Mailing address:
3536 - 106 Street
Edmonton, AB T6J 1A4
403-436-5652
FAX: 403-437-0719
December 05, 1991
On December 2nd Chief Ominayak received a faxed letter from Federal Indian
Affairs Minister Tom Siddon. Within minutes of receiving the Minister's
faxed letter the Chief started receiving inquiries about the letter from
reporters who'd obviously received copies of the Minister's letter at the
same time as the Chief.
Reporters receiving a faxed copy of the Minister's letter to the Chief also
received from the Minister's office a couple of page document entitled
"STATUS OF LUBICON LAKE CLAIM". As is usually the case with documents
provided by the Canadian Government purporting to provide information on
the Lubicon situation, the document entitled "STATUS OF LUBICON LAKE CLAIM"
is replete with deliberate and purposeful inaccuracies, distortions,
misrepresentations and outright lies.
The Siddon document says, for example, "In 1933 the heads of fourteen
families living near Lubicon Lake petitioned the federal government...(and
stated)...that they were treaty Indians and mostly members of the Whitefish
Lake Band, which had received a reserve in 1908". "However", it says, "the
families said they lived apart from the Whitefish Lake Band and that they
wanted a reserve of their own at Lubicon Lake".
In fact the 1933 petition is from fourteen Lubicon families whose names had
been wrongfully added to the Whitefish Lake Band membership list and who
were seeking reserve lands in the traditional Lubicon territory. Their
petition was essentially ignored until 1939 when the first Canadian
Government party to ever visit the unceded Lubicon territory investigated
their claims.
There are two official government reports of that 1939 visit, one by the
local Indian Agent and the other by the Inspector of Indian Agencies for
the Alberta Region.
The 1939 official report by the Indian Agent reads, in part:
"LUBICON LAKE: called locally Prairie Lake, lies about 26 miles
N.W. of Whitefish Lake and is the site of an Indian camp inhabited
the year round by some 126 Indians who belong for the majority to
the Cree Band at Whitefish Lake; they disclaim this, however, and
say that they have no connection with that Band...As it was the
first time that a treaty party was afforded the opportunity to
visit these Indians in their home district particular pain was
taken to scrutinize their claim. It was well noticeable from the
outset that these Indians are far different from those at
Whitefish Lake...Their leader, Alexis Laboucan, #81, made a short
speech well to the point and concisely stated their claim: their
Band as a unit has existed forever as far as they can remember,
their residence at Lubicon Lake that began well before treaty was
ever mentioned; commented on their ability to hunt following the
game where it goes but stating their willingness to learn
agriculture for the time soon to come when fur will be too scarce
for them to make a living at hunting."
The 1939 official report by the Inspector of Indian Agencies for the
Alberta Region reads, in part:
"While considered by the Agent as members of the Whitefish Lake
Band, these Indians...emphatically stated, through their leaders
Alexis Laboucan and Louis Laboucan, Senior, that they had nothing
to do with, and that they had nothing in common with the Whitefish
Lake Band; that they were a separate Band and always had been..."
Next the Siddon document says "In 1939 the government agreed to recognize
(the fourteen families) as a band and to provide a 25.4 square mile reserve
for their population of 127 people, in accordance with the provisions of
Treaty 8".
In fact, consistent with regular Government practice in dealing with people
of the boreal forest -- as distinct from dealing with the large communal
aboriginal societies of the prairies where the majority of the people
normally lived together in one large camp -- Government officials knew that
the group of 127 Lubicons whom they met in 1939 were only part of a larger
aboriginal society spread out over the large traditional Lubicon territory.
What Government officials typically did when dealing with people of the
boreal forest was make provision for those they met and then later make
supplementary provision for additional people as these additional people --
so-called "absentees" -- came in from the bush and were included on the
membership list. Under these circumstances it was not unusual for one
northern aboriginal society to have two or three reserve land surveys as
more and more members of the society came in from the bush and were counted
for purposes of calculating reserve land size. Records of the Dominion
Land Surveyor make clear that Government officials anticipated Lubicon
"absentees" to come in from the bush and be added to the Lubicon membership
list, increasing the amount of land which the Lubicon people would be
entitled to retain for reserve purposes.
Next the Siddon document says "The Second World War intervened and, in the
years following (supposedly to 1980), the claim was not pursued". This
statement isn't true. What really happened between 1939 and 1980 is a well
documented series of scandalous efforts by both levels of Canadian
Government to deprive the Lubicons of their unextinguished aboriginal land
rights. In the 1940s there were the infamous McCrimmon removals which two
independent inquiries found to be completely improper but which basically
still stood. During the 1950s and 60s there were the equally disgraceful
efforts by Federal officials to wipe out official recognition of the
Lubicon Lake Indians as a distinct aboriginal society with land rights
through such techniques as enfranchisement by fraud and transferring the
names of Lubicon Indians to the membership lists of other Bands -- often
without their knowledge or permission. And in the 1970s there was the
passing of retroactive legislation by the Alberta Provincial Government
taking away rights which the Lubicon people supposedly enjoyed under
Canadian law while those rights were actually being argued before the
Canadian Courts. (For a more detailed review of developments during this
period see John Goddard's book "Last Stand of the Lubicon Cree".)
"During this (1939 to 1980) period", the Siddon document says, "the Band
was treated like all other Bands". "It received", the document says,
"government support for housing, band salaries and administration,
education and social assistance". These statements are lies.
Until the early 1980s the Lubicon people were in fact specifically denied
programs and services long generally available to other Indians in Canada -
- status and non status alike -- on the basis that they had no recognized
reserve lands. During the 1950s and 60s, as part of the Government's
deliberate effort to wipe out official recognition of the Lubicon Indians
as a distinct aboriginal society with land rights, some individual Lubicons
were encouraged to allow their names to be transferred to the membership
lists of other Bands in order to receive minimal social welfare benefits
and educational assistance for their children. However the Lubicon Nation
didn't receive Federal support for "band salaries and administration" until
the mid-70s; they received only nominal support in these areas until 1981-
82; they received no Federal housing assistance until 1980-81 and they
didn't receive other normally provided program monies until 1981-82.
Next the Siddon document says "In 1980 the Lubicon Lake Band filed a
statement of claim in the Federal Court of Canada against Canada, Alberta
and various oil companies". It says that the Lubicon action claimed that
the Lubicon people "had aboriginal title". "Failing that", the document
says, the Lubicon people claimed that "they were within the Treaty 8 area
and were entitled to a settlement based upon its benefits". And "failing
that", the document says, the Lubicons claimed that "they were promised a
reserve which they had yet to receive". This characterization of the
Lubicons' 1980 legal action distorts and misrepresents the nature of the
Lubicons' 1980 legal action.
In fact the Lubicons' 1980 legal action asked the Canadian Courts to affirm
that the Lubicon people retained unextinguished aboriginal land rights over
their unceded traditional territory, and, if the Canadian Courts found that
they had somehow lost title to their unceded traditional lands, to declare
that they were at least entitled to the benefits of Treaty 8 and to award
them one billion dollars in damages for loss of their resource-rich, 10,000
square kilometre traditional territory. (At this stage the oil company
invasion of the unceded traditional Lubicon territory had just begun, the
traditional Lubicon hunting and trapping economy was still basically intact
and both levels of Canadian Government were flatly refusing to acknowledge
that the Lubicon people had any rights to the unceded Lubicon territory.
Through this 1980 legal action the Lubicons were seeking both
acknowledgment of their land rights and also to impress upon both levels of
Canadian Government that those rights should be taken seriously. Since that
time oil companies operating under Provincial Government permits and
licences have extracted an estimated 7 billion dollars in resources from
unceded Lubicon territory, effectively destroying the traditional Lubicon
economy and forcing 95% of the Lubicon people onto welfare in order to
survive.)
Having failed to mention that the Lubicon's 1980 legal action sought a
billion dollars in damages as well as the benefits of Treaty 8 if the
Canadian Courts found that the Lubicon people had somehow lost title to
their resource-rich, 10,000 square kilometre traditional territory, the
Siddon document says "the Band now seeks $170,000,000" -- as though the
Lubicons are being offered the reserve lands sought in the 1980 legal
action but are now demanding an additional $170 million. In fact Lubicon
demands have not increased. Rather what's happened over the years is that
the Lubicon position has simply evolved and been refined in response to
dramatically changed circumstances.
By 1983 it was clear that there was no hope of effective redress for
continuing destruction of Lubicon lands and the traditional Lubicon economy
through the Canadian Courts. The traditional Lubicon economy and way of
life was in a shambles. And the Lubicon people were forced to start
thinking about both different strategies for defending their vital
interests and about what would be required to make the then obviously
necessary transition to a hopefully viable new economy and way of life.
The different strategies for defending themselves have included things like
the Olympic and Daishowa boycotts; the need to develop a hopefully viable
new economy and way of life resulted in the comprehensive settlement
package first presented to Federal Indian Affairs Minister David Crombie in
1984 -- the same package now calculated to cost $170 million in 1988
Canadian dollars.
The Siddon document says that the $170 million sought from the Canadian
Government by the Lubicon people "is a demand for the band's share of
programs and services since 1899". It is not. What the Lubicon people
seek is to negotiate a comprehensive settlement of their valuable
aboriginal land rights which will enable them to make the tough and
expensive transition from a once viable hunting and trapping economy,
utilizing their 10,000 square kilometre traditional territory, to a
hopefully viable new economy and way of life on a much smaller 246 square
kilometre Indian reserve.
The proposed Lubicon settlement agreement would include a number of
elements including housing, community infrastructure, basic community
facilities, a small commercial centre, development of reserve lands for
agricultural purposes and an investment fund to provide the Lubicon people
with on-going interest revenues. Reserve set-up costs for things like
housing, roads, a school, a community hall, a health centre, a general
store, an administrative office and development of reserve lands for
agricultural purposes are calculated to cost approximately $70 million in
1988 Canadian dollars. The other $100 million would be used for the
proposed investment fund. (If the investment fund generates interest
revenues after inflation at about the same rate as similar funds in Alberta
and Alaska, the Lubicon people could expect to receive annual interest
revenues of about $4.5 million to help them make the aforementioned tough
and expensive transition from a once viable hunting and trapping economy
and way of life to a hopefully viable new economy and way of life.)
Alternatively, of course, and if given the option, the Lubicon people would
much prefer to simply keep their unceded, resource-rich 10,000 square
kilometre traditional territory.
When the Siddon document talks about a Lubicon "demand for the band's share
of programs and services since 1899", it's in fact talking only about the
issue of financial compensation owing from the Federal Government -- using
an approach first suggested in 1985 by Federal Inquiry Officer E. Davie
Fulton.
Prior to 1985 the Lubicons were seeking damages from the Federal Government
for destruction of their traditional lands and way of life, breach of
fiduciary responsibility, loss of use and other basically legalistic
categories of damage. Mr. Fulton argued that such categories were
difficult to qualify and quantify and suggested instead calculating the
value of the programs, benefits and services which the Lubicon people
should have been receiving from the Federal Government since Treaty 8 was
signed in 1899 but weren't.
The Lubicons told Mr. Fulton that they were not a party to Treaty 8 and
therefore made no claim to lost programs, benefits and services under
Treaty 8.
Mr. Fulton argued that such programs, benefits and services were the right
of Indians across the country, whether signatories to a treaty or not, and
again made the case that calculation of lost programs, benefits and
services would be the easiest way to calculate damages against the Federal
Government. The Lubicons consequently agreed to simplify their damage
claims against the Federal Government as Mr. Fulton suggested, checking the
archives to identify how much money had been allocated by the Federal
Government for Indian programs over the years, identifying the number of
Indians those monies were allocated to serve, calculating a per capita,
deducting the value of programs and services received (primarily since
1980), and adding Bank of Canada interest rates and Statistics Canada
inflation rates. The resulting figure was $167 million in lost programs,
benefits and services from the Federal Government (to say nothing of the
estimated $7 billion in natural resources illegally expropriated from
unceded Lubicon lands under the auspices of the Provincial Government).
The Siddon document says that the Government of "Canada has invited the
band to pursue (the question of financial compensation) in the (Canadian)
courts", which, it says, "the Lubicon Lake Band has refused to do". Again
this statement isn't true. What the Federal Government in fact did was
give the Lubicons a "take-it-or-leave-it" offer which explicitly excluded
the possibility of going to court to sue for financial compensation or
anything else, while at the same time falsely claiming publicly that the
so-called "take-it-or-leave-it" offer allowed the Lubicons to go to court
and sue for financial compensation.
Given the Lubicon people's well documented experience with the Canadian
Courts, they of course have absolutely no intention of letting Judges
appointed by the Canadian Government unilaterally determine the value of
their lands and way of life. They tried for 13 painful years to get the
Canadian Courts to make Canadian Government obey Canadian law, only to have
the Government change the law retroactively while one of their actions was
before the courts; then they faced an ex-oil company head lawyer turned
Provincial Court Judge who decided in spite of uncontested evidence to the
contrary that the Lubicon people had no traditional way of life left to
protect; then they faced an Appeal Court Judge who was the ex-family lawyer
of the Provincial Premier and ex-partner of the head oil company lawyer on
the case; then they had their application to have development activity in
their area frozen denied by a panel of Provincial Court Judges who decided
that the Lubicons didn't need an injunction to protect their land rights
because they could supposedly "restore the wilderness" with money damages
if they could ever prove that they own their unceded traditional lands;
then they faced an ex-oil company lawyer turned Supreme Court Judge who
declined to even hear their appeal and has since retired from the Bench and
been appointed to the Board of one of the major oil companies operating in
area; then they were told that for procedural reasons there was not one
single court in Canada prepared to hear their aboriginal rights case
against the Federal Government even though the Federal Government has
exclusive Constitutional responsibility for dealing with aboriginal land
rights in Canada. (After studying this horrific Lubicon legal history the
UN Human Rights Committee agreed that the Lubicons stood no chance of
achieving effective legal redress from the Canadian Courts.)
Next the Siddon document claims that the UN Human Rights Committee "found
that the (take-it-or-leave-it) offer which Canada has already made to the
band is fair and reasonable and would meet any obligation Canada has under
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights". This is not
what UN Human Rights Committee decision says, nor, according to Committee
officials, is it what Committee members intended.
The actual wording of the UN Human Rights Committee decision reads as
follows:
"Historical inequities, to which the State party refers, and
certain more recent developments threaten the way of life and
culture of the Lubicon Lake Band, and constitute a violation of
article 27 (of the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights) AS LONG AS THEY CONTINUE (capitalization added). The State
party proposes to rectify the situation by a remedy that the
Committee deems appropriate within the meaning of article 2 of the
Covenant. (Article 2 says basically that each party to the
Covenant, which includes Canada, undertakes to ensure that the
rights of all people living within its boundaries are respected.)"
The finding that Canada is in violation of article 27 as long as historical
inequities and recent developments which threaten the way of life and
culture of the Lubicon people continue is of course a far more clear-cut
finding than the finding that Canada "proposes to rectify the situation
with a (unspecified) remedy that the Committee deems appropriate..." Asked
by reporters to clarify the second part of the decision Committee officials
were quoted as saying that "the wording was left deliberately vague so that
both parties can interpret it their own way and get back to the table".
(Legal scholars have subsequently interpreted the wording of the decision
as only supporting a negotiated rather than litigated settlement,
especially since the Committee had earlier concluded that the Lubicons
couldn't achieve effective legal redress within Canada -- not as approving
the Federal Government's so-called "take-it-or-leave-it" offer which
Committee members knew was untenable when they found Canada in continuing
violation until the matter is settled.)
Enclosed for your information is a copy of Mr. Siddon's letter to Chief
Ominayak, a copy of Chief Ominayak's letter of response, a copy of the
Siddon propaganda document sent to reporters and copies of related media
coverage.
* * * * *
Attachment #1: News Release via Canada NewsWire, Ottawa 613-563-4465
Attention News Editors:
FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL MINISTERS TO MEET WITH LUBICON BAND AFTER CHRISTMAS
OTTAWA, Dec. 2/CNW/ - Alberta will join with the federal government early
in the new year to seek a solution to the Lubicon land claim. Indian
Affairs and Northern Development Minister, Tom Siddon today released a
letter sent recently to Bernard Ominayak, inviting the Chief to join the
session.
"I requested a meeting between all three parties to further talks on the
Lubicon land claim," said Siddon.
In the interim, the Minister said he hoped federal and Lubicon negotiators
would resume discussions on the land claim so a fair settlement to all
parties involved can be found.
Chief Bernard Ominayak
Lubicon Lake Indian Band
Box 6731
PEACE RIVER, Alberta
T8S 1S5
Dear Chief Ominayak:
I very much appreciated the opportunity to meet with you in Edmonton on
November 1, 1991 to discuss in general terms the Lubicon Lake Band's land
claim.
I have now had an opportunity to review the settlement proposal which you
gave me during the meeting. It appears to me that the total of the
monetary demands contained in the proposal, not including the value of land
and minerals offered by Alberta, is in excess of $200 million. As we
discussed at our meeting, direct comparisons of your proposal to other land
claim settlements are dependant on the number of members of Lubicon Lake
Band at the present time. It is fair to say, however, that your demands
far exceed any land claim settled with other bands. For instance, your
proposal is perhaps eight to ten times as rich as the recent major Ouje-
Bougoumou Cree settlement.
Nevertheless, except on the issue of $60 million in compensation demanded
from each of Canada and Alberta, there appears to be little difference
between the Band and Canada on the substantive elements contained in your
proposal and those which Canada would consider as possible within the
context of an overall settlement. Indeed, Canada's and Alberta's 1989
offers contain most of what you now propose for a settlement. The main
difference between us relate to money. This is especially important to
keep in mind because the usually contentious issue of land has already been
resolved.
Given our mutual concurrence on what most of the issues are, I believe
there is sufficient common ground for renewed substantive discussions
between Canada, Alberta, and your representatives. To that end, I have
contacted the Honourable Dick Fowler, the Alberta Minister Responsible for
Native Affairs, who has agreed to a suggestion that the three of us meet to
explore the best forum of renewed talks. Mr. Fowler has indicated he will
be available for a meeting in early February. Could you please advise me
if that timing is convenient for you.
Yours sincerely,
Tom Siddon, P.C., M.P.
cc: The Honourable Dick Fowler
* * * * *
STATUS OF LUBICON LAKE CLAIM
BACKGROUND
In 1933, the heads of fourteen Indian families living near Lubicon Lake
petitioned the federal government. They stated that they were treaty
Indians and mostly members of the Whitefish Lake Band, which had received a
reserve in 1908. However, the families said they lived apart from the
Whitefish Lake Band and that they wanted a reserve of their own at Lubicon
Lake.
In 1939, the government agreed to recognize them as a band and to provide a
25.4 square mile reserve for their population of 127 people, in accordance
with the provisions of Treaty 8.
The Second World War intervened and, in the years following, the claim was
not pursued. During this period the band was treated like all other bands.
It received government support for housing, band salaries and
administration, education and social assistance.
THE LUBICON CLAIM
In 1980 the Lubicon Lake Band filed a statement of claim in the Federal
Court of Canada against Canada, Alberta and various oil companies.
The Lubicon claim was in three parts:
- they had aboriginal title; failing that,
- they were within the Treaty 8 area and were entitled to a
settlement based upon its benefits; and failing that,
- they were promised a reserve which they had yet to receive.
The band now seeks $170,000,000. Its case against Canada is a demand for
the band's share of programs and services since 1899 -- an issue which
Canada has invited the band to pursue in the courts. The Lubicon Lake Band
has refused to do this.
In 1984, it started an appeal to the United Nations Human Rights Committee.
The Committee's finding confirmed what the Government of Canada has already
acknowledged -- that an obligation to the Lubicons exists which must be
settled.
The Human Rights Committee found that the offer which Canada has already
made to the band is fair and reasonable and would meet any obligation
Canada has under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
After examining the facts, the U.N. agreed that the government offer to the
Lubicon Lake Indians is an appropriate remedy. When this decision was
released in May, 1990 the Minister for Indian Affairs and Northern
Development, Tom Siddon, indicated the government's desire to resolve this
matter and expressed the hope that band leaders would accept the offer.
The Lubicon leadership has so far refused. The government cannot impose a
settlement on the band.
11/29/91
For further information: Monika Quinn, Press Secretary, Minister's Office,
(819) 997-0002; Bob Coulter, DIAND, (819) 994-1241
* * * * *
Attachment #2: December 4, 1991, letter from Chief Ominayak to Tom Siddon
Dear Mr. Siddon:
I received a faxed copy of your November 29th letter on December 2nd,
shortly before I started received calls about it from reporters to whom it
had apparently been faxed simultaneously. I of course realized immediately
upon reading it that much of your letter had been primarily written for the
benefit of others, since both you and I know better.
As the Lubicon people have indicated publicly on a number of occasions, the
total value of the Lubicon draft settlement agreement which I gave you on
November 1st is approximately 170 million 1988 Canadian dollars -- not in
excess of $200 million as you claim in your letter. Should Federal
officials have difficulty with these calculations we can make people
available to help them figure it out.
Neither is it accurate to say, as you do in your letter, that the value of
Lubicon demands, excluding the value of land and minerals, "far exceed any
land claim settled with other Bands". The recent Ouje-Bougoumou Cree
settlement in Quebec, for example, which you claim has a value of only
1/8th to 1/10th of Lubicon settlement proposals, is in fact quite
comparable. With a slightly smaller total population, the Ouje-Bougoumou
Cree received over $79 million for reserve set-up costs compared to
projected Lubicon reserve set-up costs of approximately $70 million. In
both cases as you know, the question of compensation remains outstanding.
Excepting compensation, you say, "there appears to be little difference
between the Band and Canada on the substantive elements contained in (the
Lubicon draft settlement agreement) and those which Canada would consider
as possible within the context of an overall settlement." "Indeed", you
say, "most of what (the Lubicon people) propose for a settlement...(is
contained in)...Canada's and Alberta's 1989 offers". Therefore, you say,
"the main differences between us relate to money".
If what you're saying about agreement on the so-called "substantive
elements" is essentially true instead of being just another Federal
Government word game deliberately intended to mislead, then perhaps the
only remaining issue between us really is money -- in which case I'm sure
that a resolution of our differences on compensation can be achieved
through some form of independent, third party arbitration.
I would caution you, however, that the Lubicon people don't consider things
like our proposed old people's home, community hall and combined community
shop/vocational training centre to be just unimportant details which we're
prepared to write off in order that the Canadian Government can keep us
forever in a state of social, economic and political dependence. We
consider things like our proposed old people's home, community hall and
combined community shop/vocational training centre to all be essential
elements in our plans for rebuilding our shattered economy and way of
life -- without which there will be no settlement of Lubicon land rights.
In the hope that you and your Provincial counterpart are finally serious
about achieving a settlement of Lubicon land rights -- in spite of all that
you've both been doing lately to suggest otherwise -- I look forward to a
meeting with you and Mr. Fowler in early February. As I told you when we
met on November 1st, if the will is there on the part of the Federal and
Provincial Governments I'm sure that we can find ways to arrive at a
mutually satisfactory solution.
Sincerely,
Bernard Ominayak, Chief, Lubicon Lake Indian Nation
* * * * *
Attachment #3: Transcript of CBC Radio News Broadcast (7:30 A.M.)
Friday, December 06, 1991
Phil Henry, CBC News
There's hope the Lubicon land claim talks may resume. Negotiations with
Ottawa broke down nearly 3 years ago. The Chief of the Lubicon Band says
he's taken up an offer by the Federal Minister of Indian Affairs to meet in
early February. As Byron Christopher explains, the meeting will try to lay
the groundwork for full-fledged talks.
Byron Christopher, CBC News
On Monday Tom Siddon -- the Federal Minister of Indian Affairs -- made the
pitch to Chief Bernard Ominayak that they get together. It would be a
meeting, in his words, to "explore the best forum for renewed talks". In
other words, "Let's get together to talk about how we can start up these
land claim talks again." Siddon suggested sometime in early February. He
also said that Dick Fowler, the man responsible for Natives in Alberta,
could join them. Ominayak has now agreed to that meeting. But he says he
will only meet if Tom Siddon and Dick Fowler are serious about
negotiations.
Chief Bernard Ominayak, Lubicon Lake Indian Nation
I don't think we can afford to sit around and talk about the weather and so
on any longer. I think we've got to start dealing with facts. We've got a
very serious problem that needs to be dealt with and that would be our
purpose and intent at any given meeting.
Christopher
If the three men are going to meet, the question is where? Previous
meetings have been in Edmonton and Ottawa. Chief Ominayak thinks maybe
they should find a new place to meet.
Ominayak
For our part we'd certainly welcome a meeting right at Lubicon if these
people are interested in dealing with the problem.
Christopher
The Lubicon Nation has been trying to sign a treaty with the Canadian
Government for more than 50 years. Byron Christopher, CBC News, Edmonton.
* * * * *
Attachment #4: Transcript of CBC Newsworld TV Broadcast (11:20 A.M.)
Friday, December 06, 1991
Bob Nicholson, Canada Live: Coming up on the Canada Live Regional Desk
today -- the Lubicon Indian Band gives it another try. The Lubicon Indians
live in northern Alberta. They've been fighting for a treaty for more than
50 years now. In February, the Chief of the Lubicons will try one more
time to start a new set of negotiations with the Federal and Provincial
Indian Affairs Ministers. Coming up, we'll talk with the Chief of the
Lubicons.
One of the oldest and most publicized of the Native land disputes in Canada
may be back on track, at least at the bargaining table. The dispute
involves the Lubicon Indians from northern Alberta, and the Federal and
Provincial governments. The Lubicons, a couple of years ago, resorted to a
blockade around their tribal territory to press their claims for land for a
reserve. They've been fighting for a treaty since 1939. In the past
couple of years talks have virtually broken down. But now there's a sign
of hope. New talks are scheduled for February. Bernard Ominayak is the
Chief of the Lubicon Band and he joins me from Edmonton. Chief Ominayak,
welcome to Canada Live.
Chief Bernard Ominayak, Lubicon Lake Indian Nation: Thank you.
Nicholson: What do you think is doing to come of this meeting with Mr.
Fowler and Mr. Siddon in February?
Ominayak: I would hope that it leads to some serious discussions and to a
final fair and just settlement for my people.
Nicholson: Do you think it's going to do that?
Ominayak: It's hard to say at this point when the indications aren't that.
For example, the last time Mr. Siddon requested a meeting with myself -- a
one-on-one meeting with no media, I got to Edmonton and he was in a meeting
with an Edmonton editorial board discussing what he was going to be
discussing with me...His latest letter he sent to me he also sent to the
mainline media. So these kinds of questions arise as to what this Minister
is doing. It seems to me the letter was meant for people other than
myself.
Nicholson: Chief Ominayak, since the last time you negotiated on the land
claim settlement the Federal Government has made a settlement with the so-
called Woodland Cree which evidently took away some of your Lubicon
members. Do you see your support and your membership dwindling away as the
years go by?
Ominayak: That's the hope and the wish of the Federal Government. They've
made great efforts in trying to do that but I don't think they were
successful to any degree, for example, in dealing with the Woodlands. Now
they've moved to the next community to the east of us where they are doing
similar things. They've got the same lawyers involved and the same thing
taking place. They're still fooling around that way.
Nicholson: Are you still going back to the table with the same demands you
went with three years ago?
Ominayak: Yes, of course. One of the important things is that we'd like
to start building a future for our younger generations. In order to do
that we're going to have to look at some money. That's one of the things
that we would like to have in place. There's been a lot of going back and
forth, a lot of propaganda is being dished out by the Federal Government.
For example, they say, "We're prepared to negotiate" and we say "Fine,
let's negotiate". Then they throw their "take-it-or-leave-it" offer back
on the table.
Nicholson: Chief Ominayak, I really wish you luck with this. I hope you
get the settlement. Thank you for talking to us today.
Ominayak: Thank you.
* * * * *
Attachment #5: Transcript of CBC Radio News Broadcast (8:30 A.M.)
Friday, December 06, 1991
Phil Henry, CBC News
Land claim negotiations may start up again between the Lubicon Indians and
Ottawa. Negotiations broke down nearly 3 years ago. Yesterday, the Chief
of the Lubicon Indians agreed to a request from the Federal Minister of
Indian Affairs to meet in early February. Tom Siddon requested the meeting
on Monday. The purpose of the meeting would be to discuss a time and place
for full-fledged land claim talks. Chief Bernard Ominayak says he'll meet
if the Ministers are serious about negotiations. Ominayak says the big
issue is money.
Chief Bernard Ominayak, Lubicon Lake Indian Nation
Of course. We realize that our way of life has been destroyed. They've
extracted billions of dollars in resources off our lands and these
resources are legally ours. Yet we are forced onto welfare. And in the
process we've lost our livelihood. Now we've got to replace it with
something else, which is going to cost some money. That's what we've been
saying to both levels of Government. That's a crucial issue and it has to
be dealt with.
Henry
The Lubicon Nation has been trying to sign a treaty with the Canadian
Government since 1939. The Band wants at least $170 million. The
Government has made an offer worth up to $45 million. The size and
location of the reserve was settled several years ago.