July 29, 1991, Lubicon Mail-Out on Woodland Cree Settlement
Part 1 of 23
On July 5 and 6, 1991, the so-called Woodland Cree Band held a
referendum on whether or not to accept a settlement package offered
to them by the Governments of Canada and Alberta. Enclosed for
your information are related media reports.
The Woodland referendum was officially conducted by officials of
the Canadian Federal Department of Indian Affairs. Scripted and
stage managed by Canadian Government officials would be a more
accurate characterization.
In order to assure a good level of voter participation, Woodlanders
were picked-up at home, given rides to and from the polling place
and paid $50 each to vote. In order to secure a positive electoral
result, Woodlanders were promised an additional $1,000 per family
member if they voted to accept the Government "offer".
The list of supposedly eligible Woodland voters inexplicably jumped
from 268 before the referendum to 295 by the end of the first day
of voting to 309 by the time the polls closed -- 30 minutes after
the official closing time. During the time of the referendum
people were aggressively accosted in their homes, offered an
immediate cash payment of $50 if they agreed to vote, promised
another $1,000 per family member if they voted the right way and
verbally harassed and harangued if they in any way resisted -- real
banana republic stuff.
Not surprisingly voter participation in the referendum was an
impressive 87% and 98.5% voted to accept the offer. Tougher to
understand are the lonesome threesome who reportedly voted to
reject the offer.
Likely the lonesome threesome who reportedly voted to reject the
"offer" just didn't get their voting instructions straight, or
perhaps the Federal Government's script called for three votes to
reject the "offer" -- just so referendum results wouldn't look too
contrived. With the Mulroney Government either possibility is
conceivable.
In defense of the obvious financial inducements to vote and vote
the right way, Government officials and Band representatives
described in practised unison the $50 per voter cash payment as
"expense money", and the promise of an additional $1,000 per family
member as merely a "benefit" of the proposed settlement agreement.
Independent observers, however, were hard pressed to find
Woodlanders who understood much more about the proposed settlement
agreement than that they'd be paid $50 to vote and $1,000 per
family member if they voted to accept.
Asked what expenses were involved in being driven a couple of
blocks to vote and then back home again, Government and Band
representatives admitted that not everybody required expense money.
However, they said, some people required expense money and
everybody had to be treated "equally". (Apparently the Mulroney
Government has now developed a peculiar kind of concern for people
being treated "equally".)
A couple of days later it was learned that the promised $1,000
payments per family member will be deducted from people's welfare
payments over the next few months. Government officials explained
that these $1,000 per family member payments would increase a
family's income over the maximum allowable income for welfare
recipients. Consistent with the Mulroney Government's new concern
for equal treatment, Federal Government officials explained that
income rules for determining who qualifies for welfare had to be
applied to all welfare recipients "equally".
Sudden Mulroney Government concern for "equal treatment" is strange
indeed. Stranger still is sudden Mulroney Government concern for
the Woodlanders being treated "equally". There wouldn't even be a
Woodland Cree Band if the Woodlanders were treated the same as
everybody else. And of course all welfare recipients aren't
transparently being manipulated into ceding their aboriginal land
rights and children's heritage in exchange for welfare payments to
which they're entitled in any case.
July 29, 1991, Lubicon Mail-Out on Woodland Cree Settlement
Part 2 of 23 to follow...
--- FD 1.99c
* Origin: Lubicon News Station: Edmonton, Alberta Canada (89:701/432)
-- Terri Kelly via oneb.wimsey.bc.ca!onebdos Terri.Kelly@f432.n701.z89.imex.org