The Aboriginal Newspaper of British Columbia & Yukon Published June 7, 1999   Signing and Blessing Ceremony inside Lekwammen Longhouse on May 5. From left to right, Tsartlip Elder, Samuel Sam; NIL/TU,O director, Paul Sam; British Columbia Ministry for Children and Families director, Ross Dawson; INAC associate regional director general, Wendy John; Bert Charles, chief of Beecher Bay; Allen Claxton, chief of Tsawout Band; Curtis Olsen, chief of Tsartlip Band; Robert Sam, chief of Songhees Band; and Ed Mitchell, chief of Pauquachin. See Story Photo Credit: Troy Hunter Capital region First Nations now control child protection by Troy Hunter Kamloops Band, union attempt to solve disagreement by Paul Barnsley Indian Act section contrary to Charter by Paul Barnsley Adolescents and chemical dependency: Part II - column by Gil Lerat A great whale of a dilemma- Editorial By Paul Barnsley News in brief: Treaty commissioners are re-appointed BC Hydro will sponsor achievement awards Elders preparing to gather in Kamloops Luuxhon appealed Here is a full list of additional stories featured in the June, 1999 issue of Raven's Eye. If you are not receiving your own copy of Raven's Eye, then you have missed all this information. Click here for Raven's Eye subscription information. Makah return to their traditions Indian Act will be examined Indigenous artists showcased at festival for emerging artists Silver anniversary celebrated in valley The first man to find gold in Yukon recognized in video Gas exploration threatening caribou herd and First Nation lifestyle Aboriginal reader disagrees with Makah whale hunt Treaty commissioners are re-appointed Wilf Adams, Debra Hanuse and Peter Lusztig were re-appointed to two-year terms on the British Columbia Treaty Commission last month. Wilf Adams Adams and Hanuse represent the First Nations Summit. Lusztig was re-appointed by the federal government for his third term on the commission. The commission monitors, facilitates and reports on the 42 sets of treaty negotiations that are being conducted in the province.   BC Hydro will sponsor achievement awards BC Hydro has signed an agreement with the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation to become a regional corporate sponsor of the 7th Annual National Aboriginal Achievement Awards which will take place March 10, 2000, at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver. "BC Hydro has many interests on First Nations traditional lands - power generation facilities and thousands of kilometres of power lines - all of which reinforces the need to establish and maintain positive relationships. In a competitive marketplace, First Nations people are also a significant segment of our customer base. Overall, First Nations play a key role in our ability to have continuous access to lands and resources," said BC Hydro's president and CEO Michael Costello. "We are delighted to have BC Hydro on board as the first regional sponsor of the 2000 Awards. We look forward to working with Hydro on a number of activities leading up to March, 2000," said president and founder of the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation, John Kim Bell Elders preparing to gather in Kamloops The 23rd annual British Columbia Elders Gathering will be hosted at the KXA grounds in Kamloops on Aug. 2, 3 and 4. The Secwepemc Nation is proud to be hosting the gathering, which will have a slightly different flavor this year as many events will commemorate the United Nations Year of the Older Person. Elders and others from all over the province, as well as from the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, other provinces and parts of the United States, have attended previous gatherings. Last year's gathering in Prince George attracted 3,500 people. John and Susan Seymour are this year's king and queen. They've been married for 48 years and have six children and seven grandchildren. Luuxhon appealed The British Columbia Court of Appeal has agreed to hear appeals from the provincial and federal governments regarding the Luuxhon decision. That decision, named after a Gitxsan hereditary chief, ruled that Canada and British Columbia must negotiate in good faith when attempting to solve Aboriginal land claim issues. The original court decision was hailed by the Gitanyow chiefs as a substantial victory for all Aboriginal peoples. Gitanyow negotiator Glenn Williams said the overlap of his people's claim with the territory covered by the Nisga'a agreement indicates that the Crown was not negotiating in good faith. The appeal court will hear the appeals from the public governments before the original trial proceeds. Capital region First Nations now control child protection By Troy Hunter Raven's Eye Writer VICTORIA The First Nations in the capital region have taken the first step towards full responsibility for providing support and protection services to their children and families. A signing and blessing ceremony was held in the Lekwammen Longhouse on May 5. It was an historical event in an appropriate place. There was a sacred dance performed and it was a gift from Mary Thomas. It was appropriate because it is for the children and the agreement signed is also for the children. Wendy John of the Musqueam Band was there to sign for the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. "I think it is really significant that the document was signed inside the longhouse," John said. "The sacredness of the ceremony shows the priority they have for their children." The agreement, which is a phased-in delegation of provincial authority for child welfare services, recognizes that five bands -Tsawout, Tsartlip, Pauquachin, Songhees and Beecher Bay - have joined collectively through the NIL/TU,O Child and Family Services Society to take direct responsibility for providing child welfare services in the capital region. "This is an important building block for the member bands of the NIL/TU,O Child and Family Services Society, said chairperson Paul Sam. "Our mission is to preserve the culture, safety and well-being of Aboriginal children and youth through services that build on the strengths, creativity, capacity and uniqueness of families and communities in the capital region." When asked if he had any worries about how the new arrangement will work out, considering there have been problems in the past with Aboriginal communities and the child-care system, Sam said, "We're kind of hoping that won't happen because of our own traditional systems and families. We can bring in our own Elders to build up our own family systems and put them back in place. We have to remember who we are and where we came from." "This agreement recognizes the inherent responsibility of Aboriginal people to care for their own," said Children and Families Minister Lois Boone. "It also reflects the ministry's commitment to support First Nations people to develop and deliver their own child, family and community services." The new agreement allows for delegation of authority from the province to the society to be phased in over the next three to five years. The society will then manage and operate a full range of child protection and family support services under the Child, Family and Community Services Act. The federal Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development will provide funding for start-up and operation of the new First Nations agency as part of a commitment - under Gathering Strength ­-Canada's Aboriginal Action Plan - to bring real and practical improvements to the lives of Aboriginal children, their families and their communities. Under the first phase of the agreement, the society will develop preventive and support services while building expertise and establishing resources such as foster homes. In the second phase, the society will take on guardianship responsibilities for the long-term planning for children in their communities. In the third phase, a further agreement will be negotiated for the agency to provide a full range of child and family services, including child protection. In addition to this agreement, 14 other British Columbia First Nation groups have signed child welfare agreements with the province. Kamloops Band, union attempt to solve disagreement By Paul Barnsley Raven's Eye Writer KAMLOOPS With an estimated 50 First Nations across the country currently dealing with the unionization of band employees, one First Nation - the Kamloops Indian Band - has decided to put its own stamp on the way labor relations will proceed on its territory. The Kamloops band has initiated its own labor code. The code is based on the concept that the confrontational nature of the collective bargaining process is one that is foreign to traditional Shuswap culture. Strikes are banned. Labor disputes are settled by a locally-appointed tribunal. The Canadian Labour Congress passed a resolution condemning the Kamloops code at its annual convention in early May, saying it doesn't comply with established Canadian labor laws. But Chief Manny Jules believes it's a self government issue. He thinks that the Constitution's Section 35 protection of Aboriginal rights - which includes the inherent right of self government - gives his council the legal authority to create its own labor laws. Jules couldn't be reached for comment but the band spokesperson for this issue, Mat Wilcox, a Vancouver-based communications specialist said the issue is still being discussed. "The band wants to be able to maintain open communications. They also agree that if the employees want to have a union, that's fine. They just want the union to understand that when they unionize a reserve, it's not the same as if they would unionize any other business - so to speak - because those other businesses, they don't live beside each other," Wilcox said. The Canada Industrial Labour Board conducted hearings on the matter in Vancouver through the month of May. Both the band and the British Columbia Government and Services Employees' Union (BCGEU), the union which is seeking to ratify its certification of the 85 Kamloops Indian Band employees, disagree on how to proceed. "Because there's an unfair labor practice complaint against the Kamloops Indian Band, what has happened is that the band has submitted arguments to the Canada Labour Relations Board saying, 'Wait a minute, we have a right to do this under the Canadian Constitution' and the union's saying, 'No, they don't have that right because Canada's law says everybody has to go under the Canada labor code.' So the union's on the one hand saying we don't have a right to have our own code and the band's saying yes we do under Section 35 and the Canada Labour Relations Board is standing in the middle. So what they're doing is for the next month, they're going to be seeing arguments from both sides as to whether there is a right for the Indian band to have its own code," Wilcox said. Now that the workers have been certified, the union wants to negotiate the first collective agreement. "Chief Manny Jules met with [union president] John Shields and he said to him, 'We do want to begin bargaining because we do believe our employees have the right to a union. But the union has to respect us as a people.' The union came back and said it's against the law for us to go under your own code. So what they've agreed to do - both sides - to start bargaining under neither code. This is the first of its kind in Canada," Wilcox said. The union and the band met on May 18 and 19 and again on May 27 and 28. Jules called for the Assembly of First Nations and the Canadian Labour Congress to join in a third party task force to consider the question of First Nations' jurisdiction regarding labor relations. In late April, the band sent an explanatory letter to every attorney general in Canada, updating them on this issue.

Indian Act section contrary to Charter By Paul Barnsley Raven's Eye Writer OTTAWA The law of the land has caught up with the Department of Indian Affairs. The long-awaited decision in the Corbiere case was handed down by the Supreme Court of Canada on May 20. The court ruled that Section 77 (1) of the Indian Act, which allowed bands to prohibit off-reserve residents from voting in band council elections, was contrary to the equality provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. John Corbiere, the 64-year-old Batchewana Indian Band member who served as chief from 1966-1980 and again for one year in 1994 (he was ousted part way through that term for missing three meetings in a row, thus violating a rarely enforced attendance rule), first won a decision on the equality voting rights issue in the Federal Court of Canada in 1993. The band and the federal government took the case to the Federal Court of Appeal, lost again and then filed a final appeal with the Supreme Court of Canada. The loss there puts pressure on the federal government to change its policy regarding off-reserve people. Corbiere was happy with the decision. He was able to attend a press conference in Ottawa shortly after the decision was handed down only because the Native Women's Association of Canada, an intervenor in his case, paid his way to the nation's capital. The legal battle has taken a financial toll on the Batchewana member. Wearied by his long legal battle, he didn't sound optimistic about how the government will respond to the decision. "I have to wonder who's going to enforce it," he told Raven's Eye. "They have the money and we're over here with the decision." He said the Federal Court told Indian Affairs the offending section of the Indian Act was unconstitutional in 1993 and yet the government continued to fight him in court. Regina lawyer Merv Phillips argued part of the case in the Supreme Court. He also was pleased with the court's decision. "We led the charge as far as the fiduciary duty argument and the Charter argument at the court and I understand it was successful. I haven't had a chance to read it, yet," he said. "I was honored to be able to make that argument and it was accepted by the courts. That's very important from the viewpoint of the constitutional negotiations that will now go forward. As you know, the judgment has been suspended for 18 months pending the negotiations." Many observers interpret the decision to mean that the federal government is now expected to look for ways to make the Indian Act conform to the Constitution. But Leona Freed, a member of the First Nations Accountability Coalition of Manitoba, thinks there's a way for bands and the federal government to continue to deny off-reserve members the vote. "They're not going to like this so they're probably going to try to jump out of the Indian Act and into band custom," she said. "The decision probably will be ineffectual if bands start opting out of Section 74 and into band custom. If the chiefs don't like it, the uncaring or corrupt chiefs, they'll opt for band custom." Merv Phillips said the decision will make it harder for band councils to use custom election codes to exclude off reserve members. "They can attempt that and, of course, I don't think we have to believe that First Nations as sovereign Nations are going to be behaving in a democratic way," he said. "What's very important is in terms of the customs circumstances the election of those custom procedures have to involve and again recognize the fiduciary responsibility. The court has said if those are adopted, as I understand it, if those are adopted without the proper participation then those too will be set aside. Harry Daniels is president of the Congress of Aboriginal People, a group which lobbies for off-reserve rights. He had unkind words for any band which tries to sidestep this decision by adopting custom election codes. "If they do, then I want to tell you, they're just as racist and . . . what can you do with people like that?" he said. "If Indians pass those kinds of membership codes and restrictive elements then they're no better than the people they're fighting, the federal government - they're in league with them. They're discriminating against their own people." Daniels said 53 per cent of Native people live off-reserve and it's time for the government to pay attention to their needs. "The court has taken the argument that CAP put forward that the government has a fiduciary responsibility for all Aboriginal people, in this case off-reserve Indians, and that they can't vacate that responsibility," Daniels said. "So, if they're going to strike up a Constitutional negotiation process to discuss this and to change that and to facilitate the rights of the off-reserve Indian people then I think CAP has to be intimately involved in that board and the government has to place enough funding." The federal government has adopted the policy of only dealing with on-reserve residents, Daniels said. "Everything that the government does is directed on reserve. They're striking up an apartheid system whereby you're an Indian if you're on reserve and if not, you're not an Indian anymore," he said. "They've abandoned their fiduciary responsibility to those Indians and that's the argument we made in the Batchewana case. I don't think this is going to be the end-all for this kind of a thing. It's been happening over the years. You've got to straighten out band councils, how people are elected and how they respond to the needs of off-reserve people." Indian Affairs is going to have to make a fundamental change in direction as a result of the decision, Daniels said. "The government has continued to shrink the definition of an Indian. Indians' right to identify themselves have been usurped by the settler governments and Indians are falling prey to it because it benefits some greedy despot on a reserve. It's good for them," he said. "If it gives control to a family, it's good for them. It's regrettable and look, you can't blame some of the people - and I'm not trying to absolve them of blame - but if they've been poor all their lives and all of sudden they're a chief . . . it's like a union leader. This guy have been swinging a wrench all his life and all of a sudden he becomes union leader. He'll kill someone to stay there." Real democracy and an end to corruption within band council governments is possible if the election process is opened up to all band members, Daniels believes. "These dynasties have to fall. Democracy must prevail. It has to be one person, one vote. The best person, man or woman, who puts their name forward should win the position and they should establish a more democratic system on reserve where all Indians are being served and all Indians are treated equally," he said. The CAP president said the spotlight is now shining brightly on the Indian Affairs department and political agendas designed to limit the government's legal obligation - and its accompanying cost - will no longer be easy to hide. "They have to act in the best of faith right now. If they don't, we can take them back to court. They don't want to negotiate, they force us into the court system. If they force us into the courts and we win, if their own court system has instructed them to do certain things, what is their recourse? None," he said. "We didn't invent this. This is their own court system. If they in bad faith deal after this, then it's signalling to me that they don't give one iota of care or have any real compassion or don't really want to do things for Indians and want to try to absolve themselves of any responsibility for Indians and continue to shrink the definition of who an Indian is." Jim Sinclair, the former president of the Native Council of Canada and now president of the Congress of Aboriginal People in Saskatchewan, was happy with the decision, the result of a process begun when he was CAP president. "I'm very happy about it. Both government and some of our leadership have been dragging their heels and I think it's time that people moved along and I think this decision will make people realize that they have to do something for themselves. They can't rely on any one person," he said. But Sinclair has one problem with the way things worked out. "It's an embarrassment for people like myself who've struggled for so long for basic fundamental rights for our people. Where many chiefs and councils over the past number of years have isolated themselves into reserves and forgot about the treaty areas our forefathers signed for and have limited our rights mostly to reservations," he said. "This is a sad state for us when the white man and the white court of Canada has to re-recognize those rights for us and has to re-recognize the treaty areas and put it into perspective that we have the right to vote in those areas and we have the right to full participation regardless of where we live." Doris Ronnenberg, president of the Native Council of Canada, Alberta said she sees this decision as the beginning of the end of the divide and conquer tactics used by the government against Aboriginal people. She said she wasn't sure how the Indian Affairs minister would react to this decision but added, "I hope she is for the rights of people and the right to vote." The minister could not be reached for comment. The AFN promised a press release detailing that organization's response to the decision but it did not arrive by press time. Adolescents and chemical dependency: Part II By Gil Lerat Raven's Eye Columnist VANCOUVER Last month's column looked at why youth choose to drink and use drugs. This month, I'm going to look at the profile of the chemically dependent young person to better understand why young people get trapped in the addiction cycle. It will also help parents monitor their children to see whether a child may be prone to falling into alcohol and drug abuse. In 1990, the Chemical Abuse Treatment Outcome Registry (CATOR) study was conducted in the United States. While the population of the survey may not be totally representative of all chemically dependent youth, the findings have proven very useful in determining why youth choose to use. The CATOR study found the male-to-female ratio in chemical dependent treatment centres to be two to one. But, based on trends of chemical use in adolescents, we expect that ratio to change to equal numbers during the next decade. The study also found that 74 per cent of the youth surveyed had behavior problems at school. Fifty-eight per cent had been suspended and 14 per cent had been expelled from school. The study also showed that 59 per cent of the youth had been in trouble with the law. Now, this is where some surprising results were shown. Of that 59 per cent, 40 per cent had minor offenses. Thirty-seven per cent were arrested for misdemeanors and 21 per cent for status offenses (behaviors that are not illegal for adults, but are for youth, such as curfew violations). Sixteen per cent had been arrested for felonies and only 23 per cent had suffered severe legal consequences. These stats have led to the conclusion that while legal problems are there, most chemically dependent youth are not juvenile delinquents. Another interesting observation that came out of the CATOR study was that 24 per cent of the youth surveyed had some form of learning disability. More attention and awareness is being brought about with these types of disabilities which will improve the way we communicate with youth. Chemical dependency treatment involves a lot of education and if we do not evaluate and work with youth in special ways, they will not receive the information or skills that are necessary to get and remain sober. Another startling observation that came from the study was that 15 per cent of this population had come into treatment having seen a doctor for physical reasons within the past year. That's extremely high for this predominantly healthy population. What does this tell us? The medical profession has to be more aware to recognize chemical dependency symptoms, in order for the youth to obtain help for chemical dependency. Other interesting observations that we really need to pay attention to from this study were: 69 per cent of those surveyed suffer from depression; 41 per cent had thought of or tried to commit suicide; 41 per cent had been physically abused by one or both parents; 48 per cent of females and nine per cent of males had been sexually abused; the average age of first chemical use was 12 years and, finally, 57 per cent had at least one chemical abuser in the family. In conclusion, taking a look at this profile can educate and bring awareness to youth and chemical dependency. This can also aid parents in checking to see if their child is prone to alcohol/drug use. Next month I will wrap up my three part series on youth and chemical dependency by looking at what is "normal" childhood development. Until next month . . . A great whale of a dilemma By Paul Barnsley Raven's Eye Editor Sorry for the awful pun, but that's the phrase that kept floating through my mind this month as I tried to decide what I thought personally of the Makah whale hunt. On one hand, there's the information I've absorbed through the years that has led me to think of whales as sentient - self-aware and thinking - creatures. To hunt an animal that can feel great sadness, betrayal, grief, horror, or any other emotion that a human being would feel if put in the same circumstances, seems cruel and unnecessary and wrong. But I suffer from that peculiar form of hypocrisy that most city dwellers feel when the subject is killing animals for food or clothing: I wouldn't do it myself (couldn't do it myself) and I feel a bit awkward about being a part of it, but I eat steak and wear leather shoes, etc. Who's to say that a cow doesn't feel the same emotions as it is taken to slaughter that a whale feels when it comes under fire from whalers? Match up that ethical queasiness with the joy on the faces of the Makah people as seen in the photographs our reporter took at the celebration in Neah Bay and you can see the dilemma. If something that makes so many people happy for such an important reason - the rebirth of long-lost and repressed customs and traditions - is wrong, then what's right? In a prefect world food would fall out of the sky and no blood would be shed, ever, and everybody would be happy all the time. But this ain't no perfect world, so people have to make do. The bottom line I've arrived at is this: the Makahs have a long history of hunting whales and using the whales to sustain their entire community. The Makah communities evolved intricate social structures around the hunting of whales. The ceremonies are no more or no less legitimate or important than the social structures in other communities or the ceremonies in other religions. Religious or social practices which are born out of ignorance which harm people (or other living, sentient creatures) should be opposed by those who feel they're wrong, but who's to decide? It has to be an individual choice. It's like the abortion issue. There are strong feelings on all sides and all sides have their extremists. I believe you have the right to make your own personal decisions on abortions and whale hunting and other difficult ethical questions. I won't force my decisions on you and you better not try to force your decisions on me. If the Makah try to force me to hunt whales they'll be wrong. Until then, I wish them well and hope they'll make responsible, considered decisions.I wish those who oppose the whale hunt all the best as well. As long as they don't try to force me to buy into their value system, we'll get along.