Manitoulin Court dismisses application of Ecuadoran healers

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A father and son team of traditional healers appeared in the Superior Court of Justice in Gore Bay, Ont., Jan. 24 to request permission to go home. Juan and Edgar Uyunkar have been detained on Manitoulin Island since their arrest on Nov. 24. The two practitioners of Indigenous medicine have been charged, along with their interpreter, with a series of offences that could lead to lengthy terms in Canadian jail if convicted.

Conditions of bail imposed last November forbid the Uyunkars from conducting healing ceremonies until the matter is settled. The men are accused of criminal negligence causing death, administering a noxious substance as well as importing and trafficking in a controlled substance. The charges are related to the sudden death of 71-year-old Jean (Jane) Maiangowi during a healing ritual Oct. 19, 2001.

The Crown alleges that the Uyunkars provided a mixture of water, nicotine and harmaline known as natum to Mrs. Maiangowi. The Wikwemikong Elder died as a result of "acute nicotine poisoning," states the pathologist's report. A post-mortem examination revealed that "the concentration of nicotine in the heart and blood were in the range to cause toxic effects," according to the toxicologist's findings.

Co-accused translator Maria Ventura did not attend the recent bail review hearing. She is a landed immigrant in Canada and bound by bail terms imposed Dec. 18. A newly appointed court-certified Spanish interpreter, Claudia Lambert, performed translation duties for the Uyunkars.

Defence counsel Lloyd Greenspoon told presiding Justice Robert Del Frate, "My client wants to go home to support his family. He is very concerned since one of his children is ill. Both Edgar and Juan would agree that neither would be away from Canada at the same time." Since they would buy non-refundable return tickets, Greenspoon added, there would be "no temptation to flee."

Greenspoon further argued that, under the Canadian Charter of Rights, everyone, whether citizen or not, has freedom of religion. He tried to convince Justice Del Frate that the traditional healers could be trusted to return from Ecuador for the upcoming preliminary hearing and trial.

"His word is the truth," Greenspoon said. "Juan Uyunkar comes from a people who will die for the truth. If he doesn't come back, he's considered a traitor to his people, to his medicine and to his family."

"Extradition is not a major issue," Greenspoon responded to the judge's inquiry about flight risk. "I understand that when Britain has an extradition treaty with Ecuador, then Canada has a treaty with Ecuador. I don't think anything turns on it. He wants to go home, but for Juan this is a sacred fight; he's defending an important principle for his culture and his people; they feel he's needed in Ecuador but he's obligated to come back," Greenspoon assured the court.

The Crown, represented by Lorraine Ottley, opposed the application to modify the bail terms originally set out by Justice C.S. Sanders Nov. 26. "It is unheard of to allow the accused to leave Canada and go to a country where there is no possibility of extradition," she said. "When we looked into the matter, the Department of Justice told us that Ecuador does not extradite their nationals."

She also countered the defence's argument that financial problems were creating an urgent need for the defendants to return to Ecuador. Ottley produced documents showing that Juan Uyunkar received $1,500 from the Wikwemikong Health Centre on Oct. 1 and another $1,500 on Oct. 5, 2001. Then on Oct. 17, according to the Crown, he was given $3,100 to go back to Ecuador to obtain more medicine.

"You have received $7,100 so far for expenses," she said.

Ottley pointed out that $20,000 cash bail had been raised for the Uyunkars in a short period of time in November.

"You are not rich but you have received some money for your services," she told the shaman when he took the stand.

The Crown introduced a letter intercepted fom the internet outlining on-going efforts to raise funds for the Uyunkar and Ventura legal defence. The elder Uyunkar had written that $60,000 is needed to prepare the case now and another $2 million will be required for research, international experts and legal expenses in the future.

"There are now powerful people working on our behalf to raise the money," he reported.

"You have ways to get money," Ottley said. "You have the means to raise substantial amounts of money."

Speaking through interpreter, Claudia Lambert, Juan Uyunkar told the court, "I want to go home for the sake of my family. It is very important to tell my people whether I am dead or alive; they don't know if I'm alive; if they can't see me they don't believe it; they don't believe white man's words."

He described his arrest and two night incarceration in Sudbury District Jail as "like living in hell." In the beginning, he "thought that everything would be solved quickly." He trusted the authorities and stayed in Canada because he felt "a need to clarify everything," he told Justice Del Frate. "I didn't know it would take so long; I thought it would be short. But I have to go back now if it is convenient with the court."

In his plea for permission to return home to the Amazon, Uyunkar said, "I represent my people and, if I lie, I am betraying my people. I have to defend the truth and my medicine. For us this truth is very profound and lives within our hearts and souls."

Uyunkar sought to persuade the court that 12 children, including a four-month-old baby he has never seen, anxiously await his return.

"Right now I have no money," he said. "The families down there are very big and there is very little money. The Elders here are using their connections to raise defence money. They say there is a way to get money but to date there has been nothing."

He claims that now that he is "a prisoner" in Canada, his family is without his usual support. Normally his family members make handicrafts to ell, with children as young as seven involved in the production. Sometimes they guide tourists on Amazon tours, he explained. Because of the court case, the elder Uyunkar is not permitted to conduct the healing ceremonies that often generate "donations" of food and small amounts of cash. He repeatedly maintained that funds received from the Wikwemikong Health Centre and academic institutions were "donations" and not payment for services.

A letter of recommendation from a university dean translated before Justice Del Frate characterized Juan Uyunkar as "a very sincere person" with "high professional standards." The document praised his "profound knowledge of Indigenous medicine" and expressed appreciation for the lectures he delivered on shamanism at the academic centre in Quito. A second letter from the department of citizenship in Ecuador stated that Uyunkar is "a wise man" who has been practising the medicine of the Shuar people for 30 years. The officials confirm that he shares his medicine throughout the world and is known for "high standards of conduct both in and out of Ecuador."

In the end Justice Del Frate turned down the request to travel.

"I see all kinds of difficulties if the accused don't come back. The cost and effort of trying to extradite them doesn't seem reasonable. Ecuadoran citizens are not extraditable and that would cause a lot of problems if they were not present for the hearing and the trial. The defence has not succeeded in convincing me that they would be in attendance at future proceedings," he concluded.

In addition, the judge noted that "the family of the deceased and the community need to see finality to the case." He commended the community members who provided sureties for the Ecuadoran visitors.

He advised community supporters that instead of buying costly plane tickets to South America, money raised could be sent to Ecuador to assist the families of the accused.

Outside of the court house a clearly frustrated Juan Uyunkar waed away television and press cameras saying, " We're not criminals; we came here to help."

Norman Aguonie, a practitioner of traditional medicine from the Sheguiandah First Nation, has been observing the prosecution of the visiting healers. After the application was dismissed, Mr. Aguonie commented, "Clearly justice is only available for those who can afford it. It's obvious that if they'd had lots of money they would have been allowed to go home. There is so much community support here today; I am sure lots could have been done to guarantee their return."

He believes the "human side" of the situation was ignored in rendering the decision.

"The idea of honesty and trust didn't carry much weight in the courtroom today," he said. And since the case carries many implications for the future practice of Indigenous medicine, Mr. Aguonie urges "anyone who is using or has used traditional medicine to jump on board and show their support" for the Uyunkars.

All three defendants made a brief appearance in Wikwemikong court January 29. Greenspoon applied for a delay in the proceedings to allow time for his clients to arrange for legal aid.

Justice L. Serre granted the request and the matter has been rescheduled for March 12. The Crown agreed that several weeks are needed for the defence to analyse seven volumes of interviews and reports compiled by the Ontario Provincial Police and Wikwemikong Tribal Police.

Meanwhile, a support group known as The Uyunkar Defence and Support Fund has been established. According to steering committee member Jeanette Corbiere-Lavell, the Uyunkars were "invited into our community to share their medicine with us. They came to us in a spirit of sharing, but now they are held here with no way of making a living, no benefits or support. Even if only in a spirit of human rights or compassion, we can't just abandon these people."

The Anishnaabek in Support of Indigenous Medicines International has been formed to promote the use of Indigenous n