Saskatchewan government to resume gaming talks

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There may be some hope of reaching an agreement between Natives and the Saskatchewan government over gaming on reserves. The province will go back to the negotiating table to re-examine the possibility of allowing Native-operated casinos on reserves, the head of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations said.

"They are prepared to talk and prepared to agree on a mechanism and a process," said Roland Crowe.

Crowe met with Premier Roy Romanow, Gaming Minister Eldon Lautermilch and Justice Minister Bob Mitchell recently to discuss how negotiations over Native-operated, on-reserve gambling would proceed.

Although he would not release any details for fear of jeopardizing the negotiations, Crowe said he came away from the meeting with a new sense that a solution to the overall issue of Native gaming was not far off.

Crowe asked for the meeting because he wanted to know who would be involved in negotiations and what the talks would be about, he said.

Lautermilch had said earlier that talks could not involve members from the White Bear band, who had defied provincial law by opening an unlicensed casino.

Crowe said, however, that he was unwilling to discuss gaming unless White Bear band members were at the table.

Talks between the province and the band over the unlicensed facility broke down in early March during the casino's first days of operation.

Mitchell had said the government was prepared to negotiate with the White Bear band for 60 days to try and resolve a number of issues, but that the band had decided not to work with him.

White Bear Chief Bernard Shepherd denied the accusation, saying he had been unaware that talks had broken down at all.

The Bear Claw casino operated on the White Bear reserve, 200 kilometres southeast of Regina, for several weeks before RCMP raided and closed the facility March 22.

All of the casino's gaming equipment, including slot machines and video lottery terminals, was confiscated in the pre-dawn raid that resulted in the arrest and charging of chief Shepherd.

He and two other band members appeared in court April 14 on charges including keeping a gaming house. No pleas were entered and the case was adjourned for one month.

Both the Crown and the defense want the case resolved by means other than a formal hearing, defense lawyer Jerry Albright said.

The casino will remain closed for the duration of the trial.