act represents special legislation taking precedence over provincial legislation which the Parliament of Canada considers is essential to the needs of the Indian people not only as a safeguard to protect their treaty and property rights, but as a means of promoting their advancement.'' If indeed Parliament terms the Indian Act as special legislation it must be for good reason. That reason stems from Indian-Crown relations, a special relationship out of which arises lawful obligations for the Government of Canada respecting Indian Nations. It is wrong for any Minister to make changes to this special legislation for political expediency unless our people are fully informed and 2 "The people of Canada andpur citizens in our homelands must know the true source of their political disempowerment, social dispair,poverty andspiritual disillusionment" through our collective free will give our consent. After all, there are Treaties and the Trust obligation which must be lived up to by both parties- your government and our governments. It is hard to believe that any Minister placed in a position of honor and trust would deliberately try to lead our people down a path riddled with mine fields targeting our Aboriginal and Treaty Rights. The Minister's unilateral action compounds the mistrust and uncertainty which now exist in our communities. I can say with confidence that the deliberate sequence has led us to this day and which one again prompts me to sound the alarm to protect the Aboriginal Title and Rights of the people. The people of Canada and our citizens i n our homelands must know the true source of their political disempowerment, social dispair, poverty and spiritual disillusionment. For your information, in 1986 the Auditor-General criticized the Department of Indian Affairs' land management program. What created the problem we are having now is the fact that the Department decided to change the way they do business with Indian Bands to avoid possible litigation from First Nations because of the Guerin Decision. The fact is the Department sought input from Chiefs to improve on the land management program and Chiefs responded because we know this issue well. But this was not good enough for the Department who instead added a whole range of studies under the "Lands, Revenues and Trust Review.'' Millions of dollars were spent (41,000,000 in our estimation) on that process and in the end all of it was shelved except for the Chartered Land Management Proposal, Indian Gas and Oil and Monies. These proposals have been worked and reworded because our Chiefs would not endorse them. It is now called the' 'Optional Land Management Proposal For Specific First Nations'' or Bill C 75. It is geared towards just 13 Indian Bands. It played a large part MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT (Continued on page 3) MAY 1997 UBCIC NEWS Penticton Indian Band Press Statement April 17, 1997 - Elders and members of the Penticton Indian Band, at a community meeting last night, directed the Penticton Indian Band Council to issue a public statement to the effect that: " A s a direct result of Fraser Martin's threat to sue the Penticton Indian Band or either of the Similkameen Bands if the Bands acquire an interest in the Apex Ski Resort; the Penticton Indian Band has abruptly abandoned its efforts to seek a peaceful resolution of the Apex Ski Resort by way of entering into a joint-venture arrangement with one of the six investor groups who have indicated an interest in acquiring the ski resort. In addition, the Penticton Indian Band takes this opportunity to serve notice that its membership shall actively renew their commitment and efforts to fully protect the environment within the Apex Ski Resort area." The Penticton Indian Band finds these current circumstances to be extremely regrettable. We, like the six investor groups have invested a great deal of time, effort and expense in our attempts to negotiate a joint-venture arrangement that would allow for the long-term operation and stability of the Apex Ski Resort. Further, we would like to remind all parties that we have made every effort to seek a peaceful resolution to this longstanding dispute. At the outset, we negotiated and signed, in good faith, the Initial Agreement which contained the necessary provisions to settle the Apex Ski Resort/Penticton Indian Band dispute. The Initial agreement was signed by three Provincial Government Cabinet Ministers. On August 30, 1995 the Province "breached" the Initial Agreement and "walked away" from the Initial Agreement. Subsequent to court proceedings and the imposition of an injunction directing members of the PIB to refrain from impeding traffic on Green Mountain Rd., the members of the PIB have respected the court injunction. Finally, in an act of "good-will" the Penticton Indian Band allowed the Province to repair and pave Green Mountain Road last October in return for the Provinces commitment to undertake a full scale environmental assessment of the Seven Peaks area. To date, no such commitment has been made by the province. Again, the Penticton Indian Band finds it extremely regrettable that, in spite of our best efforts to avoid further conflict, the irresponsible and selfish actions of one individual and the continued bungling of the Provincial government, the entire economy of the South Okanagan has been placed in jeopardy Chief Stewart Phillip, Okanagan Nation (250) 493-3924 /490-5166 MAY1997 MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT (Continued from page 2) in prompting the Minister to amending the Indian Act. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs opposes any attempt by the Canadian Government to diminish the unceded land base of our Peoples. We have suggested a Treaty with Canada on a Nation to Nation basis which promises long Political, Social and Economic benefits for our Peoples. The problem we have with the present process is that the trust relationship we have with the Crown is being changed arbitrarily. The Minister is refusing to hear the options we have. In conclusion, the approach Minister Irwin has taken raises many serious socio-economic questions. It is a grave understatement to allude to the Optional Modification Act changes as cosmetic or superficial. If allowed to proceed they shall profoundly continue to affect our Peoples 'Political, Social, Economic, Cultural and Spiritual existence. ± Penticton Indian Band PRESS R E L E A S E March 4, 1997—Today, the Westbank First nation held negotiations with the Federal and Provincial government officials with respect to Westbank Indian Band's involvement in the British Columbia Treaty Commission (BCTC) Process. Penticton Indian Band Councillors Joan Phillip and Pierre Kruger attended this meeting and formally registered the Penticton Indian Band's opposition to the Westbank First Nation's involvement in the B.C. Treaty Commission process, for the following reasons: 1. That the Okanagan Traditional Territory is indivisible. No single community such as Westbank First Nation, has the right to negotiate a portion of Okanagan Territory; 2. Further that, the Westbank First nation requires the consent of the remaining six (6) Okanagan Nation communities, as follows: Okanagan Indian Band, Penticton Indian Band, Osoyoos Indian Band, Upper Similkameen Indian Band, Lower Similkameen Indian Band, Upper Nicola Indian Band. Under no circumstances will the Penticton Indian Band allow this fraudulent process to continue. If the Westbank First Nation continues to pursue this fraudulent Treaty process, the Penticton Indian Band shall be forced to sue the Federal Government, the P r o v i n c e of B . C . , the B . C . Treaty Commission, and the Westbank First Nation. -30Contact: Councillor Joan Phillip (250) 493-3924 or (250) 493-0048 3 UBCIC NEWS Press Conference with Ovide Mecredi of Assembly of First Nations - April 18, 1997 It's quite obvious to me and will be obvious to my people and the Chiefs across the country that the Prime Minister still refuses to address our people's needs and desires for reform in this country. A l l that we wanted from him yesterday was to agree to meet with the Chiefs and himself to begin a dialogue on the Royal Commission. We never asked him to state any position on any recommendation. We just simply asked him to meet with us to begin a dialogue on how we're going to work together on the recommendations. And we're not naive. We have been around many years too, we know how government works. And we've never said we agree with all the recommendations. We've said we agree with the report in principle. It's a blueprint for reform, it's a foundation for negotiating with the government of Canada and the provinces a new relationship, a better life for the First Nations across this country. We're not expecting the Government of Canada to come and tell us at the very initial meeting we agree w i t h a l l 440 recommendations. But what we are expecting of them is to show good faith so that they give some hope to our people and the good faith that we're expecting from them is to agree to sit down with us on a continuing basis to discuss the recommendations, to try and reach a consensus on the contents of the report for i m p l e m e n t a t i o n . A n d the implementation can take the form of immediate changes, the implemenation cant take the form of long-term changes. But we are prepared to discuss with the Prime Minister and the premiers how this can be accomplished over time. And I repeat by saying that I am very disappointed that the Prime Minister is dismissing that simple request to meet with us, and is thereby ignoring our demands for reform in this country. So I'm here to say to him and to the Canadian people that we will escalate the protests, the rallies, and the political action that we started yesterday, that we will do this as long as we have to until such time as the Prime Minister agrees to meet with the Chiefs across this country in a meeting convened jointly by himself and the Assembly of First Nations. I've already talked to my national executive and we have agree to maintain pressure on the federal government. But this time I wanted to be very clear to the Canadian people that what we will do is not to target the Canadians. We don't want to inconvenience the Canadian people themselves. It is not the Canadians in this country who are holding back progress; it's the Prime Minister, it's the federal government. So our strategy involves the following elements: First, we will be inviting all the premiers to join forces with the Chiefs and the Assembly of First Nations in encouraging the Prime Minister to convene a meeting with the people that I represent so that we can begin dialogue with the federal government. Secondly, we will be advising the premiers to also indicate their willingness to sit down with the Prime Minister and the aboriginal people to begin discussions on the report itself, because one of the recommendations of the Royal Commission is for the Prime Minister to convene a meeting of himself, the premiers, and the aboriginal leaders for discussions on the Royal Commission. We will target specific individuals in the Government of Canada for our political protests. That includes the Prime Minister himself because he is ultimately responsible for the lack of progress on Indian Affairs and Indian policy this country. It is his government that is making the people poorer than they were when the Conservatives were in power, and it is his government that has made all these enlightened promises that he failed to deliver on, and it is his government that's refusing to sit down with the Chiefs and talk about the Royal Commission. So we'll be focusing on him specifically as the Prime Minister. In addition, we will target Paul Martin, the minister who is responsible for all the cutbacks in this country, the person that we personally hold responsible for all the pain and suffering in our communities because of the cutbacks that he has implemented in order to meet the desires of the business community at the expense of the poor in this country. OVIDEMECREDI(Continued on page 12) ROTISKENRAKETE WARRIOR SOCIETY On April 21, 1997, the Rotiskenrakete Warrior Society from different territories within the Kanienkehaka (Mohawk) met to discuss the recent conflict between the Seneca Nation of Indian and the New York State Police and New Y o r k State Department of Taxation. The Rotiskenrakete are closely monitoring the situation and are in contact with our Seneca brothers. According to Kaienerekowa (Great Law of Peace) the Seneca are a brother to the Kanienkehaka. As the mend of the Kanienkehaka, it is our duty by Law to stand and assist our Seneca brothers in their time of need. The Rotiskenrakete are in full support of the position the Seneca Nation of Indians have taken in opposition of taxation in the sovereign Seneca Territories. We encourage all Onkwehonwe people to show their support for the Seneca People. Multiply this Press Release and send it out. 4 MAY 1997 UBCIC NEWS Specific Claims Research Program Update Kwakiutl District Council Record Group 10 Anyone involved in research related to aboriginal peoples knows how complicated and time-consuming the work can be. There are many sources to consult and the records are not always easy to find. Researchers who undertake projects that involve the use of government documents may be obliged to look through records created by a variety of government departments to find the information they need. The starting point for this type of research is often the records of the Department of Indian Affairs, with either active records held at the Department or historical files held at the National Archives of Canada. Record Group 10, or R G 10, is the designation given by the National Archives to records created by the Department of Indian Affairs and transferred to the Archives. R G 10 is the largest record group at the National Archives relating to native issues and is generally the first stop for most researchers. The original order of the records is maintained by the Archives which means that researchers must rely on the Inventory and finding aids, created by archivists who specialise in R G 10, to help them locate pertinent files. Finding individual documents within R G 10, or within any large body of records, cannot be done in one step. Researchers must narrow the search by moving from the Inventory to individual finding aid lists, then to volumes (the term used for the storage boxes), on to files, and finally to documents—all the while bearing in mind changes the Department made over time to its filing systems and administrative jurisdictions. Within the R G 10 Inventory records descriptions are divided into four broad groupings: Pre-Confederation Headquarters' records; Post-Confederation Headquarters' records; Field Office Records; and Miscellaneous Land records. Each one of these groupings is broken down into sub-groups within the Inventory to help researchers narrow their search. R G 10 records are stored at the National Archives in Ottawa as well as in regional Records Centres across Canada. Records created by the Department of Indian Affairs in British Columbia have, since 1984-85, been transferred to the National Archives at the Vancouver Federal Records Centre in Burnaby. Many of the R G 10 records stored in Ottawa have been microfilmed and are available through inter-institutional loan. The U B C I C Resource Centre holds a comprehensive collection of R G 10 microfilm including copies of the Inventory and many of the most useful finding aids. Through its Research Department, the Union periodically offers workshops which look at R G 10 in detail and allow researchers to gain first-hand experience using this complex record group. MAY 1997 March 8, 1997 The Cabinet Province of British Columbia Parliament Buildings Victoria, B.C. V 8 V 1X8 Dear Premiers and Ministers, Re: Deer and Eagle Island Settlement Agreement In reference to the above, it has been brought to our attention that a negotiated Settlement Agreement has been reached on this long outstanding issue between the Kwakiutl Band, Halcan Logging Ltd. and the Province of British Columbia. As you may know these Islands are an integral part of the Kwakiutl Douglas Treaty and continues to be an important food and recreation area, not only for the Kwakiutl but also for the surrounding non-Aboriginal community. It is also a burial site in pre-contact and contact times. We understand that the Province has displayed a great deal of patience in coming to this agreement over the past ten years. You are to be congratulated for that patience. We understand that Canada is prepared to fast track this Agreement through the office of Specific Claims West. It is hoped that this will be accomplished on or before 2 April, 1997 in order to meet time lines contained in the Agreement. We strongly support this agreement as it will prove that there is a willingness on the part of all parties that there is an alternative to litigation that would be unnecessarily costly for all Parties concerned. We encourage you to act with all due consideration to put this matter to a just and equitable close. We look forward to an early and favourable response. Yours truly, David Hunt, Chairman, Kwakiutl District Council cc Glenn Robertson, M L A 5 UBCIC NEWS B.C. Native Women's Society embargoed till 10 a.m. P.S.T. March 19, 1997 Press Conference : 10:00 a.m. Room 1 Trout Lake Community Centre 3350 Victoria Drive at 14th "We can't seem to get the government's attention without a writ in our back pocket," said Jane Gottfriedson, President of the B.C. Native Women's Society, announcing a Federal Court action against the Minister of Indian Affairs over discrimination against women in the Indian Act and in the recently introduced Indian Land Management Framework Agreement legislation. "The Indian Act continues to discriminate against women in several ways," Gottfriedson continued. " W e have been telling the government about that, asking them to remedy the discrimination, and finally drafting remedial legislation for them. But there has been no action in response to our requests. And now they are trying to pass the buck to the bands to deal with the problem." Plaintiffs in the action are the B.C. Native Women's Society and two individual native women, Jane Gottfriedson of the Lower Similkameen Band and Teressa Nahanee of the Squamish Band. The lawsuit concerns the situation of married aboriginal women on reserves, who cannot get a share on the matrimonial home or an order for exclusive possession of the matrimonial home when their marriage breaks up. The courts have held that provincial family laws, which provides these remedies to every other woman in Canada, do not apply on reserves because there is a conflict between them and the Indian Act. The lawsuit says that this legal situation discriminates against Aboriginal women, and is contrary to the Charter of Rights. It is also a breach of the federal government's fiduciary responsibility to Aboriginal women. Meanwhile, the federal government has signed agreements in principle with fourteen bands which will devolve responsibility for the administration of lands on reserve to the band level. The lawsuit asks for a declaration that the government cannot contract out of its fiduciary responsibility. Gottfriedson and Mclvor were particularly angry that the federal government had not consulted them about the proposed land management framework agreement. " W e wrote to the government in November and asked to be heard during their consultations. The next thing we hear, it is March and they are telling us that there is only one more teleconference hearing, in Edmonton just four days later. There was no way that we could get there to make our views known. The high handed way the government treated its consultation process - - we understand they have had virtually N O input from Aboriginal women's groups in this consultation - - reflects their generally dismissive attitude to Aboriginal women." Said Viola Thomas, speaking for the United Native Nations in support of the lawsuit, "The problem of internalized racism against Aboriginal women has existed since the 6 introduction of the Indian Act in 1876. This Act is a tool by the federal government to divide and conquer our Aboriginal Peoples. The Indian Act defines who our citizens are and it is based on a patriarchal system that did not honour and respect our matriarchal cultures. This system has forced our cultures to not always act in ways that value or pay homage to Aboriginal women. Because many married women leave their reserves to go to their husband's reserves when they get married, they often have to leave the community they have lived in with their husband and children for many years, when their marriage breaks up. This is just one example of how the Indian Act has forced Aboriginal peoples to discriminate against our women." Fay Blaney, speaking for the National Action Committee on the Status of Women and the Aboriginal Women's Action Network also supported the action. She said, "Colonialism and historic injustices can easily be dismissed as the sins of our great grandparents. But who w i l l be answerable for the institutionalized racism that Aboriginal women endure today? Is there any accountability for the systemic abuses which results in our disenfranchisement from our cultures? Our banishment from our homelands? The genocidal laws and policies of the state are completely hostile to the perspectives and status of Aboriginal woman. The actions of our leadership clearly indicate that the patriarchal intentions of the colonial agenda has been successful. The position taken by the Assembly of First Nations in the B i l l C-31 discussions and the Constitutional discussions are evidence of an ingrained patriarchal mentality. I challenge our male-dominated leadership to return to our traditions of honouring and respecting our women. Can they support the B C N W S in this court challenge? I challenge our "Indian Act Masters" to devise a meaningful process that would end century long genocidal practices. After a l l , aboriginal women have human rights too." Eileen O'Brian on behalf of D A W N Canada, added " A s disabled women, including disabled aboriginal women, we know how hard it is to fight against something that is wrong. We are proud to support the B.C. Native Women's Society in its action against the federal government. The Press Conference announcing the lawsuit was attended by B.C. Native Women Society, the United Native Nations, the Aboriginal Women's Council, the Aboriginal Women's Action Network, D A W N Canada, the National Action Committee on the Status of Women, and the Vancouver Status of Women. -30Contact: Jane Gottfriedson, President of B.C. Native Women's Society (250) 499-7897 or Barbara Findlay, Counsel for B.C. Native Women's Society (604) 687-8752 MAY 1997 UBCIC NEWS THE JOINT POLICY COUNCIL W H A T IS IT A N D W H A T C A N IT D O FOR Y O U ? European Parliament M E P Condemns B.C. Forest Practices Brussels, Belgium - April 17, 1997. W H A T IS IT? The Joint Policy Council is: * YOUR VOICE at policy table discussions with the Provincial Government on important issues that affect your community! *YOUR VISION of building a government to government relationship with the Province without sacrificing Aboriginal title and Rights! The JPC was established to provide a strong regional voice for Nations who do not believe that the B.C. Treaty Commissionrepresentstheir principles, beliefs, and interests. UBCIC Chiefs Council meets regularly with Cabinet ministers to negotiate a wide range of policy issues of urgent concern to Indian Nations. Many communities are struggling with issues related to roads, forestry, fisheries, health and welfare, education, to name a few. Faced with dwindling resources, it sometimes feels like we have no voice. It is more important than ever to empower ourselves, to reaffirm our beliefs, and to make sure that government hears us. The JPC is one way to do this. WHAT CAN IT DO FOR YOU? The JPC is one part of the UBCIC ALTERNATIVE to the B.C. T R E A T Y process! The Union continues to lobby for a nation-to-nation treaty process with the Federal Government and has developed a COMPREHENSIVE F R A M E W O R K T R E A T Y that would ensure that our Aboriginal Title and Rights are NOT EXTINGUISHED! UBCIC Chiefs Council and staff are working hard to make sure that YOUR VOICE is heard and YOUR VISION is realized, but the potential POWER of the Joint Policy Council will really come from YOU! K N O W L E D G E IS POWER! Ask your Chiefs Council or Nationrepresentativeabout the UBCIC COMPREHENSIVE F R A M E W O R K TREATY and the JOINT POLICY COUNCIL mandate and activities. Call the UBCIC JPC Coordinator to find out more or to provide ideas and information. Help to make the JPC a successful forum for policy development by learning about it and becoming involved. Make sure your VOICE and VISION are expressed! Now more than everUNITED W E STAND-DIVIDED W E PERISH! Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Paulette Regan, JPC Coordinator Phone: (604) 684-0231 Fax: (604) 684-5726 MAY 1997 Today, Irene Soltwedel-Schafer, European Union M E P (Member of European Parliament), released and in-depth report condemning B.C. forest practices. It was delivered today to the Canadian Diplomatic Mission to the European Union in Brussels as well as various political advisors and journalists. Entitled "Clear-cutting: forestry and landrights in Canada," the 20 page report is the result of a 1995 Canadian Government sponsored study tour originally intended to present an image o f ' 'world-class logging'' to invited M E P ' s . The report concluded that clear-cuts are still happening, that the Forest Practices Code has failed, and that First Nations still have no land rights, citing the 1995 Nuxalk Nation /Forest Action Network Logging Blockade on K i n g Island as an example. Among her many references is an anti-clear-cut treatise drawn up by the New Brunswick Small Woodlot Owners Association. She also accuses the B.C. Treaty Commission process of being a federal extinguishment policy which will remove all rights of F i r s t Nations and pave the way for future industrial exploitation. FINAL ARGUMENTS START IN GUSTAFSEN L A K E TRIAL Landmark Decision Expected Soon April 24,1997, VANCOUVER, Salish Territory - The longest and most costliest court case in Canadian history, Regina v. Mary Jane Pena et. al. known as the Gustafsen Lake trial, today began final arguments at the special high-security court room in Surrey, B.C. Prosecution and defence summations are expected to last for four to five days meaning the jury may deliberate as soon as Wednesday of next week. Throughout this trial Canada's national police force, the RCMP, have provided evidence that they conspired and carried out "smear and disinformation" campaigns against the Sundance Defenders and their lawyer Dr. Bruce Clark. Peter Montague, Chief RCMP Media Liaison Officer for British Columbia, was in the trial caught on an internal RCMP "training" videotape as saying "Smear campaigns are our specialty." The Sundance defenders allege that many of the significant events during the siege were staged or fabricated by the RCMP. The RCMP have introduced little evidence to contradict the Sundancer's allegations. "The RCMP have been caught lying under oath on several accounts throughout this trial which further exemplifies the Sundancer's position that the RCMP fabricated numerous incidents including the August 27, 1995, incident [where two RCMP officers were alleged to have been ambushed and shot] to justify a kill at the camp," said Tsepten Defence Committee Spokesperson Splitting the Sky. "And we do not think the RCMP were acting alone in this. We believe they were acting on instruction and with the approval of their political masters - provincial and federal politicians such as B.C.'s Attorney General, Ujjal Dosanjh." 7 UBCIC NEWS RESOURCE CENTRE UPDATE We h a v e d i s c o v e r e d that not all of British C o l u m b i a is c o v e r e d o n t h e C e n s u s reels that w e recently a c q u i r e d f o r 1881, 1 8 9 1 a n d 1 9 0 1 . W e s u s p e c t s o m e a r e a s of t h e p r o v i n c e m a y h a v e b e e n i n c l u d e d in the c e n s u s for A l b e r t a and/or t h e N W T . W e h a v e t w o c e n s u s c a t a l o g u e s o n order from the N a t i o n a l A r c h i v e s w h i c h w e h o p e will h e l p u s sort it out. If t h e r e a r e a r e a s of B . C . c o v e r e d o n reels w e d o not h a v e , w e will o r d e r t h e s e r e e l s s o that o u r c e n s u s for B . C . is as c o m p l e t e a s p o s s i b l e . W e a l s o s u s p e c t that there a r e s o m e a r e a s o f the p r o v i n c e w h i c h t h e c e n s u s t a k e r s d i d not c o v e r b e c a u s e o f barriers s u c h a s i n c l e m e n t weather, rugged a c c e s s to r e m o t e a r e a s , etc. W e h a v e two n e w v o l u n t e e r s in t h e R e s o u r c e C e n t r e . Dorine C y r a n d A l m a P e t e r s a r e g o i n g to c o n t i n u e our project to get brief r e c o r d s f o r all i t e m s in o u r P a u l C h a r t r a n d S p e c i a l C o l l e c t i o n o n o u r a u t o m a t e d c a t a l o g u e . W e a l s o h o p e to hire two s u m m e r s t u d e n t s with t h e h e l p of g o v e r n m e n t grants. T h e s e s t u d e n t s will h e l p with a d d i t i o n a l c a t a l o g u i n g projects. F o r a n y o n e w h o is c o m i n g to V a n c o u v e r to d o r e s e a r c h , the R e s o u r c e C e n t r e will h a v e e v e n i n g h o u r s in M a y a n d J u n e t o p r o v i d e a c c e s s f o r t h e Institute o f I n d i g e n o u s G o v e r n m e n t s t u d e n t s w h o t a k e s p r i n g s e m e s t e r c o u r s e s at the IIG. T h e R e s o u r c e C e n t r e will b e o p e n late o n T u e s d a y s a n d T h u r s d a y s until 8 p . m . f r o m t h e w e e k o f M a y 19th through to t h e e n d o f J u n e . M o n d a y s , W e d n e s d a y s a n d F r i d a y s w e will b e o p e n until 4 : 3 0 p . m . S a r a h N i g h s w a n d e r will b e r e p l a c i n g S a r a h T o r s k y , our c a t a l o g u e r , w h e n s h e g o e s o n m a t e r n i t y l e a v e in J u n e . It will be a b u s y s u m m e r training a n d s u p e r v i s i n g s u m m e r students a n d h e l p i n g o u r n e w c a t a l o g u e r settle into her job. In the next newsletter, w e will be a n n o u n c i n g acquisition of n e w C D - R O M p r o d u c t s w h i c h will b e v e r y helpful t o r e s e a r c h e r s . W e a r e setting u p a s e p a r a t e workstation f o r t h e s e i n f o r m a t i o n d a t a b a s e s a n d will let y o u k n o w w h e n everything is r u n n i n g s m o o t h l y a n d w e a r e a b l e to m a k e t h e m available f o r u s e . 8 N U X A L K AND FOREST ACTION NETWORK STEAL B A C K TIMBER F R O M U K TIMBER YARD Embargo: 15:00 G M T , Wed, 9 April 1997 M A N C H E S T E R , U K - The Nuxalk First Nation will ' 'steal back'' Western Red Cedar from a six acre timber yard which they accuse of handling stolen timber. On Wednesday afternoon they will enter and ' 'ethically shoplift" large planks of timber from the yard of one of the largest timber importers i n the U K . They will hand the timber in to Stretford police station, where they will ask the police to charge the timber yard with handling stolen property. Companies such as Interior and MacMillan Bloedel have sent material to Manchester. These forests are the traditional lands of the Nuxalk First Nation. They depend on the forest for their livelihood for fishing and for their cultural and spiritual survival. The Nuxalk are a sovereign nation and have not given permission for the extraction of timber from their lands. The Nuxalk consider that timber taken from their lands without their consent is stolen. The Nuxalk Nation are i n the U K to demand an immediate recognition of their sovereignty and an immediate end to the industrial logging on their land. The Nuxalk Nation are asking U K timber trades to refuse to purchase any more timber from their lands. The Nuxalk will be helped by environmental activists from Forest Action Network. MAY 1997 UBCIC NEWS AHOUSAHT BAND COUNCIL STAKES RISING OVER ILLEGAL FISH FARM IN CLAYOQUOT SOUND February 25, 1997 — Chief Sam has given the "If the province won't do its job, then we province until 5 pm, on Ahousaht First Nations Chief will exercise our sovereign right and act Wednesday to commit to firm Councillor Sidney Sam vowed on its behalf" - Chief Sidney Sam today to enforce the province's action on removing the fish. If own requirement for removal of there is no agreement in place, fish from a salmon farm in Ahousaht traditional the Ahousaht will enforce the government's order on territory in Clayoquot Sound. The fish farm, operated Thursday morning. by Pacific National Group, is growing salmon illegally Salmon farming is coming under increasingly since its tenure expired in November. scrutiny in B . C . since the start of the Salmon " I f the province won't do its job, then we will Aquaculture Review process undertaken by the province exercise our sovereign right and act on its behalf," said to assess the risks of salmon farming. A l l representatives Chief Sam. B.C. Lands had ordered the company to at the table other than those from industry and remove the fish by January 31, and later extended the government have expressed sharp concerns with the way date to February 21. Both dates passed without action, in which salmon fanning is presently practiced in B.C. and now the province appears unwilling to take further The chief concerns of fishermen, First Nations and steps. environmentalists include the threat of disease spreading from exotic species of farmed salmon to wild salmon, the The Ahousaht opposed renewal of the license lack of regulation of drug use on salmon farms, and the because of concerns over the negative impacts the farm large amounts of concentrated fecal waste generated. has had on wild salmon, herring, and shellfish in the area. Since herring are now starting to spawn in Contact: Chief Sidney Sam (250) 670-9563. For Clayoquot, the Ahousaht view the provincial footinformation on the Salmon Aquaculture Review contact: dragging as unacceptable given the potential loss to the Howard Breen (250) 753-3459 resource. 12th Annual Intertribal Pow~Wow Honouring Our Urban First Nations Families Reclaiming Our Sacred Time and Space on the Pow-Wow Trail May 9, 10, 11, 1997 Trout Lake Community Centre 3350 Victoria Drive, Vancouver, B.C. ALCOHOL A N D D R U G FREE Admission by Donation Contacts: Wally Awasis (604) 874-9929 or Karen (604) 434-4246 Arts and Craft Tables contact Gord (604) 323-2568 MAY 1997 9 UBCIC NEWS National Day of Action Tsilhqot'in Nation supports B.C. Native youth occupation of B.C. Treaty Commission Office in Vancouver. April 18, 1997 The Tsilhqotin National Government is in total support of the occupation of the British Columbia Treaty Commission head office boardroom in Vancouver by about 30 members of the Vancouver based Native Youth Movement. We are also in total agreement with their contention that the B . C . Treaty Process is illegally negotiating treaties with B . C . Indians i n clear violation of international law that requires such treaty negotiations to be conducted only between national sovereign governments and indigenous nations [peoples]. They accuse the B C T C of collaborating with 'socalled' native leaders of the First Nations Summit for the purpose of selling out the rights of the native youth throughout the Province of B . C . So do we, the Tsilhqotin National Government. The youth occupiers have indicated that they will respect B C T C property during the occupation, and the Tsilhqotin Nation advises that these youth occupiers of the B C T C Boardroom must have their chosen forum to present their strong message respected, and be provided with proper food and services while they are guests of the B C T C . The B C T C will be held fully responsible for any indignity or injury that may happen to these Indian representatives NATIVE YOUTH MOVEMENT resulting from B C T C initiated measures. We April 25,1997 - On the 17th and 18th of April approximately 30 also call on the B C T C Native Youth Movement members spent two days and a night occupying to immediately open the B . C . Treaty Commission office in downtown Vancouver. the phone and fax lines The occupation was in protest of the B.C. Treaty Process. The so they can be Native Youth Movement are 100% opposed to the treaty process. The contacted by Indian N Y M refused to leave until a meeting with the Treaty Commission and nation organizations the N Y M was set. and their family The Native Youth Movement stated that any Treaty Process that members. promotes the loss of our traditional homelands in any form is considered T N G Deputy treason. The Native Youth Movement reject the B C T C process and its National Chief Ray Nisga'a style settlement model. The Nisga'a people shall lose, 92% of Hance said he is their traditional homeland forever, i f the Nisga'a people ratify the pleased that B.C. agreement. Native Youth have With the assistance of Rene Taylor (an aboriginal legal services become involved in the lawyer in Vancouver), the date agreed upon by both parties was on or issue of treaty making, before A p r i l 25, 1997. This lack of commitment and deceitful particularly by wording of the agreement is unacceptable to the N Y M . We will hold the protesting the B C T C commissioners accountable to the commitment made to us as fraudulent B.C. Treaty Native Youth, by setting a firm meeting date. Commission Process. The N Y M and the B C T C have suggested a meeting date of May "We 27,1997. The N Y M will hold the B C T C accountable to this date. Further congratulate these the N Y M would like to take this opportunity to warn the B C T C ; in the young people who are event (BCTC) continues to play games, the N Y M shall return and retaking this action for occupy the offices of the BCTC. the courage of their -30convictions. We share with them their sense Contact: Monty Joseph (250) 493-3924 or of outrage at the way in Skeena Reece (604) 688-1821 which the governments The B C T C has further compromised internationally recognized treaty making processes by conducting its negotiations with Indian representatives who are not fully mandated to do so by the Indian people they supposedly represent. The youth occupiers of the B C T C Boardroom have echoed the position of the T N G that treaty negotiations can only proceed if the Indian nation is solidly behind their leaders' negotiation position. This means that members must be fully informed about the issues and give their consent to their chosen leaders to negotiate on their behalf. of Canada and British Columbia are conspiring to deprive the indigenous nations, by a deceitful and fraudulent process, of territories and rights that are protected by international, constitutional and indigenous law," he said. Deputy National Chief Hance also issued a stern warning to the B C T C about its treatment of the Native Youth Movement emissaries who are presenting a valid grievance to the B C T C . "We ask the B C T C to respect the occupants. These young people personify the future of our nations. Every effort must be made to listen to them and to understand what they have to say. We ask you to do so. Freedom of communication TNG PRESS RELEASE (Continued on Page 11) 10 SUMMER 1996 UBCIC NEWS -April 17, 1997 SETON LAKE INDIAN BAND Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs April 17, 1997 Kalh wa7acw (Hello) We welcome you to our territory! We are stopping this train today to share an important message with you. The land you are travelling through is the territory of the St'at'imc People. Fifteen years ago April 17, 1982, Queen Elizabeth II signed into law the Constitution Act 1982 Section 35 of the Constitution; recognize and affirms the Aboriginal and Treaty Rights of Aboriginal peoples. Despite this recognition and affirmation in the constitution, the social and economic conditions of our people have not improved over the past 15 years. Also, our people are excluded from the amending formula in the constitution and therefore are denied the opportunity to identify and define any further changes to Section 35 to protect our collective Aboriginal and Treaty Rights. As you travel through our valley and further along in our territory you will notice that B.C. Hydro has played a large role in changing the face of the land. Y o u must realize that we derive no benefit from this corporate giant. PRESS S T A T E M E N T Stl'atl'imx Territory, April 18, 1997 Chief Saul Terry, President of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, made these comments in support of the Native Youth who are occupying the Treaty Commission Office to demand changes to the process: "The Union of B . C . Indian is proud of the Native Youth Movement ( " N Y M " ) in their principled stand to refuse to accept any treaties coming out of the B.C. Treaty Commission Process. The Youth are taking action to protect the future of their Peoples, and are demanding answers to questions which profoundly affect their political, social and economic future in their respective homelands." " T h e N Y M is tired of the depressing situations Indigenous Peoples find ourselves in, they are taking action to ensure that any political solutions allow us to fulfill our responsibilities and obligations as Indigenous Peoples to care for and protect our land and rights for future generations. "The youth are seeking the truth. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs urges the Treaty Commission Office to listen to the N Y M and recognize their right to lead us. It is, afterall, their future which we are fighting for." Contact, Chief Saul Terry, 250-256^1125. TNG PRESS RELEASE (Continued from page 10) Our community has received no compensation of any type for the cutblocks that you will see on the opposite shore of Seton Lake. For this reason, we feel the Federal government must reconsider their decision to not act upon the recommendations laid out in the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. The rail road tracks this '"Budd C a r ' ' is travelling over is our land. It was taken without permission and knowledge. As you see the tracks interfere with our use of the shore line of the lakes within our territory. We thank you for listening to us today, enjoy the rest of your journey. Hu7malh (farewell) Chief Garry John On behalf of Seton Lake Band SUMMER 1996 must be assured to them. Efforts to prevent the education of the public on these vitally important issues will only lead to more confrontation and trouble i f any of the protesters should be hurt." " I f the occupants call for help, the Tsilhqot'in National Government will respond by urging Tshilqot'in Nation members to attend in strength. Let it be clearly understood that this action has been caused not by our young protesters, but by governments that continue to refuse to face the reality of resurgent indigenous nations who ask those governments to obey their own laws and those of the international community of sovereign states," he said. -30Contact: Ray Hance, T N G Deputy National Chief (250) 392-3918 11 UBCIC NEWS A Message from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Expiry Dates Established for Certificates of Indian Status The purpose of issuing Certificates of Indian Status is to verify that the cardholder is a registered Indian. Certificates of Indian Status are only useful if the photographs and physical descriptions are current. It has come to our attention that some registered Indians have been denied services because some service providers have questioned whether their status cards are still valid. To remedy this situation, it has been decided that status cards issued to individual under the age of eighteen will have an expiry date of two years and status cards issued to individuals over the age of eighteen will have an expiry date of five years. This policy is effective immediately. It should be noted that the five year expiry date does not mean that the cardholder ceases to be a registered Indian at the end of the five year period. It only means that i f the cardholder intends to use the status card to obtain certain services and benefits, it must be renewed every five years. It should also be noted that all previous versions of the status card will continue to be valid until January 1, 2000. Therefore, it is very important that your renew your current status card on or before January 1, 2000. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact your Band or the Indian Registry and Bands Lists Office, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, B.C. Region, at (604) 666-2059 OVIDEMECREDI(Continuedfrom page 4) Thirdly, we will focus on people l i k e M r . D i o n , the minster o f reconciliation, the minister of reconciliation who forgets that the aboriginal people exist and his only priority is what's happening in the province of Quebec. So we will be focusing on him as well in the next few weeks. Finally, Senator Fairbairn, who has, I understand, a very powerful influence on the Prime Minister, one of his key advisors in his inner circle of friends. A n d on that score, I might say that the students from the University of Calgary have occupied his office yesterday and the Senator has agreed to meet with them today. Depending on the outcome of these discussions with the Senator, the students are prepared to cany on with their protests involving her. We will be inviting our communities across the country to try to do things creatively with Canadians in general where we don't create any annoyances with anybody but we try to build public support for our issues. So what we're asking for now is not so much slowing down traffic, which we did in 18 locations yesterday, but what we're asking for is for people to do some cultural events, some educational sessions, and to involve not just the politicians i n their area, like the municipal 12 Northern Ontario M.P. and Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development Ronald A. Irwin Announces Retirement From Federal Politics Sault Ste. Marie (April 4, 1997) - Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Member of Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie Ronald A . Irwin today announced that he will not be seeking re-election in the next federal election. ' "This is a personal choice that I have made and I am looking forward to being able to enjoy more time with my family and friends. It has been an honour for me to serve the government of Prime Minster Jean Chretien and the residents of Sault Ste. Marie," said Ron Irwin. Mr. Irwin continued, " I wish to thank my wife Margaret and our children for their wonderful support and confidence, which over the years has made this challenging experience so fulfilling. I would also like to thank the people of Sault Ste. Marie whom I have had the pleasure of representing as both their Mayor and Member of Parliament." Ron Irwin was first elected to the House of Commons in 1980, where he served one term. He was re-elected in the general election of October 1993. Prime Minister Jean Chretien appointed Ron Irwin to the federal cabinet November 4, 1993 as the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. ' 'I would like to thank the Prime Minister for his friendship and guidance. I would also like to thank my colleagues in the House of Commons who have encouraged me and supported the work I have done. To the Elders, Chiefs, Aboriginals, Metis, and Inuit peoples who have befriended me and taught me, meegwetch." For information contact: Cate McCready, Minister's Office (819) 997-0002 politicians, but the support groups and the human rights organizations, the church organizations, and to try to build support for all our people i n that manner. Apparently I forgot one very important individual who is going to be the focus of our attention as well, and that is the Honourable Allan Rock, the Minister of Justice. Because in effect, what we're asking for from the Canadians is justice. He himself is guilty i n terms of diminishing our treaty and aboriginal rights when he introduced the gun control legislation without due regard to the treaty rights of our people, and even though we spoke to him on numerous occasions to discourage him from passing the law i n the manner that he did, he refused to listen to our people. So he will also be the focus of our attention in the next coming weeks. As a strategy, when the election is called, whenever that is, and when these people go out to seek the support of our people, we will dog them, we will follow them and we will do whatever we can to draw attention to the plight of our people and also try to get the support of the general public in terms of ensuring that they vote for the candidates that are sensitive to the needs and the issues of aboriginal people and that they hold the current government accountable for its inactions. MAY 1997 UBCIC NEWS Institute of Indigenous Government Extension Programs EXTENSION PROGRAMS The Institute of Indigenous Government is committed to expanding extension and off-campus programming to enhance First Nation students access to our unique education program in British Columbia, Canada and around the world. Our goal is to deliver up to 80% of our courses "off campus" in regional centres and Indigenous communities through the extension program and by innovative distance learning strategies. Rather than sending students to a post-secondary institution, which is usually located in urban settings, our instructors can be sent to communities to deliver credited and non-credited courses offered through our extension programs. This arrangement allows students to remain in the home community, close to family, friends and employment. The E G is also committed to provide communitybased quality programs to all students wherever their home communities may be located. There are presently two extension sites in operation to date. Thefirstextension sites are located in Saanich and Lillooet, B C . We are anticipating additional sites at Duncan, the William Head Correctional Centre, Lytton, Mount Currie B C and in the Yukon Territory. Anticipated start up is aimed for the F a l l semester of 1997. SAANICH EXTENSION PROGRAM This extension site was established in the Spring of 1996. This arrangement enables First Nations students from the Saanich Nation, and the surrounding areas, to access instruction, student development workshops, and community support while pursuing their post-secondary studies. Students at the Saanich site are enrolled part-time and full-time in either the Certificate in Indigenous Government Studies (30 credits) or the Associate of Arts Degree i n Indigenous Government Studies (60 credits). The foundation courses are being offered on an on-going basis to allow for new applicants. For more information on the Saanich Extension program, contact: Paul Sam, IIG Saanich Extension Co-ordinator Phone:(250) 652-5784 Fax:(250) 544-0538 LILLOOET EXTENSION PROGRAM The students at the Lillooet Extension Program are working full-time in the community while attending six hours of instruction one day per week. For example, IGST 101 will alternate with I G A D 101 every other Monday. This arrangement allows the students to remain working in their community and stay close to family and friends. As student enrolment increases the foundation courses and the four principal areas of specialization will be offered to MAY J 997 meet the demand. Evening and/or day classes can be arranged. For more information on this exciting educational opportunity in the Lillooet area, contact: Marilyn Napolean, IIG Lillooet Extension Co-ordinator, Lillooet Tribal Council Phone: (250) 256-7523 Fax:(250) 256-7119 ELDERS & RESOURCE PEOPLE Elders from the community are providing cultural, social and spiritual guidance for the students. Their input into Indigenous education assures that Indigenous control is being reflected in the implementation of instruction, course development, workshops, and student support. Elders also, actively participate with the delivery of symposiums, workshops and c u l t u r a l events w h i c h fully reflect indigenous philosophy, values and experience. Community members are also utilised to enhance and aid in the instruction of our courses, symposiums and workshops. To sit in on any of the Extension courses, please contact the co-ordinators for class time and schedules. For information on Extension Programs in your area, contact Jennie Blankinship, Director of Extension Programs at (604) 602-9555 or Fax (604) 602-3432. list Annual Provincial E l d e r s C o n f e r e n c e '97 Okanagan Nation Elders August 12, 13 & 14, 1997 Penticton Indian Band Cultural & Health Workshops Entertainment / Special Events Special Guest: Tom Jackson For more information contact the Penticton Indian Band (250) 493-0048 13 UBCIC NEWS UNITED NATIVE NATIONS The Union Mailbox Congratulations to the Board of Directors of Local #133 President - Margaret Prevost, Nimpkish Vice President - Fred Arrance, Cree Treasurer - Glen Campbell, Musqueam Secretary - James Shorty, Yukon Territory April 2, 1997 To whom it may concern: HSA is a union of workers in both the health and community sectors in the province of British Columbia. In 1994, our members established two $500.00 scholarships to assist aboriginal students in the province of B.C. who are pursuing education in a H S A field that would lead to a recognized certification, degree or diploma. Thank you for your attention to this and your assistance in "getting the message out". For more information about our scholarship and or to obtain a scholarship application form please Contact CarmenAnne Menegozza at the Health Sciences Association of B.C. @ (604) 439-0994. Sincerely, Carmen - Anne Menegozzo Senior Labour Relations Officer - Education & OH&S H E A L T H SCIENCES ASSOCIATION OF B.C. April 22, 1997 BOARD MEMBERS: Marlene Trick, Tsimshian Florence Hackett, Coaishes / Homalko Norman Mark, Sechelt Ron Chevrier, Algonquin Nigel Morin, Metis Hector Hill, Gitksan THE HASTINGS RESERVATION HAS ITS OWN VOICE!! Call Blue Jeanne for more information at (604) 688-1821 H E A L I N G O U R SPIRIT B. C. First Nations AIDS Society On June 7th, 1997 Barb McKinnon and I will be joining The Great W a l k from Gold River to Tahsis - a total of 63.5 kilometers. Please open your hearts and wallets and make a pledge to support our efforts. A l l donations will be given to Healing Our Spirit, B.C. First Nations AIDS Society HIV+ Fund. Contact: Catherine Blackstock, Executive Director (604) 983-8774 Dear Sirs: March 19, 1997 We would like to thank-you for your past help i n advertising our Pow-Wow. Our Pow-Wows have been a success in the past, helping to show seven to ten thousand peoples of all cultures the First Nations traditions. Due to our Pow-Wow being postponed last year, we want to ensure this year's a success by advertising to the fullest. We depend entirely on donations and a small grant from the City of Vancouver, to assist with the expenses. Volunteers provide the services to stage the event, which includes a free community feast on Saturday, along with a Mother's Day Breakfast at Cedar Cottage on Sunday Morning. We will try to feed as many people as possible. Any donations are greatly appreciated. Charitable tax receipts are available upon request. For further information you can reach me at 434-4246. A l l my relations Karen E. Soldan Co-Chairman Cedar Cottage, Trout Lake Traditional Pow-Wow Committee 14 Dear Collegue: Immunization can keep children safe from many serious illnesses, such as measles, mumps, rubella and polio. But children need to complete their full schedule of shots to be protected. On time, every time. That's why the Canadian Public Health Association, in partnership with the Canadian Medical Association, the Canadian Paediatric Society and Health Canada, has launched the National Immunization Awareness Program. Children's entertainers Sharon, Lois & Bram have volunteered their time to be featured in print public service announcements, as well as on posters and radio spots, for this major, national campaign. We ask your support for this campain by running the enclosed publice service announcement in your publication. Four-colour separations to run the announcement in colour are available upon request. Thank you for helping to send this important health message to many Candians, particularly the parents of young children. Sincerly, Robert Burr Director, Public Affairs and Communications (613)725-3769 MAY 1997 UBCIC NEWS MAP OF THE SOVEREIGN INDIGENOUS NATIONS TERRITORIAL BOUNDARIES: JUNE, 1993 The Union of B . C . Indian Chiefs' map of the Sovereign Indigenous Nations Territorial Boundaries is the only contemporary map that accurately shows the traditional tribal territories of the 23 Indian Nations in British Columbia. The six colour map measures 28" x 36". The tribal territories are the homelands of distinct Nations, within which their respective peoples share a common language, culture and traditional forms of political and social organization. These homelands have been occupied by the Indian Nations since time immemorial. Up to the present, the Indian Nations in British Columbia have never surrendered their ownership oftheir homelands (aboriginal title), nor have they surrendered their original sovereignty as nations to govern their homelands (inherent jurisdiction). Information on the territorial boundaries was compiled by the Union's research portfolio and President's office between July, 1990 and April, 1993 from archival research and information provided by elders, chiefs, and tribal councils. Chief Saul Terry, President of the Union and a graduate of the Vancouver College of Art (now the Emily Carr College of Art and Design), prepared the working drafts for the map. Design and cartography for the June, 1993 map was done by David Sami, chief cartographer of Multi Mapping Ltd. in Vancouver, B.C., using a 1:2,000,000 scale base-map from the Surveys and Environment Branch of the British Columbia Ministry ofEnvironment, Lands and Parks. A l l territorial boundaries shown on the map are subject to further revision, as additional information becomes available. Contact the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs at (604) 684-0231 for ordering information. 28" x 36" / Scale: 1:2 000 000 / Six Colours MAY J997 15 UBCIC NEWS UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS SUBSCRIPTION FORM NAME: FOR OFFICE USE O N L Y DATE RECEIVED:. CHEQ/M.O. # EXPIRY DATE: ADDRESS: POSTAL/ZIP CODE: PROVINCE/STATE/COUNTRY: 1 YEAR SUBSCRIPTION RATES NewsLETTER NewsCLIPPING Member Bands: Individual: $75.00 $35.00 Individual: $100.00 T O T A L AMOUNT ENCLOSED $ Please make cheque or money order payable to: UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS, 5THFLOOR-342 VANCOUVER, B.C., V6B 1A1 CHIEFS MASK WATER STREET, BOOKS Owned and operated by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs - 5th Floor 342 Water Street in Gastown (604) 684-0231 N O W S E R V I N G T H E INSTITUTE OF INDIGENOUS G O V E R N M E N T ARTS & CRAFTS -JEWELLRY • ABORIGINAL - POTTERY ISSUES • INTERNATIONAL INDIGENOUS -PRINTS • LAND CLAIMS - T-SHIRTS - LEATHER WORK •ART -MASKS • CHILDREN'S BOOKS ACCEPTED CONSIGNMENTS • FIRST NATIONS CONSIGNMENTS ACCEPTED BOOKS - BEADWORK •POETRY - POW WOW MUSIC CALL, WRITE OR DROP IN TODAY! 16 - AND MUCH MORE! MAY 1997  Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs NEWSLETTER Chiefs Announce "Voice of the Peoples" gathering commerating anniversary of Mohawk Crisis. MAY 1997 On July 11 & 12, 1997, the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, Stl'atl'imx Nation and Cayoose Creek Indian Band will co-host the "Voice of the Peoples" gathering in Cayoose Creek, B.C. his year, Chiefs Council of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs decided that the citizens in every community must have the opportunity to express their concerns on the issues affecting their well- IN THIS ISSUE... 2. President's Message . Penticton Indian Band lao . Press Conference with Ovide Mecredi 5. Specific Claims Update ey 6. B.C. Native Women's.- Society 7. MEP condemns BC Forestry Practices 8. Resource Center Update 9. 12 Annual International Pow-Wow 10. National Day of Action 12. Ipwin Announces Retirement 13. Insitutute of Indigenous Government 4. UBCIC Mailbox MAY 1997 being. Therefore, they directed the U.B.C.1.C. to help facilitate a Gathering on July ll & 12, 1997 at the Cayoose Creek Camp Grounds, home of the Stl’atl’imx Nation in Lillooet, B.C. The discussions and decisions must come from the people, therefore, communities will be asked to help organize the event. Federal Government’s strategies to undermine the inherent nights of Indian people is being conducted without adequate communication with citizens of Indian nations. Politically in British Columbia, decisions are being made to force Indian Bands into self- government agreements which will extinguish the Aboriginal Title and Rights and assimilate bands into mainstream Canadian society. How many people understand that well enough toapree to this process? This is one reason why we must gather together to become informed and develop plans of action to solve this problem if we hope to contain our political rights as Indian nations into the future. Itis time to be heard and as Nations of people find ways to defend and protect our lands and resources. The “*Voice of the Peoples’’ will bring many people into a political action to express major concerns of the communities. The challenge is for Chiefs and Council and their people to take up the call for political action by holding information meetings before the Gathering and develop short and long term goals on Aboriginal Title and Rights. Our past Elders, Political Leaders, Spiritual Leaders and Peoples had visions for Indian Government all over the North and South American continent - it is up to us to reaffirm our responsibility to care for and protect the land and build on the dreams they left for us to fulfill, We want the reservations to remain holistic and productive but how can that remain intact in negotiating co- existence with the Canadian people? We want communities that are clean, safe, wholesome and provide opportunities for the families but the social ills appear to overpower any meaningful efforts we put into health and education services. There are a hundred and one organizations existing just on land claims and they interfere with the affairs of the communities. This type of interference confuses people and affects good decisions that have to be made. We cannot ask the citizens of Indian nations to join in this Gathering just to talk - it is time for action. As Chiefs weare prepared to listen. € Joint Policy Council What is it and what can it do for you? p.7 back timber. p.8 Ahousaht Takes Aim at Illegal Fish Farm. p.9 Seton Lake Indian Band Applies the Brakes to the "Budd Car"p.11 21st Annual Provincial Elders Conference '97 p.13  UBCIC NEWS Chief Saul Terry, X'wisten v ood evening Committee Members of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs. I am permitting myself to be transmitted to you via this rather impersonal if not depersonalizing video teleconference technology. Permit me to introduce myself. I have been elected to the Council of my community for the last twenty-four years. Between 1978 and 1983 I was elected Vice President of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs. The Chiefs, my colleagues, have honored me to be their President in the last fourteen years. I cite these facts not to brag but to illustrate that I have witnessed many politicians from your institutions come and go without addressing the issues that plague our Peoples between your elections. I am here, this day, to reiterate that there is a better way than Bill C-79 to improve Indian/Canada relations. Some of those ideas are touched upon in the Assembly of First Nations’ presentation by National Chief Ovide Mercredi. Therefor I want it put on record for you as the Committee on Aboriginal Affairs, for the Prime Minister, the Honorable John Chretien, for my fellow Chiefs and especially for the Peoples in our terntories that the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs concur with the message the Assembly of First Nations presented to you on March 6, 1997. On another occasion I appeared before the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs on behalf of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs in March 1991 because I felt strongly about the state of siege over our people in Indian country. That year I was heartened to witness actions taken by the Mohawk peoples in defending their territory and at that time I said to Committee Members: time and again we as Chiefs have to call your attention to the crisis situations facing our people in Canada. I am sorry to say that little has changed in the past few years. I also looked at the Discussion Notes on the Indian Act produced by the Department of Indian & Northern Affairs in 1971 in which they state that ““The Indian Act represents special legislation taking precedence over provincial legislation which the Parliament of Canada considers is essential to the needs of the Indian people not only as a safeguard to proiect their treaty and property rights, but as a means of promoting their advancement.”’ If indeed Parliament terms the Indian Act as special legislation it must be for good reason. That reason stems from Indian-Crown relations, a special relationship out of which arises lawful obligations for the Government of Canada respecting Indian Nations. It is wrong for any Minister to make changes to this special legislation for political expediency unless our people are fully informed and Messa gre Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Submission on The Indian Act Optional Modification Act (Bill C-79) to Standing Committee On Aboriginal Affairs & Northern Development - Vancouver, B.C. March 11, 1997. From the President "The people of Canada and Our CiLizZens in our homelands. must know the irue source — of their: political disempowerinent, social dispatr, poverty andspritaldrsulusionment ‘a : 7 through our collective free will give our consent. After all, there are Treaties and the Trust obligation which must be lived up to - by both parties- your government and our governments. It is hard to believe that any Minister placed in a position of honor and trust would deliberately try to lead our people down a path riddled with mine fields targeting our Aboriginal and Treaty Rights. The Minister’s unilateral action compounds the mistrust and uncertainty which now exist in our communities. Ican say with confidence that the deliberate sequence has led us to this day and which one again prompts me to sound the alarm to protect the Aboriginal Title and Rights of the people. The people of Canada and our citizens in our homelands must know the true source of their political disempowerment, social dispair, poverty and spiritual disillusionment. For your information, in 1986 the Auditor-General criticized the Department of Indian Affairs’ land management program. What created the problem we are having now is the fact that the Department decided to change the way they do business with Indian Bands to avoid possible litigation from First Nations because of the Guerin Decision. The fact is the Department sought input from Chiefs to improve on the land management program and Chiefs responded because we know this issue well. But this was not good enough for the Department who instead added a whole range of studies under the ‘*Lands, Revenues and Trust Review.”’ Millions of dollars were spent (41,000,000 in our estimation) on that process and in the end all of it was shelved except for the Chartered Land Management Proposal, Indian Gas and Oil and Monies. These proposals have been worked and reworded because our Chiefs would not endorse them. It is now called the ““Optional Land Management Proposal For Specific First Nations’’ or Bill C- 75. Itis geared towards just 13 Indian Bands. It played a large part MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT (Continued on page 3) 2 MAY 1997  UBCIC NEWS Penticton Indian Band Press Statement April 17, 1997 - Elders and members of the Penticton Indian Band, at a community meeting last night, directed the Penticton Indian Band Council to issue a public statement to the effect that: “*As a direct result of Fraser Martin’s threat to sue the Penticton Indian Band or either of the Similkameen Bands if the Bands acquire an interest in the Apex Ski Resort; the Penticton Indian Band has abruptly abandoned its efforts to seek a peaceful resolution of the Apex Ski Resort by way of entering into a joint-venture arrangement with one of the six investor groups who have indicated an interest in acquiring the ski resort. In addition, the Penticton Indian Band takes this opportunity to serve notice that its membership shall actively renew their commitment and efforts to fully protect the environment within the Apex Ski Resort area.’’ The Penticton Indian Band finds these current circumstances to be extremely regrettable. We, like the six investor groups have invested a great deal of time, effort and expense in our attempts to negotiate a joint-venture arrangement that would allow for the long-term operation and stability of the Apex Ski Resort. Further, we would like to remind all parties that we have made every effort to seek a peaceful resolution to this long- standing dispute. At the outset, we negotiated and signed, in good faith, the Initial Agreement which contained the necessary provisions to settle the Apex Ski Resort/Penticton Indian Band dispute. The Initial agreement was signed by three Provincial Government Cabinet Ministers. On August 30, 1995 the Province ‘‘breached’’ the Initial Agreement and “‘walked away’ from the Initial Agreement. Subsequent to court proceedings and the imposition of an injunction directing members of the PIB to refrain from impeding traffic on Green Mountain Rd., the members of the PIB have respected the court injunction. Finally, in an act of ‘good-will’ the Penticton Indian Band allowed the Province to repair and pave Green Mountain Road last October in return for the Provinces commitment to undertake a full scale environmental assessment of the Seven Peaks area. To date, no such commitment has been made by the province. Again, the Penticton Indian Band finds it extremely Tegrettable that, in spite of our best efforts to avoid further conflict, the irresponsible and selfish actions of one individual and the continued bungling of the Provincial government, the entire economy of the South Okanagan has been placed in jeopardy Chief Stewart Phillip, Okanagan Nation (250) 493-3924 / 490-5166 MAY 1997 MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT (Continued from page 2) in prompting the Minister to amending the Indian Act. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs opposes any attempt by the Canadian Government to diminish the unceded land base of our Peoples. We have suggested a Treaty with Canada ona Nation to Nation basis which promises long Political, Social and Economic benefits for our Peoples. The problem we have with the present process is that the trust relationship we have with the Crown is being changed arbitrarily. The Minister is refusing to hear the options we have. In conclusion, the approach Minister Irwin has taken raises many serious socio-economic questions. It is a grave understatement to allude to the Optional Modification Act changes as cosmetic or superficial. Ifallowed to proceed they shall profoundly continue to affect our Peoples’ Political, Social, Economic, Cultural and Spiritual existence. Lu Ls) Penticton Indian Band PRESS RELEASE March 4, 1997--Today, the Westbank First nation held negotiations with the Federal and Provincial government officials with respect to Westbank Indian Band’s involvement in the British Columbia Treaty Commission (BCTC) Process. Penticton Indian Band Councillors Joan Phillip and Pierre Kruger attended this meeting and formally registered the Penticton Indian Band’s opposition to the Westbank First Nation’s involvement in the B.C. Treaty Commission process, for the following reasons: 1. That the Okanagan Traditional Territory is indivisible. No single community such as Westbank First Nation, has the right to negotiate a portion of Okanagan Territory; 2. Further that, the Westbank First nation requires the consent of the remaining six (6) Okanagan Nation communities, as follows: Okanagan Indian Band, Penticton Indian Band, Osoyoos Indian Band, Upper Similkameen Indian Band, Lower Similkameen Indian Band, Upper Nicola Indian Band. Under no circumstances will the Penticton Indian Band allow this fraudulent process to continue. If the Westbank First Nation continues to pursue this fraudulent Treaty precess, the Penticton Indian Band shall be forced to sue the Federal Government, the Province of B.C., the B.C. Treaty Commission, and the Westbank First Nation. -3G- Contact : Councillor Joan Phillip (250) 493-3924 or (250) 493-0048  UBCIC NEWS Press Conference with Ovide Mecredi of Assembly of First Nations - April 18, 1997 obvious to my people and the Chiefs * across the country that the Prime Minister still refuses to address our people’s needs and desires for reform in this country. All that we wanted from him yesterday was to agree to meet with the Chiefs and himself to begin a dialogue on the Royal Commission. We never asked him to state any position on any recommendation. We just simply asked him to meet with us to begin a dialogue on how we’re going to work together on the recommendations. And we're not naive. We have been around many years too, we know how government works. And we’ve never said we agree with all the recommendations. We've said we agree with the report in principle. It’s a blueprint for reform, it’s a foundation for negotiating with the government of Canada and the provinces a new relationship, a better life for the First Nations across this country. We’re not expecting the Government of Canada to come and tell us at the very initial meeting we agree with all 440 recommendations. But what we are expecting of them is to show good faith so that they give some hope to our people and the good faith that we’re expecting from them is to agree to sit down with us on a continuing basis to discuss the recommendations, to try and reach a consensus on the contents of the report 4} t’s quite obvious to me and will be for implementation. And the implementation can take the form of immediate changes, the implemenation cant take the form of long-term changes. But we are prepared to discuss with the Prime Minister and the premiers how this can be accomplished over time. And I repeat by saying that I am very disappointed that the Prime Minister is dismissing that simple request to meet with us, and is thereby ignoring our demands for reform in this country. So I’m here to say to him and to the Canadian people that we will escalate the protests, the rallies, and the political action that we started yesterday, that we will do this as long as we have to until such time as the Prime Minister agrees to meet with the Chiefs across this country in a meeting convened jointly by himself and the Assembly of First Nations. I’ve already talked to my national executive and we have agree to maintain pressure on the federal goverment. But this time I wanted to be very clear to the Canadian people that what we will do is not to target the Canadians. We don’t want to inconvenience the Canadian people themselves. It is not the Canadians in this country who are holding back progress; it’s the Pime Minister, it’s the federal government. So our strategy involves the following elements: First, we will be inviting all the premiers to join forces with the Chiefs and the Assembly of First Nations in encouraging the Prime Minister to convene a meeting with the people that I represent so that we can begin dialogue with the federal government. Secondly, we will be advising the premiers to also indicate their willingness to sit down with the Prime Minister and the aboriginal people to begin discussions on the report itself, because one of the recommendations of the Royal Commission is for the Prime Minister to convene a meeting of himself, the premiers, and the aboriginal leaders for discussions on the Royal Commission. We will target specific individuals in the Government of Canada for our political protests. That includes the Prime Minister himself because he is ultimately responsible for the lack of progress on Indian Affairs and Indian policy this country. It is his government that is making the people poorer than they were when the Conservatives were in power, and it is his government that has made all these enlightened promises that he failed to deliver on, and it is his government that’s refusing to sit down with the Chiefs and talk about the Royal Commission. So we’ll be focusing on him specifically as the Prime Minister. In addition, we will target Paul Martin, the minister who is responsible for all the cutbacks in this country, the person that we personally hold responsible for all the pain and suffering in our communities because of the cutbacks that he has implemented in order to meet the desires of the business community at the expense of the poor in this country. OVIDE MECREDI (Continued on page 12) ROTISKENRAKETE WARRIOR SOCIETY On Apmil 21, 1997, the Rotiskenrakete Warrior Society from different territories within the Kanienkehaka (Mohawk) met to discuss the recent conflict between the Seneca Nation of Indian and the New York State Police and New York State Department of Taxation. The Rotiskenrakete are closely monitoring the situation and are in contact with our Seneca broth- ers, According to Kaienerekowa (Great Law of Peace) the Seneca are a brother to the Kanienkehaka. As the mend of the Kanienkehaka, it is our duty by Law to stand and assist our Seneca brothers in their time of need. The Rotiskenrakete are in full support of the position the Seneca Nation of Indians have taken in opposition of taxation in the sovereign Seneca Territories. We encourage all Onkwehonwe people to show their support for the Seneca People. Multiply this Press Release and send it out. MAY 1997  UBCIC NEWS Specific Claims Research Program Update Record Group 10 Anyone involved in research related to aboriginal peoples knows how complicated and time-consuming the work can be. There are many sources to consult and the records are not always easy to find. Researchers who undertake projects that involve the use of government documents may be obliged to look through records created by a variety of government departments to find the information they need. The starting point for this type of research is often the records of the Department of Indian Affairs, with either active records held at the Department or historical files held at the National Archives of Canada. Record Group 10, or RG 10, is the designation given by the National Archives to records created by the Department of Indian Affairs and transferred to the Archives. RG 10 is the largest record group at the National Archives relating to native issues and is generally the first stop for most researchers. The original order of the records is maintained by the Archives which means that researchers must rely on the Inventory and finding aids, created by archivists who specialise in RG 10, to help them locate pertinent files. Finding individual documents within RG 10, or within any large body of records, cannot be done in one step. Researchers must narrow the search by moving from the Inventory to individual finding aid lists, then to volumes (the term used for the storage boxes), on to files, and finally to documents—all the while bearing in mind changes the Department made over time to its filing systems and administrative jurisdictions. Within the RG 10 Inventory records descriptions are divided into four broad groupings: Pre-Confederation Headquarters’ records; Post-Confederation Headquarters’ records; Field Office Records; and Miscellaneous Land records. Each one of these groupings is broken down into sub-groups within the Inventory to help researchers narrow their search. RG 10 records are stored at the National Archives in Ottawa as well as in regional Records Centres across Canada. Records created by the Department of Indian Affairs in British Columbia have, since 1984-85, been transferred to the National Archives at the Vancouver Federal Records Centre in Burnaby. Many ofthe RG 10 records stored in Ottawa have been microfilmed and are available through inter-institutional loan. The UBCIC Resource Centre holds a comprehensive collection of RG 10 microfilm including copies of the Inventory and many of the most useful finding aids. Through its Research Department, the Union periodically offers workshops which look at RG 10 in detail and allow researchers to gain first-hand experience using this complex record group. Kwakiutl District Council March 8, 1997 The Cabinet Province of British Columbia Parliament Buildings Victoria, B.C. V8V 1X8 Dear Premiers and Ministers, Re: Deer and Eagle Island Settlement Agreement In reference to the above, it has been brought to our attention that a negotiated Settlement Agreement has been reached on this long outstanding issue between the Kwakiutl Band, Halcan Logging Ltd. and the Province of British Columbia. As you may know these Islands are an integral part of the Kwakiutl Douglas Treaty and continues to be an important food and recreation area, not only for the Kwakiutl but also for the surrounding non-Aboriginal community. It is also a burial site in pre-contact and contact times. We understand that the Province has displayed a great deal of patience in coming to this agreement over the past ten years. You are to be congratulated for that patience. We understand that Canada is prepared to fast track this Agreement through the office of Specific Claims West. It is hoped that this will be accomplished on or before 2 April, 1997 in order to meet time lines contained in the Agreement. We strongly support this agreement as it will prove that there is a willingness on the part of all parties that there is an alternative to litigation that would be unnecessarily costly for ail Parties concerned. We encourage you to act with all due consideration to put this matter to a just and equitable close. We look forward to an early and favourable response. Yours truly, David Hunt, Chairman, Kwakiutl District Council cc Glenn Robertson, MLA MAY 1997  UBCIC NEWS B.C. Native Women’s Society embargoed till 10 a.m. P.S.T. March 19, 1997 Press Conference : 10:00 a.m. Room 1 Trout Lake Community Centre 3350 Victoria Drive at 14th ‘*We can’t seem to get the government’s attention without a writ in our back pocket,’’ said Jane Gottfriedson, President of the B.C. Native Women’s Society, announcing a Federal Court action against the Minister of Indian Affairs over discrimination against women in the Indian Act and in the recently introduced Indian Land Management Framework Agreement legislation. “‘The Indian Act continues to discriminate against women in several ways,’’ Gottfriedson continued. ‘‘We have been telling the government about that, asking them to remedy the discrimination, and finally drafting remedial legislation for them. But there has been no action in response to our requests. And now they are trying to pass the buck to the bands to deal with the problem.’’ Plaintiffs in the action are the B.C. Native Women’s Society and two individual native women, Jane Gottfriedson of the Lower Similkameen Band and Teressa Nahanee of the Squamish Band. The lawsuit concerms the situation of married aboriginal women on reserves, who cannot get a share on the matrimonial home or an order for exclusive possession of the matrimonial home when their marriage breaks up. The courts have held that provincial family laws, which provides these remedies to every other woman in Canada, do not apply on reserves because there is a conflict between them and the Indian Act. The lawsuit says that this legal situation discriminates against Aboriginal women, and is contrary to the Charter of Rights. It is also a breach of the federal government’s fiduciary responsibility to Aboriginal women. Meanwhile, the federal government has signed agreements in principle with fourteen bands which will devolve responsibility for the administration of lands on reserve to the band level. The lawsuit asks for a declaration that the goverment cannot contract out of its fiduciary responsibility. Gottfriedson and Mclvor were particularly angry that the federal government had not consulted them about the proposed land management framework agreement. “‘We wrote to the government in November and asked to be heard during their consultations. The next thing we hear, it is March and they are telling us that there is only one more teleconference hearing, in Edmonton just four days later. There was no way that we could get there to make our views known. The high handed way the government treated its consultation process - - we understand they have had virtually NO input from Aboriginal women’s groups in this consultation - - reflects their generally dismissive attitude to Aboriginal women.”’ Said Viola Thomas, speaking for the United Native Nations in support of the lawsuit, ‘“The problem of internalized racism against Aboriginal women has existed since the introduction of the Indian Act in 1876. This Act is a tool by the federal government to divide and conquer our Aboriginal Peoples. The Indian Act defines who our citizens are and it is based on a patriarchal system that did not honour and respect our matriarchal cultures. This system has forced our cultures to not always act in ways that value or pay homage to Aboriginal women. Because many married women leave their reserves to go to their husband’s reserves when they get married, they often have to leave the community they have lived in with their husband and children for many years, when their marriage breaks up. This is just one example of how the Indian Act has forced Aboriginal peoples to discriminate against our women.”’ Fay Blaney, speaking for the National Action Committee on the Status of Women and the Aboriginal Women’s Action Network also supported the action. She said, ‘‘Colonialism and historic injustices can easily be dismissed as the sins of our great grandparents. But who will be answerable for the institutionalized racism that Aboriginal women endure today? Is there any accountability for the systemic abuses which results in our disenfranchisement from our cultures? Our banishment from our homelands? The genocidal laws and policies of the state are completely hostile to the perspectives and status of Aboriginal woman. The actions of our leadership clearly indicate that the patriarchal intentions of the colonial agenda has been successful. The position taken by the Assembly of First Nations in the Bull C-31 discussions and the Constitutional discussions are evidence of an ingrained patriarchal mentality. I challenge our male-dominated leadership to return to our traditions of honouring and respecting our women. Can they support the BCNWS in this court challenge? I challenge our ““Indian Act Masters’’ to devise a meaningful process that would end century long genocidal practices. After all, aboriginal women have human rights too.”’ Eileen O’Brian on behalf of DAWN Canada, added ‘‘As disabled women, including disabled aboriginal women, we know how hard it 1s to fight against something that is wrong. We are proud to support the B.C. Native Women’s Society in its action against the federal government. The Press Conference announcing the lawsuit was attended by B.C. Native Women Society, the United Native Nations, the Aboriginal Women’s Council, the Aboriginal Women’s Action Network, DAWN Canada, the National Action Committee on the Status of Women, and the Vancouver Status of Women. -30- Contact: Jane Gottfriedson, President of B.C. Native Women’s Society (250) 499-7897 or Barbara Findlay, Counsel for B.C. Native Women’s Society (604) 687-8752 6 MAY 1997  THE JOINT POLICY COUNCIL WHAT IS IT AND WHAT CAN IT DO FOR YOU? WHAT IS IT? The Joint Policy Council is: *YOUR VOICE at policy table discussions with the Provincial Government on important issues that affect your community! *YOUR VISION of building a government to government relationship with the Province without sacrificing Abonginal title and Rights! The JPC was established to provide a strong regional voice for Nations who do not believe that the B.C. Treaty Commission represents their principles, beliefs, and interests. UBCIC Chiefs Council meets regularly with Cabinet ministers to negotiate a wide range of policy issues of urgent concern to Indian Nations. Many communities are struggling with issues related to roads, forestry, fisheries, health and welfare, education, to name a few. Faced with dwindling resources, it sometimes feels like we have no voice. It is more important than ever to empower ourselves, to reaffirm our beliefs, and to make sure that government hears us, The JPC is one way to do this. WHAT CAN IT DO FOR YOU? The JPC is one part of the UBCIC ALTERNATIVE to the B.C. TREATY process! The Union continues to lobby for anation-to-nation treaty process with the Federal Government and has developed a COMPREHENSIVE FRAMEWORK TREATY that would ensure that our Aboriginal Title and Rights are NOT EXTINGUISHED! UBCIC Chiefs Council and staff are working hard to make sure that YOUR VOICE is heard and YOUR VISION is realized, but the potential POWER of the Joint Policy Council will really come from YOU! KNOWLEDGE IS POWER! Ask your Chiefs Council or Nation representative about the UBCIC COMPREHENSIVE FRAMEWORK TREATY and the JOINT POLICY COUNCIL mandate and activities. Call the UBCIC JPC Coordinator to find out more or to provide ideas and information. Heipto make the JPC a successful forum for policy development by learning about it and becoming involved. Make sure your VOICE and VISION are expressed! Now more than ever- UNITED WE STAND-DIVIDED WE PERISH! Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Paulette Regan, JPC Coordinator Phone: (604) 684-0231 Fax: (604) 684-5726 UBCIC NEWS European Parliament MEP Condemns B.C. Forest Practices Brussels, Belgium - April 17, 1997, Today, Irene Soltwedel-Schafer, European Union MEP (Member of European Parliament), released and in-depth report condemning B.C. forest practices. It was delivered today to the Canadian Diplomatic Mission to the European Union in Brussels as well as various political advisors and journalists. Entitled ‘‘Clear-cutting: forestry and landrights in Canada,’’ the 20 page report is the result of a 1995 Canadian Government sponsored study tour originally intended to present an image of ‘‘world-class logging’’ to invited MEP’s. The report concluded that clear-cuts are still happening, that the Forest Practices Code has failed, and that First Nations still have no land rights, citing the 1995 Nuxalk Nation /Forest Action Network Logging Blockade on King Island as an example. Among her many references is an anti-clear-cut treatise drawn up by the New Brunswick Small Woodlot Owners Association. She also accuses the B.C. Treaty Commission process of being a federal extinguishment policy which will remove all rights of First Nations and pave the way for future industrial exploitation. FINAL ARGUMENTS START IN GUSTAFSEN LAKE TRIAL Landmark Decision Expected Soon April 24, 1997, VANCOUVER, Salish Territory — The longest and most costliest court case in Canadian history, Regina v. Mary Jane Pena et. al. known as the Gustafsen Lake trial, today began final arguments at the special high-security court room in Surrey, B.C. Prosecution and defence summations are expected to last for four to five days meaning the jury may deliberate as soon as Wednesday of next week. Throughout this trial Canada’s national police force, the RCMP, have provided evidence that they conspired and carried out "smear and disinformation" campaigns against the Sundance Defend- ers and their lawyer Dr. Bruce Clark. Peter Montague, Chief RCMP Media Liaison Officer for British Columbia, was in the trial caught on an intemal RCMP "training" videotape as saying "Smear campaigns are our specialty.” The sundance defenders allege that many of the significant events during the siege were staged or fabricated by the RCMP. The RCMP have introduced little evidence to contradict the Sundancer’s allegations. "The RCMP have been caught lying under oath on several accounts throughout this trial which further exemplifies the Sundancer's position that the RCMP fabricated numerous incidents including the August 27, 1995, incident [where two RCMP officers were alleged to have been ambushed and shot] to justify a kill at the camp,” said Tsepten Defence Committee Spokesperson Splitting the Sky. "And we do not think the RCMP were acting alone in this. We believe they were acting on instruction and with the approval of their political masters - provincial and federal politicians such as B.C.'s Attomey General, Ujjal Dosanjh." MAY 1997  UBCIC NEWS RESOURCE CENTRE UPDATE e have discovered that not all of British Columbia is covered on the Census reels that we recently acquired for 1881, 1891 and 1901. We suspect some areas of the province may have been included in the census for Alberta and/or the NWT. We have two census catalogues on order from the National Archives which we hope will help us sort it out. If there are areas of B.C. covered on reels we do not have, we will order these reels so that our census for B.C. is as complete as possible. We also suspect that there are some areas of the province which the census takers did not cover because of barriers such as inclement weather, rugged access to remote areas, etc. We have two new voiunteers in the Resource Centre. Dorine Cyr and Alma Peters are going to continue our project to get brief records for all items in our Paul Chartrand Special Collection on our automated catalogue. We also hope to hire two summer students with the heip of goverment grants. These siudents will help with additional cataloguing projects. For anyone who is coming to Vancouvertodoresearch, the Resource Centre will have evening hours in May and June to provide access for the Institute of Indigenous Govemment students who take spring semester courses at the iG. The Resource Centre will be open late on Tuesdays and Thursdays until 8 p.m. from the week of May 19th through to the end of June. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays we will be open until 4:30 p.m. Sarah Nighswander will be replacing Sarah Torsky, our cataloguer, when she goes on matemity leave in June. It will be a busy summer training and supervising summer students and helping our new cataloguer settle into her job. inthe next newsletter, we will be announcing acquisition of new CD-ROM products which will be very helpful to researchers. We are setting up a separate workstation for these information databases and will let you know when everything is running smoothly and we are able to make them available for use. NUXALK AND FOREST ACTION NETWORK STEAL BACK TIMBER FROM UK TIMBER YARD Embargo: 15:00 GMT, Wed, 9 Apmil 1997 MANCHESTER, UK - The Nuxalk First Nation will “*steal back’’ Western Red Cedar from a six acre timber yard which they accuse of handling stolen timber. On Wednesday afternoon they will enter and ‘ethically shoplift’’ large planks of timber from the yard of one of the largest timber importers in the UK. They will hand the timber in to Stretford police station, where they will ask the police to charge the timber yard with handling stolen property. Companies such as Interfor and MacMillan Bloedel have sent material to Manchester. These forests are the traditional lands of the Nuxalk First Nation. They depend on the forest for their livelihood for fishing and for their cultural and spiritual survival. The Nuxalk are a sovereign nation and have not given permission for the extraction of timber from their lands. The Nuxalk consider that timber taken from their lands without their consent is stolen. The Nuxalk Nation are in the UK to demand an immediate recognition of their sovereignty and an immediate end to the industrial logging on their land. The Nuxalk Nation are asking UK timber trades to refuse to purchase any more timber from their lands. The Nuxalk will be helped by environmental activists from Forest Action Network. MAY 1997  UBCIC NEWS pS b STAKES RISING OVER ILLEGAL FISH FARM IN CLAYOQUOT SOUND Chief Sam has given the February 25, 1997 — Ahousaht First Nations Chief Councillor Sidney Sam vowed today to enforce the province’s own requirement for removal of fish from a salmon farm in Ahousaht traditional territory in Clayoquot Sound. The fish farm, operated by Pacific National Group, is growing salmon illegally since its tenure expired in November. “‘If the province won't do its job, then we will exercise our sovereign nght and act on its behalf,”’ said Chief Sam. B.C. Lands had ordered the company to remove the fish by January 31, and later extended the date to February 21. Both dates passed without action, and now the province appears unwilling to take further steps. The Ahousaht opposed renewal of the license because of concems over the negative impacts the farm has had on wild salmon, herring, and shellfish in the area. Since herring are now starting to spawn in Clayoquot, the Ahousaht view the provincial foot- dragging as unacceptable given the potential loss to the TESOUICE. "Tf the province won't do its job, then we will exercise our sovereign right and act on its behalf” - Chief Sidney Sam province until 5 pm, on Wednesday to commit to firm action on removing the fish. If there is no agreement in place, the Ahousaht will enforce the government’s order on Thursday moming. Salmon farming is coming under increasingly scrutiny in B.C. since the start of the Salmon Aquaculture Review process undertaken by the province to assess the nsks of salmon farming. All representatives at the table other than those from industry and government have expressed sharp concerns with the way in which salmon farming is presently practiced in B.C. The chief concerns of fishermen, First Nations and environmentalists include the threat of disease spreading from exotic species of farmed salmon to wild salmon, the lack of regulation of drug use on salmon farms, and the large amounts of concentrated fecal waste generated. Contact: Chief Sidney Sam (250) 670-9563. For information on the Salmon Aquaculture Review contact: Howard Breen (250) 753-3459 12th Annual Intertribal Pow~Wow Honouring Our Urban First Nations Families Reclaiming Our Sacred Time and Space on the Pow-Wow Trail May 9, 10, 11, 1997 Trout Lake Community Centre 3350 Victoria Drive, Vancouver, B.C. ALCOHOL AND DRUG FREE Admission by Donation Contacts: Wally Awasis (604) 874-9929 or Karen (604) 434-4246 Arts and Craft Tables contact Gord (604) 323-2568 MAY 1997  UBCIC NEWS National Day of Action Tsilhgot’in Nation supports B.C. Native youth occupation of B.C. Treaty Commission Office in Vancouver. April 18, 1997 The Tsilhgotin National Government is in total support of the occupation of the British Columbia Treaty Commission head office boardroom in Vancouver by about 30 members of the Vancouver based Native Youth Movement. We are also in total agreement with their contention that the B.C. Treaty Process is illegally negotiating treaties with B.C. Indians in clear violation of international law that requires such treaty negotiations to be conducted only between national sovereign governments and indigenous nations [peoples]. They accuse the BCTC of collaborating with ‘so- called’ native leaders of the First Nations Summit for the purpose of selling out the nights of the native youth throughout the Province of B.C. So do we, the Tsilhgotin National Government. The BCTC has further compromised internationally recognized treaty making processes by conducting its negotiations with Indian representatives who are not fully mandated to do so by the Indian people they supposedly represent. The youth occupiers of the BCTC Boardroom have echoed the position of the TNG that treaty negotiations can only proceed if the Indian nation is solidly behind their leaders’ negotiation position. This means that members must be fully informed about the issues and give their consent to their chosen leaders to negotiate on their behalf. The youth occupiers have indicated that they will respect BCTC property during the occupation, and the Tsilhqotin Nation advises that these youth occupiers of the BCTC Boardroom must have their chosen forum to present their strong Message respected, and be provided with proper food and services while they are guests of the BCTC. The BCTC will be held fully responsible for any indignity or injury that may NATIVE YOUTH MOVEMENT Apmil 25, 1997 - On the 17th and 18th of April approximately 30 Native Youth Movement members spent two days and a night occupying the B.C. Treaty Commission office in downtown Vancouver. The occupation was in protest of the B.C. Treaty Process. The Native Youth Movement are 100% opposed to the treaty process. The NYM refused to leave until a meeting with the Treaty Commission and the NYM was set. The Native Youth Movement stated that any Treaty Process that promotes the loss of our traditional homelands in any form is considered treason. The Native Youth Movement reject the BCTC process and its Nisga’a style settlement model. The Nisga’a people shall lose, 92% of their traditional homeland forever, if the Nisga’a people ratify the agreement. With the assistance of Rene Taylor (an aboriginal legal services lawyer in Vancouver), the date agreed upon by both parties was on or before April 25, 1997. This lack of commitment and deceitful wording of the agreement is unacceptable to the NYM. We will hold the BCTC commissioners accountable to the commitment made to us as Native Youth, by setting a firm meeting date. The NYM and the BCTC have suggested a meeting date of May 27,1997. The NYM will hold the BCTC accountable to this date, Further the NYM would like to take this opportunity to warn the BCTC; in the event (BCTC) continues to play games, the NYM shall return and re- occupy the offices of the BCTC. -30- Contact: Monty Joseph (250) 493-3924 or Skeena Reece (604) 688-1821 happen to these Indian representatives resulting from BCTC - initiated measures. We also call on the BCTC to immediately open the phone and fax lines so they can be contacted by Indian nation organizations and their family members. TNG Deputy National Chief Ray Hance said he is pleased that B.C. Native Youth have become involved in the issue of treaty making, particularly by protesting the fraudulent B.C. Treaty Commission Process. “*We congratulate these young people who are taking this action for the courage of their convictions. We share with them their sense of outrage at the way in which the governments of Canada and British Columbia are conspiring to deprive the indigenous nations, by a deceitful and fraudulent process, of territones and nights that are protected by international, constitutional and indigenous law,’’ he said. Deputy National Chief Hance also issued a stern warning to the BCTC about its treatment of the Native Youth Movement emissaries who are presenting a valid grievance to the BCTC. ‘“We ask the BCTC to respect the occupants. These young people personify the future of our nations. Every effort must be made to listen to them and to understand what they have to say. We ask you to do so. Freedom of communication TNG PRESS RELEASE (Continued on Page 11) 10 SUMMER 1996  UBCIC NEWS ~ April 17, SETON LAKE INDIAN BAND Apnil 17, 1997 Kalh wa7acw (Hello) We welcome you to our territory! We are stopping this train today to share an important message with you. The land you are travelling through is the terntory of the St’at’imc People. Fifteen years ago April 17, 1982, Queen Elizabeth II signed into law the Constitution Act 1982 Section 35 of the Constitution; recognize and affirms the Aboriginal and Treaty Rights of Aboriginal peoples. Despite this recognition and affirmation in the constitution, the social and economic conditions of our people have not improved over the past 15 years. Also, our people are excluded from the amending formula in the constitution and therefore are denied the opportunity to identify and define any further changes to Section 35 to protect our collective Aboriginal and Treaty Rights. As you travel through our valley and further along in our territory you will notice that B.C. Hydro has played a large role in changing the face of the land. You must realize that we derive no benefit from this corporate giant. Our community has received no compensation of any type for the cutblocks that you will see on the opposite shore of Seton Lake. For this reason, we feel the Federal government must reconsider their decision to not act upon the recommendations laid out in the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. The rail road tracks this ‘‘Budd Car’’ is travelling over is our land. It was taken without permission and knowledge. As you see the tracks interfere with our use of the shore line of the lakes within our territory. We thank you for listening to us today, enjoy the rest of your journey. Hu7malh (farewell) Chief Garry John On behalf of Seton Lake Band 1997 Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs PRESS STATEMENT Stl’atl’imx Territory, April 18, 1997 Chief Saul Terry, President of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, made these comments in support of the Native Youth who are occupying the Treaty Commission Office to demand changes to the process: “The Union of B.C. Indian is proud of the Native Youth Movement (“"NYM”’’) in their principled stand to refuse to accept any treaties coming out of the B.C. Treaty Commission Process. The Youth are taking action to protect the future of their Peoples, and are demanding answers to questions which profoundly affect their political, social and economic future in their respective homelands.’’ ‘“The NYM is tired of the depressing situations Indigenous Peoples find ourselves in, they are taking action to ensure that any political solutions allow us to fulfill our responsibilities and obligations as Indigenous Peoples to care for and protect our land and nights for future generations. “*The youth are seeking the truth. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs urges the Treaty Commission Office to listen to the NYM and recognize their right to lead us. It is, afterall, their future which we are fighting for.”’ : TNG PRESS RELEASE (Continued from page 10) must be assured to them. Efforts to prevent the education of the public on these vitally important issues will only lead to more confrontation and trouble if any of the protesters should be hurt.”’ Contact, Chief Saul Terry, 250-256-4125. ““If the occupants call for help, the Tsilhqot’in National Government will respond by urging Tshilqot’in Nation members to attend in strength, Let it be clearly understood that this action has been caused not by our young protesters, but by governments that continue to refuse to face the reality of resurgent indigenous nations who ask those governments to obey their own laws and those of the international community of sovereign states,’’ he said. -30- Contact: Ray Hance, TNG Deputy National Chief (250) 392-3918 SUMMER 1996 11  UBCIC NEWS A Message from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Expiry Dates Established for Certificates of Indian Status The purpose of issuing Certificates of Indian Status is to verify that the cardholder is a registered Indian. Certificates of Indian Status are only useful if the photographs and physical descriptions are current. It has come to our attention that some registered Indians have been denied services because some service providers have questioned whether their status cards are still valid. To remedy this situation, it has been decided that status cards issued to individual under the age of eighteen will have an expiry date of two years and status cards issued to individuals over the age of eighteen will have an expiry date of five years. This policy is effective immediately. It should be noted that the five year expiry date does not mean that the cardholder ceases to be a registered Indian at the end of the five year period. It only means that if the cardholder intends to use the status card to obtain certain services and benefits, it must be renewed every five years. It should also be noted that all previous versions of the status card will continue to be valid until January 1, 2000. Therefore, it is very important that your renew your current status card on or before January 1, 2000. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact your Band or the Indian Registry and Bands Lists Office, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, B.C. Region, at (604) 666-2059 OVIDE MECREDI (Continued from page 4) Thirdly, we will focus on people like Mr. Dion, the minster of reconciliation, the minister of reconciliation who forgets that the aboriginal people exist and his only priority is what’s happening in the province of Quebec. So we will be focusing on him as well in the next few weeks. Finally, Senator Fairbairn, who has, J understand, a very powerful influence on the Prime Minister, one of his key advisors in his inner circle of friends. And on that score, I might say that the students from the University of Calgary have occupied his office yesterday and the Senator has agreed to meet with them today. Depending on the outcome of these discussions with the Senator, the students are prepared to carry on with their protests involving her. We will be inviting our communities across the country to try to do things creatively with Canadians in general where we don't create any annoyances with anybody but we try to build public support for our issues. So what we’re asking for now is not so much slowing down traffic, which we did in 18 locations yesterday, but what we’re asking for is for people to do some cultural events, some educational sessions, and to involve not just the politicians in their area, like the municipal Northern Ontario M.P. and Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development Ronald A. Irwin Announces Retirement From Federal Politics Sault Ste. Marnie (Apmil 4, 1997) - Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Member of Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie Ronald A. Irwin today announced that he will not be seeking re-election in the next federal election. “*This is a personal choice that I have made and I am looking forward to being able to enjoy more time with my family and friends. It has been an honour for me to serve the government of Prime Minster Jean Chretien and the residents of Sault Ste. Marie,’’ said Ron Irwin. Mr. Irwin continued, ‘‘I wish to thank my wife Margaret and our children for their wonderful support and confidence, which over the years has made this challenging experience so fulfilling. ] would also like to thank the people of Sault Ste. Marie whom I have had the pleasure of representing as both their Mayor and Member of Parliament.’’ Ron Irwin was first elected to the House of Commons in 1980, where he served one term. He was re-elected in the general election of October 1993. Prime Minister Jean Chretien appointed Ron Irwin to the federal cabinet November 4, 1993 as the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. “IT would like to thank the Prime Minister for his friendship and guidance. I would also like to thank my colleagues in the House of Commons who have encouraged me and supported the work I have done. To the Elders, Chiefs, Aboriginals, Metis, and Inuit peoples who have befriended me and taught me, meegwetch.”’ For information contact: Cate McCready, Minister’s Office (819) 997-0002 politicians, but the support groups and the human rights organizations, the church organizations, and to try to build support for all our people in that manner. Apparently I forgot one very important individual who is going to be the focus of our attention as well, and that is the Honourable Allan Rock, the Minister of Justice. Because in effect, what we’re asking for from the Canadians is justice. He himself is guilty in terms of diminishing our treaty and aboriginal nghts when he introduced the gun control legislation without due regard to the treaty nghts of our people, and even though we spoke to him on numerous occasions to discourage him from passing the law in the manner that he did, he refused to listen to our people. So he will also be the focus of our attention in the next coming weeks. As a Strategy, when the election is called, whenever that is, and when these people go out to seek the support of our people, we will dog them, we will follow them and we will do whatever we can to draw attention to the plight of our people and also try to get the support of the general public in terms of ensuring that they vote for the candidates that are sensitive to the needs and the issues of aboriginal people and that they hold the current government accountable for its inactions. 12 MAY 1997  Institute of Indigenous Government Extension Programs EXTENSION PROGRAMS The Institute of Indigenous Government is committed to expanding extension and off-campus programming to enhance First Nation students access to our unique education program in British Columbia, Canada and around the world. Our goal is to deliver up to 80% of our courses ‘‘off campus’’ in regional centres and Indigenous communities through the extension program and by innovative distance learning strategies. Rather than sending students to a post-secondary institution, which is usually located in urban settings, our instructors can be sent to communities to deliver credited and non-credited courses offered through our extension programs. This arrangement allows students to remain in the home community, close to family, friends and employment. The HG is also committed to provide community- based quality programs to all students wherever their home communities may be located. There are presently two extension sites in operation to date. The first extension sites are located in Saanich and Lillooet, BC. We are anticipating additional sites at Duncan, the William Head Correctional Centre, Lytton, Mount Currie BC and in the Yukon Ternitory. Anticipated start up is aimed for the Fall semester of 1997. SAANICH EXTENSION PROGRAM This extension site was established in the Spring of 1996. This arrangement enables First Nations students from the Saanich Nation, and the surrounding areas, to access instruction, student development workshops, and community support while pursuing their post-secondary studies. Students at the Saanich site are enrolled part-time and full-time in either the Certificate in Indigenous Government Studies (30 credits) or the Associate of Arts Degree in Indigenous Government Studies (60 credits). The foundation courses are being offered on an on-going basis to allow for new applicants. For more information on the Saanich Extension program, contact: Paul Sam, IG Saanich Extension Co-ordinator Phone:(250) 652-5784 Fax:(250) 544-0538 LILLOOET EXTENSION PROGRAM The students at the Lillooet Extension Program are working full-time in the community while attending six hours of instruction one day per week. For example, IGST 101 will alternate with IGAD 101 every other Monday. This arrangement allows the students to remain working in their community and stay close to family and friends. As student enrolment increases the foundation courses and the four principal areas of specialization will be offered to UBCIC NEWS meet the demand. Evening and/or day classes can be arranged. For more information on this exciting educational opportunity in the Lillooet area, contact: Marilyn Napolean, IG Lillooet Extension Co-ordinator, Lillooet Tribal Council Phone: (250) 256-7523 Fax:(250) 256-7119 ELDERS & RESOURCE PEOPLE Elders from the community are providing cultural, social and spiritual guidance for the students. Their input into Indigenous education assures that Indigenous control is being reflected in the implementation of instruction, course development, workshops, and student support. Elders also, actively participate with the delivery of symposiums, workshops and cultural events which fully reflect indigenous philosophy, values and experience. Community members are also utilised to enhance and aid in the instruction of our courses, symposiums and workshops, To sit in on any of the Extension courses, please contact the co-ordinators for class time and schedules. For information on Extension Programs in your area, contact Jennie Blankinship, Director of Extension Programs at (604) 602-9555 or Fax (604) 602-3432. 21st Ammual Provincial Elders Conference ‘OF Okan agan Nation Elders August 12, 13 & 14, 1997 Penticton Indian Band Cultural & Health Workshops Entertainment / Special Events Special Guest: Jom Jackson For more information contact the Penticton Indian Band (250) 493-0048 MAY 1997 13  UBCIC NEWS The Union Mailbox April 2, 1997 To whom it may concern: HSA is a union of workers in both the health and community sectors in the province of British Columbia. In 1994, our members established two $500.00 scholarships to assist aboriginal students in the province of B.C. who are pursuing education in a HSA field that would lead to a recognized certification, degree or diploma. Thank you for your attention to this and your assistance in “‘getting the message out’’. For more information about our scholarship and or to obtain a scholarship application form please Contact Carmen- Anne Menegozza at the Health Sciences Association of B.C. @ (604) 439-0994, Sincerely, Carmen - Anne Menegozzo Senior Labour Relations Officer - Education & OH&S HEALTH SCIENCES ASSOCIATION OF B.C. April 22, 1997 Dear Sirs: We would like to thank-you for your past help in advertising our Pow-Wow. Our Pow-Wows have been a success in the past, helping to show seven to ten thousand peoples of all cultures the First Nations traditions. Due to our Pow-Wow being postponed last year, we want to ensure this year’s a success by advertising to the fullest. We depend entirely on donations and a small grant from the City of Vancouver, to assist with the expenses. Volunteers provide the services to stage the event, which includes a free community feast on Saturday, along with a Mother’s Day Breakfast at Cedar Cottage on Sunday Morning. We will try to feed as many people as possible. Any donations are greatly appreciated. Charitable tax receipts are available upon request. For further information you can reach me at 434-4246. All my relations Karen E. Soldan Co-Chairman Cedar Cottage, Trout Lake Traditional Pow-Wow Committee UNITED NATIVE NATIONS Congratulations to the Board of Directors of Local #133 President - Margaret Prevost, Nimpkish Vice President - Fred Arrance, Cree Treasurer - Glen Campbell, Musqueam Secretary - James Shorty, Yukon Territory BOARD MEMBERS: Marlene Trick, Tsimshian Florence Hackett, Coaishes / Homalko Norman Mark, Sechelt Ron Chevnier, Algonquin Nigel Morin, Metis Hector Hill, Gitksan THE HASTINGS RESERVATION HAS ITS OWN VOICE!! Call Blue Jeanne for more information at (604) 688-1821 HEALING OUR SPIRIT B.C. First Nations AIDS Society On June 7th, 1997 Barb McKinnon and I will be joining The Great Walk from Gold River to Tahsis - a total of 63.5 kilometers. Piease open your hearts and wallets and make a pledge to support our efforts. All donations will be given to Healing Our Spirit, B.C. First Nations AIDS Society HIV+ Fund. Contact: Catherine Blackstock, Executive Director (604) 983-8774 March 19, 1997 Dear Collegue: Immunization can keep children safe from many serious illnesses, such as measles, mumps, rubella and polio. But children need to complete their full schedule of shots to be protected, On time, every time. That's why the Canadian Public Health Association, in partnership with the Canadian Medical Association, the Canadian Paediatric Society and Health Canada, has launched the National Immunization Awareness Program. Children's entertainers Sharon, Lois & Bram have volunteered their time to be featured in print public service announcements, as well as on posters and radio spots, for this major, national campaign. We ask your support for this campain by running the enclosed publice service announcement in your publication. Four-colour separations to run the announcement in colour are available upon request. Thank you for helping to send this important health message to many Candians, particularly the parents of young children. Sincerly, Robert Burr Director, Public Affairs and Communications (613) 725-3769 14 MAY 1997  UBCIC NEWS MAP OF THE SOVEREIGN INDIGENOUS NATIONS TERRITORIAL BOUNDARIES: JUNE, 1993 The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs’ map of the Sovereign Indigenous Nations Territorial Boundaries is the only contemporary map that accurately shows the traditional tribal terntories of the 23 Indian Nations in British Columbia. The six colour map measures 28" x 36". The tribal territories are the homelands of distinct Nations, within which their respective peoples share a common language, culture and traditional forms of political and social organization. These homelands have been occupied by the Indian Nations since time immemonial. Up to the present, the Indian Nations in British Columbia have never surrendered their ownership of their homelands (aboriginal title), nor have they surrendered their original sovereignty as nations to govern their homelands (inherent jurisdiction). Information on the territorial boundaries was compiled by the Union’s research portfolio and President’s office between July, 1990 and April, 1993 from archival research and information provided by elders, chiefs, and tribal councils. Chief Saul Terry, President of the Union and a graduate of the Vancouver College of Art (now the Emily Carr College of Art and Design), prepared the working drafts for the map. Design and cartography for the June, 1993 map was done by David Sami, chief cartographer of Multi Mapping Ltd. in Vancouver, B.C., using a 1:2,000,000 scale base-map from the Surveys and Environment Branch of the British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. All territorial boundaries shown on the map are subject to further revision, as additional information becomes available. Contact the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs at (604) 684-0231 for ordering information. 28" x 36" / Scale: 1:2 000 000 / Six Colours rot Pe) MAY 1997 15  UBCIC NEWS NAME: UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS SUBSCRIPTION FORM FOR OFFICE USE ONLY . DATE RECEIVED: ADDRESS: CHEQ/MLO.# EXPIRY DATE: PROVINCE/STATE/COUNTRY: PosTAL/Zip Cope: 1 Year Su BSCRIPTION RATES NewsLETIER Individual: $35.00 NewsCLIPPING Member Bands: $75.00 Individual: $100.00 TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED $ Please make cheque or money order payable to: UNION OF B.C. INDIAN CHIEFS, 5TH FLOOR - 342 WATER STREET, VANCOUVER, B.C., V6B JAI CONSIGNMEN: CHIEFS MASK BOOKS Owned and operated by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs - Sth Floor 342 Water Street in Gastown (604) 684-0231 NOW SERVING THE INSTITUTE OF INDIGENOUS GOVERNMENT BOOKS ARTS & CRAFTS - FIRST NATIONS - JEWELLRY - ABORIGINAL ISSUES - POTTERY - INTERNATIONAL INDIGENOUS - PRINTS _ LAND CLAIMS _ T-SHIRTS - LEATHERWORK -ART - MASKS - CHILDREN'S BOOKS - BEADWORK - POETRY - POW WOW MUSIC CALL, WRITE OR ~ AND MUCH MORE! DROP IN TODAY! 16 MAY 1997