Mailing address:
3536 - 106 Street
Edmonton, AB T6J 1A4
403-436-5652
FAX: 403-437-0719
March 20, 1994
Last November another major effort to dismember the Lubicon society began.
While it's not clear who's behind this latest assault on the embattled
Lubicon society certain things are known. A number of the individuals
involved are known. Their basic strategy is known. And their basic
tactics are known.
Some of the individuals involved in the latest effort to dismember the
Lubicon society are officials of the Federal Department of Indian Affairs.
However there's no evidence to indicate that their activities are
authorized by the new Federal Indian Affairs Minister Ron Irwin. In fact
there's some evidence to indicate that this latest, relatively high
pressure and relatively high risk effort to dismember the Lubicon society
is being undertaken at this time and in this way specifically to try and
collapse the Lubicon society before Mr. Irwin can act on his publicly
announced commitment to settle Lubicon land rights. There's also reason to
believe that Federal officials earlier undermined sincere efforts to
achieve a settlement of Lubicon land rights by a couple of Mr. Irwin's
predecessors; namely Conservative Indian Affairs Minister David Crombie and
Liberal Indian Affairs Minister John Munro.
Some of the individuals involved in the latest effort to dismember the
Lubicon society are Provincial officials who work with the Provincial
Native Land Claims Group. In addition there's some suggestion that
Provincial Government politicians are involved although there is no
unequivocal evidence that the involved Provincial officials are being
directed by Provincial Native Affairs Minister Mike Cardinal or Alberta
Premier Ralph Klein. In his communications with the Lubicon people Mr.
Cardinal indicates that he, Premier Klein, Deputy Premier Ken Kowalski and
Provincial Treasurer Jim Dinning all stand behind ex-Premier Getty's
commitments to the Lubicons including the Grimshaw Agreement. One of the
major objectives of this latest assault on the Lubicon society, however, is
clearly to break the Grimshaw Agreement. Thus while it's always possible
that Mr. Cardinal may be saying one thing and asking his officials to do
another there is no doubt that the actions of Mr. Cardinal's officials are
inconsistent with the things he says to the Lubicons. As in the case of
apparently subversive Federal officials there's also reason to believe that
the Provincial officials involved in this latest effort to dismember the
Lubicon society earlier undermined the sincere efforts of the last
Provincial Premier Don Getty.
Lastly there are people who were originally involved in the effort to
dismember the Lubicon society by the Federal Government but who are not
officials of either level of Canadian Government. These people supposedly
work for the Woodland Band. They are paid by the Woodland Band with funds
which they negotiate with the Federal Government for their work supposedly
on behalf of the Woodland Band. But it's crystal clear that they no more
work for the members of the Woodland Band now than they did when they were
first selected and paid by the Mulroney Federal Government to create the
Woodland Band out of the disparate individuals of a half-a-dozen aboriginal
societies in Northern Alberta. The key person in this third group is a
prominent Calgary lawyer and Vice President of TransCanada Pipelines named
Bob Young. Who this third group really represents is also unclear but it
has to be somebody or a group of somebodies with considerable wherewithal
(and likely lots at stake) to be able to get people as senior as Vice
President of TransCanada Pipelines Bob Young to once again come out of the
shadows and become openly involved. (TransCanada Pipelines is of course
part of the Calgary-based petro-chemical industry which has multi-billion
dollar interests in the unceded Lubicon territory.)
The strategy being employed by these three groups working in tandem is
clear. Since February of 1989 there has been a continuing effort to
"eliminate" the Lubicon society through attrition by essentially buying off
people around the fringes -- first by offering people "little bribes" to
help overthrow the duly elected Lubicon leadership, and, when the attempt
to overthrow the duly elected Lubicon leadership failed, by creating new
Bands on either side of the Lubicons and then offering Lubicon members
"little bribes" to join one or other of these two new Bands. While this
deliberate strategy to "eliminate" the Lubicons has over time profoundly
damaged Lubicon society in a number of ways most of the people who were
available and vulnerable to these various "little bribes" were people who
were pretty peripheral to the Lubicon society -- acquaintances, friends and
relatives perhaps but usually not important members of Lubicon society.
Last November the people working to dismember the Lubicon society gained
access to one of the main Lubicon families -- the Edward Laboucan family.
Recognizing the importance of this family to the structure of Lubicon
society these three groups moved aggressively and in concert to try and
take advantage of the opportunity which this new access provided. Their
purpose is clear. Instead of simply continuing to whittle away at the
Lubicon society around the edges they are now seeking to precipitate the
collapse of the Lubicon society all at once by trying to take out a main
family group. Whether this strategy will accomplish its intended purpose
remains to be seen but there can be little doubt that the already badly
damaged Lubicon society has never been in greater peril.
One of the notable things about this new strategy is that it is a
relatively risky strategy involving relatively high profile people doing
some pretty questionable things which could blow up in their faces at any
time with banner headlines publicly exposing what they're doing. The
opportunity to move in this way may have presented itself last November but
that doesn't explain why these people decided to pursue this decidedly
dicey strategy when they could have simply continued to pursue the far less
risky albeit slower strategy of "eliminating" the Lubicon society by
attrition. In context and given the timing and sequence of events the
answer as to why these people decided to proceed with this risky new
strategy at this time is likely related to election of the new Chretien
Government.
The new Federal Liberal Government was elected last October 25th.
On November 18th newly appointed Federal Indian Affairs Minister Ron Irwin
visited Alberta and told reporters that settling Lubicon land rights is one
of his four top aboriginal land claim priorities.
On November 20th the first reports of what has come to be called the
Laboucan family initiative were received. Some members of the Laboucan
family were unhappy with the Lubicon Band administration and were talking
to people in the Woodland Band administration about the possibility of
transferring. Other Lubicons talked to members of the Laboucan family
considering a transfer and convinced them not to let internal disagreements
jeopardize hopefully productive talks with the new Federal Indian Affairs
Minister.
On November 23rd Lubicon Chief Ominayak wrote Mr. Irwin indicating that the
Lubicon people looked forward to meeting him and commencing discussions to
finally settle Lubicon land rights.
On December 6th Mr. Irwin wrote Chief Ominayak back proposing either a
meeting in Ottawa on December 17th or alternatively a meeting in Little
Buffalo "near the end of January".
The following week the first reports of a new wave of what Federal
officials call "little bribes" to try and entice people into joining the
Woodland Band were received. There were also reports of a January 3rd
deadline for accepting those "little bribes".
"Little bribes" of the kind being offered to members of the Laboucan family
are inconceivable without the complicity of Federal Government officials.
"Deadlines" by which those "little bribes" must be accepted are the
currency of lawyers and government bureaucrats -- not northern bush
Indians. Disgruntled members of the Laboucan family may have started the
talk about transferring but outsiders with their own agenda and a timetable
in mind were clearly involved at this point seeking to take advantage of
internal tensions.
Over time the list of "little bribes" being offered to members of the
Laboucan family started sounding pretty much like the list of things
offered to entice people into joining the Woodland Band in the first
place -- primarily reserve land, housing and $1,000 per family member.
Also like when the Woodland Band was first being organized there were some
special items being offered to key Laboucan family members such as a
caterpillar tractor for Michael Laboucan and a serviced house at the
traditional Laboucan family site at the NW end of Lubicon Lake for Edward
Laboucan.
As more and more information became generally available in the Lubicon
territory about the "little bribes" being offered the members of the
Laboucan family a negative reaction developed among the existing members of
the Woodland Band. Woodland Band members expressed growing concern over
the offer of housing for members of the Laboucan family when not all of the
existing Woodland Band members had received housing -- raising a question
as to whether the members of the Woodland Band would be prepared to accept
the new adherents being solicited supposedly on their behalf. With
acceptance by the Woodland Band in question there were then some
extraordinary offers made to members of the Laboucan family such as a Band
of his own "down the road" for Michael Laboucan -- a seemingly incredible
proposition but one also used earlier to quiet a previously troublesome
Woodland Chief named Melvin Laboucan. (What's probably involved here is
Young and Co. holding out the prospect of "family reserve" for Michael
Laboucan under the land in severalty provisions of Treaty 8 -- something
which is periodically raised as a possibility by government agents and
others in order to manipulate people but which is in fact highly unlikely
for a number of reasons.)
Lastly there are some financial inducements offered to the leaders of the
Woodland Band to get them "on board" -- such as $25,000 per capita in
economic development money for each new adherent with unextinguished
aboriginal land rights. (With Woodland settlement economic development
monies having largely been doled out to individuals producing few community
economic development benefits or opportunities there's a long list of
people feeling that they haven't received their share. Consequently
there's growing political pressure on Woodland leadership to replenish the
economic development kitty.)
Edward Laboucan tells people that the offer of a caterpillar tractor for
Michael isn't what it appears -- that Michael isn't being offered a
caterpillar tractor but only a loan to buy a caterpillar tractor. While
the distinction between being offered a caterpillar tractor and being
offered an otherwise unavailable loan to buy a caterpillar tractor might
not at first blush seem significant the difference is important in at least
two ways. First it gives involved members of the Laboucan family a little
softer, more palpable way of understanding and characterizing the so-called
"little bribes" they are effectively negotiating with whomever. Secondly
the nature of the proffered loan is instructive regarding the various ways
the Canadian Government tries to buy off aboriginal people without running
the risk of those aboriginal people ever becoming independent of government
programs and services -- as for example Government officials did when they
offered people $1,000 per family member to accept the Woodland settlement
offer supposedly negotiated on their behalf by Government selected and paid
lawyers and then deducted the amount of these $1,000 payments from the
welfare payments those same people would have received in any case.
Although it's not likely that Michael Laboucan appreciates what he's
getting himself into the probable scenario with the loan for a caterpillar
tractor is as follows.
The minimum amount of cash equity typically required to apply for normal
government economic development program monies is 10%. A used caterpillar
tractor can be obtained starting at about $50,000. Michael Laboucan would
therefore need bridge capital of about $5,000 in order to apply for normal
government economic development programs.
The Woodland Band has an Economic Development Fund which can be used to
provide bridge capital in a ratio of 50% loan and 50% grant up to a maximum
of $50,000. Michael Laboucan could therefore apply to the Woodland
Economic Development Fund for the necessary $5,000 cash equity in the form
of a $2,500 loan and $2,500 grant.
With equity capital in the form of about $2,500 loan and $2,500 grant in
hand from the Woodland Economic Development Fund Michael Laboucan could
apply to the Aboriginal Business Development Program for money to cover up
to 75% of the cost of developing a required business plan. Having obtained
a grant to partially cover the cost of preparing the required business plan
Michael Laboucan could then go back to the Woodland Economic Development
Fund and apply for the remainder of the funds needed to pay for the cost of
developing the required business plan.
Once the required business plan is prepared Michael Laboucan could apply
again to the Aboriginal Business Development Program this time for a grant
of up to about 60% or perhaps $30,000 towards the purchase of the
caterpillar tractor. Having obtained a grant to partially cover the cost
of the caterpillar tractor Michael Laboucan could then apply to the Alberta
Indian Investment Corporation for a loan up to a maximum of $250,000 to
cover the rest of the cost of the caterpillar tractor.
In other words Michael Laboucan will likely have to apply to the Woodland
Economic Development Fund for equity capital, in order to apply to the
Aboriginal Business Development Program for partial funding of a required
business plan, in order to apply again to the Woodland Economic Development
Fund for money to cover the rest of the cost of the required business plan,
in order to apply again to the Aboriginal Business Development Program for
a partial capital grant, in order to apply to the Alberta Indian Investment
Corporation for a loan to purchase the caterpillar tractor. (This is
basically the master plan designed to justify the existence of
proliferating Government bureaucracy while at the same time making sure
that Indians remain forever dependent on Government programs and services
earlier devised by Indian economic development whiz kid Peter Harrison and
included in the unacceptable so-called "take-it-or-leave-it" offer.)
The chances of Michael Laboucan actually ever obtaining a caterpillar
tractor via this torturous route without a whole lot of help and favourable
disposition along the way is of course not very good. He'll likely get
that help and favourable disposition so long as his continued cooperation
is useful to the larger goal of destroying the Lubicon society. The minute
that his cooperation is no longer forthcoming or useful his chances of
obtaining a caterpillar tractor this way drop to about the same as all of
the other aboriginal people competing for limited funds from various
Government programs allocated primarily to help justify the existence of
these various government programs without ever seriously challenging the
need for these programs by enabling Indians to become independent of them.
(Predictably the failure rate of Indian enterprises which result from these
government programs is nearly 100% -- meaning of course that these
government programs are generally functioning exactly as intended.)
The promise of a serviced house at Lubicon Lake for Edward Laboucan is even
harder to imagine. A serviced house for a member of the Woodland Band
right in the middle of the area set aside for the Lubicons is inconceivable
for as long as there is any Lubicon society left at all. For people
variously associated with the Federal and Provincial Governments to be
making such a promise to an old man who desperately wants to spend his last
years at his traditional family site makes one hell of a headline.
Last December 13-15 Bob Young and Woodland Chief Billy Thomas made a trip
to Ottawa and met with the Deputy Minister of Indian Affairs Danny
Goodleaf. Mr. Goodleaf claims that he told Messrs. Young and Thomas that
the Woodland settlement agreement would not be renegotiated to provide
additional land, housing and other "little bribes" for members of the
Laboucan family. If that's what Mr. Goodleaf really told Messrs. Young and
Thomas then their reaction was strange indeed. They returned to the
Woodland community of Cadotte Lake all revved-up, making re-newed promises
and offers, pressing even harder their January 3rd deadline for acceptance
of those "little bribes" and reportedly in possession of "all kinds of
information about how much the Lubicons owe their lawyers and how there
won't be any money left after all of the bills are paid".
Messrs. Young and Thomas were supported in their renewed efforts to buy up
the entire Edward Laboucan family by an official of the Alberta Regional
Office of Indian Affairs named Fred Jobin and a senior Provincial
Government genealogist named Neil Reddekopp. If Mr. Goodleaf is telling
the truth about what he said to Messrs. Young and Thomas during their mid-
December meeting in Ottawa then he was being overtly subverted by his
Regional Office official Fred Jobin. (Reddekopp reports to senior
Provincial land claims official Ken Boutillier who in turn reports to Mike
Cardinal. It's inconceivable that Reddekopp would be involved other than
on Boutillier's instructions although it's not inconceivable that
Boutillier might be proceeding independent of Cardinal's instructions.
Boutillier almost certainly played a key role in subverting Premier Getty's
earlier efforts to achieve a settlement of Lubicon land rights.)
With the Lubicon community abuzz with rumours about "little bribes" being
offered to members of the Laboucan family Lubicon leadership asked for a
meeting with Edward Laboucan to clarify the situation. Edward confirmed
that his son Michael was transferring to the Woodland Band but denied that
he was transferring. Edward said "This (the Lubicon Band) is where I
started and this is where I'll finish". (Thus while the pressure was
clearly on in mid-December it appeared that the effort to remove the
Laboucan family as a key family group had still failed to take.)
On December 16th Mr. Irwin's office proposed January 21st as the date for
the meeting in Little Buffalo between Mr. Irwin and the Lubicons. The
Lubicons agreed. Mr. Irwin's office then phoned back the next day with
several other meeting proposals. Final agreement on the January 21st
meeting was achieved on December 22nd.
TransCanada Pipeline Vice President Bob Young spent December 29th in the
Woodland community of Cadotte Lake personally trying to cajole members of
the Laboucan family into making a commitment to join the Woodland Band
before the January 3rd deadline. Mr. Young's personal attendance in this
isolated northern community during the holiday week between Christmas and
New Year's suggests that lesser lights had been unable to obtain the
necessary commitments from Laboucan family members and so somebody was
bringing out the big guns to get the job done right. Getting the job done
right is reputedly what Bob Young does. For Bob Young to have to do the
job personally likely means that others weren't getting the job done.
On January 3rd Woodland Chief Billy Thomas told unbought members of the
Edward Laboucan family that "30 people have moved but 50 people will have
to move before we can start meetings with the Government about more land
and money". Where Chief Thomas got this notion that negotiations could be
re-opened if the Woodland Band had 50 new adherents isn't known but it's
not likely that he made it up all on his own.
On January 11th another unbought Laboucan family member reported that
Laboucan family members were being "promised land and houses any place they
want -- including around Lubicon Lake". The people reportedly making these
"promises" were Woodland Chief Billy Thomas and TransCanada Pipeline Vice
President Bob Young. The area around Lubicon Lake is of course where
Lubicon families including the Laboucans have traditionally lived during
the summer months as well as being the area set aside for a Lubicon reserve
by both levels of Canadian Government. As with the "promise" of a serviced
house at Lubicon Lake for Edward Laboucan this "offer" of land and houses
for other members of the Laboucan family at Lubicon Lake is inconceivable
as long as there is a viable Lubicon Band.
Also on January 11th it was reliably reported that "people are being told
that they can sell the houses provided to them by the Lubicon Band in the
spring and they will be given new houses by the Woodland Band". On one
level such "little bribes" seem simply preposterous. On another level and
in context such proposals suggest growing desperation to achieve the
objective of buying up the entire Laboucan family and hopefully collapsing
the Lubicon society prior to the scheduled meeting with Mr. Irwin on
January 21st.
On January 14th it was reported that alerted and alarmed senior Indian
Affairs officials at the Departmental Headquarters in Ottawa told
Departmental officials in the Alberta Regional Office that the "little
bribes" should not have been offered to members of the Laboucan family and
would not be honoured. Regional Office officials reportedly responded that
they were simply following long-established Departmental policy with regard
to offering members of the Lubicon Band everything and anything in order to
entice them into joining the Woodland Band.
A couple of days later, on January 16th, members of the Laboucan family
left Little Buffalo for meetings with Federal and Provincial officials in
Edmonton. Presumably their attendance in Edmonton related to word getting
out about the "little bribes" and the resulting negative reaction from
officials in Ottawa. Certainly involved members of the Laboucan family
subsequently became increasingly cautious and taciturn about their
discussions with Federal and Provincial officials.
On January 17th Mr. Irwin phoned Chief Ominayak about re-scheduling the
January 21st meeting. Chief Ominayak wasn't home. Mr. Irwin left a
message that he wanted to talk to the Chief.
On January 18th there were meetings held in both Ottawa and Edmonton.
Given what was happening and who was involved these meetings likely
pertained to the tension between the "little bribes" being offered by
people variously associated with the Federal Government and the now stated
Chretien Government policy that these "little bribes" should not have been
offered and would not be honoured.
In Ottawa senior Justice Department lawyer Ivan Whitehall met with Indian
Affairs Assistant Deputy Minister in Charge of Claims John Sinclair.
Whitehall has been the Justice Department lawyer responsible for the
Lubicon file going back to at least the mid-1970s when he filed a brief on
behalf of the Federal Government supporting the Provincial Government's
refusal to file the Isolated Communities caveat. The refusal to file this
caveat ultimately led to the infamous retroactive caveat legislation.
Later Whitehall is known to have passed Lubicon genealogy information to
the Provincial Government breaching an agreement with the Lubicon people
that this information would be kept confidential and effectively
undercutting efforts by then Federal Indian Affairs Minister John Munro to
achieve a settlement of Lubicon land rights.
In Edmonton there was a meeting of Ken Boutillier, Bob Young, Fred Jobin,
Jack Tully and Regional Lands Manager Tony Parrottino.
As indicated earlier Boutillier is the key Provincial native land official.
Vice President of TransCanada Pipelines Bob Young supposedly represents the
Woodland Band. And Fred Jobin is the Federal Indian Affairs official
generally credited with orchestrating Regional Office involvement in
creation of both the Woodland and Loon River Bands.
Jack Tully is considered Bob Young's right hand man and he was almost
certainly involved in the Woodland/Lubicon enterprise by Bob Young. Tully
is an ex-Director General of the Alberta Regional Office of Indian Affairs.
His current title is "Advisor" to the Woodland Chief and Council. He is
described as "the one that calls the shots" on the ground.
Parrottino supervises another Regional Office official named Roger
Cardinal. Cardinal works closely with Jobin and has been heavily involved
in creating both the Woodland and Loon River Bands. Among other things
Cardinal was the one who stick-handled the controversial Woodland
settlement referendum in the Woodland community of Cadotte Lake where
people were paid $50 each to vote and promised $1,000 per family member if
they voted to accept.
Following the January 18th Edmonton meeting Jobin reported to current
Director of the Alberta Regional Office of Indian Affairs Ken Kirby.
Kirby's role in all of this is unclear but he was clearly informed about
the Laboucan family initiative very early in the game and knowingly or
unknowingly transmitted the propaganda version of the Laboucan family
initiative to Ottawa.
On January 19th the January 21st meeting between Mr. Irwin and the Lubicons
in Little Buffalo Lake was re-scheduled for February 18th.
On January 23rd it was learned that a new "deadline" of February 15th had
been announced for acceptance of the "little bribes" and the making of a
commitment to join the Woodland Band. Announcement of this new "deadline"
only days after the re-scheduling of the Irwin meeting again suggests a
link between the Laboucan family initiative and Mr. Irwin becoming
personally involved with Lubicon settlement efforts. In context
announcement of this new "deadline" also suggests that the job of buying up
the whole Laboucan family was still not complete but that some resolution
had been reached during the meetings in Ottawa and Edmonton on the 18th
regarding the "little bribes" and that the effort to buy up the members of
the Laboucan family was consequently continuing.
On January 24th it was reported that 53 members of the Laboucan family had
transferred to the Woodland Band.
On January 27th there was another meeting in the Alberta Regional Office of
Indian Affairs involving Fred Jobin, Tony Parrottino, Federal Lubicon
negotiator Brian Malone and two others believed to be Bob Young and Neil
Reddekopp. (Malone was Young's official counterpart in creating the
Woodland Band and negotiating the Woodland settlement. He also worked with
Reddekopp and a junior lawyer in Young's old Calgary law firm named Ward
Mallabone in creating the Loon River Band.)
Between January 27th and February 6th there were additional meetings in the
Alberta Regional Office of Indian Affairs with Woodland leaders and members
of the Edward Laboucan family.
On February 8th it was reported that Edward Laboucan, his wife Josephine
and 5 of their 7 grown children had transferred to the Woodland Band.
Their grown grandchildren were reportedly split in unknown proportion.
On February 16th it was reported that the number of Lubicons who'd
transferred to the Woodland Band as part of the Laboucan family initiative
now totaled 70. It was learned later that these people had not actually
transferred but had only signed applications to transfer -- that their
applications for membership had in fact not yet been accepted by the
Woodland Band.
The application form signed by people as part of the Laboucan family
initiative is instructive and reads as follows:
I ___________________ of the Lubicon Band wish to become a member of
the Woodland Cree Band #474. Before I become a member of the
Woodland Cree Band I understand that:
I will need to meet the following conditions:
1. I will have to register under the Indian Act and be accepted by
the Woodland Cree Band members within the terms of their
membership by-law; and
2. I must have an as yet unfilled entitlement under Treaty 8 and
this will be determined by the governments of Canada and Alberta
and the Woodland Cree Band.
My application to join the Woodland Cree Band #474 is made on the
understanding that I WILL BE FULLY ADVISED OF MY RIGHTS
(capitalization added) if I am part of any future land claim
settlement negotiated on my behalf by the Woodland Cree Band.
I fully understand that by signing this paper I am not as yet a
member of the Woodland Cree Band.
This Woodland Band membership application form for Lubicons is interesting
for several reasons.
First this Woodland Band membership application form for Lubicons is a
legal document drafted by someone with a legal background to accomplish
specific objectives and provide specific protections. It's not a political
document. There's no subtlety to it at all. It spells out its purpose and
intent exactly in clear and unmistakable terms.
Second this Woodland membership application form for Lubicons is not a
general membership application form to be used with anybody who might be
interested in applying for membership in the Woodland Band. It is a
membership application form specifically for members "of the Lubicon Band
(who) wish to become a member of the Woodland Cree Band". Its purpose is
therefore clearly to take apart the Lubicon Band rather than just
representing a more general Woodland membership application form.
Third this Woodland membership application form for Lubicons is conditional
on the applicant qualifying for Indian status under the Indian Act --
something which is not required under normal Woodland membership criteria
nor was it required under the membership criteria employed when the Young
and Co. were trying to build up the Woodland membership numbers as high as
possible for political purposes. Qualifying for registration as an Indian
under the Indian Act, however, is something required by the Federal
Government for the Federal Government to consider provision of housing and
other services. Clearly the Woodland Band isn't interested in accepting
the applications of Lubicon friends and relatives unless the Federal
Government is prepared to pay for it.
Fourth this Woodland membership application form for Lubicons is
conditional on interested members of the Lubicon having "an as yet unfilled
entitlement under Treaty 8 (as) determined by the governments of Canada and
Alberta and the Woodland Cree Band". Again not a requirement of normal
Woodland membership criteria, nor a requirement of Woodland membership when
Young and Co. were seeking to build up Woodland membership numbers as high
as possible for political purposes, this condition clearly relates to
reducing the number of members of the Lubicon Band with incontestably
unextinguished aboriginal land rights. As was made clear a short while
later in a similarly legalistic press release issued over Michael
Laboucan's name this condition also relates to building a case for breaking
the Grimshaw Accord. And of course it relates to the earlier noted promise
of additional reserve land for the Woodland Band supposedly at Lubicon Lake
with which to accommodate members of the Laboucan family. (Reportedly the
Woodland Band is awaiting "approval from Ottawa" to re-open negotiations
for more reserve land to accommodate the people who have signed these
Woodland membership application forms. With Provincial genealogist
Reddekopp on the ground in the Woodland community of Cadotte Lake
Provincial Government "approval" has presumably already been obtained -- at
least in principle at the technical level. And as with most things
involving the government-created and directed Woodland Band "approval" by
the Woodland Band apparently depends essentially on what officials of the
Federal and Provincial Governments tell Woodland Band leadership to do.)
Fifth the Woodland membership application form for Lubicons "is made on the
understanding that (the applicant) WILL BE FULLY ADVISED OF (THEIR) RIGHTS
(capitalization added) if (they are) part of any future land claim
settlement negotiated on (their) behalf by the Woodland Cree Band". (Aside
from giving new definition to the notion of aboriginal self-determination
this clause seems to suggest that the promise of additional reserve land
for the Woodland Band to accommodate members of the Edward Laboucan family
isn't exactly a foregone conclusion. On the other hand this clause also
suggests that the possibility if not the promise of land at Lubicon Lake is
still one of the "little bribes" being offered to members of the Edward
Laboucan family who join the Woodland Band.)
Mr. Irwin met with Chief Ominayak as scheduled on February 18th in Little
Buffalo Lake. One of the topics discussed was the Laboucan family
initiative. Mr. Irwin denied that he authorized the Laboucan family
initiative. He reiterated the position that Woodland negotiations would
not be re-opened to provide additional land and housing for new adherents.
He said that he would only deal with duly elected Lubicon leadership and
not with any faction of the Lubicon society. And he asked Chief Ominayak
for written proposals regarding the re-starting of Lubicon settlement
negotiations.
Also on February 18th it was learned that Brian Malone was scheduled to
meet the following week with Federal Justice Department lawyer Ivan
Whitehall. Whether the meeting went ahead isn't known but just the idea of
it is noteworthy since the two men have little in common except the Lubicon
file and Malone had supposedly resigned as Lubicon/Woodland/Loon
negotiator due to increased responsibilities at his Calgary law firm.
On February 19th Mr. Irwin reportedly told the Chiefs of Treaty 8 that any
Indian Affairs officials involved in the Laboucan family initiative would
be out of a job. (Sounds like a hell of a fine idea but experience
suggests that firing subversive government officials is easier said than
done. Probably the best way to help Mr. Irwin in this regard is to press
him to settle Lubicon land rights. If he's smart he'll be able to
translate such pressure into leverage for obtaining Cabinet level support
for his efforts.)
The evening of February 21st Alberta Premier Ralph Klein met privately with
Woodland Chief Billy Thomas and members of the Laboucan family in the
northern Alberta town of High Prairie. Native participants in the meeting
reported that Premier Klein promised to "help (members of the Laboucan
family) get land with the Woodland or separately" -- supposedly a reference
to the earlier mentioned land in severalty provisions of Treaty 8.
Provincial officials however report that Premier Klein only agreed to meet
with the people whom Michael Laboucan purports to represent -- that the
Premier was "not going to believe a piece of paper or a bunch of
bureaucrats". (Presumably the piece of paper Premier Klein is talking
about is a list of the people Michael Laboucan purports to represent. The
"bureaucrats" the Premier is talking about is less certain but presumably
he means the combination of Federal and Provincial officials who've been
working to put that list together.)
Travelling with Premier Klein when he met with Woodland Chief Thomas and
members of the Laboucan family was a reporter for the Edmonton Sun
newspaper named Tom Olsen. In what was almost certainly a pre-planned,
pre-arranged interview a normally media shy Woodland Chief Billy Thomas
told Mr. Olsen that "a hundred Lubicons disgruntled over lack of a Lubicon
settlement are on the waiting list to join the Woodland Cree Band".
Whatever the numbers, and the number 100 seems high, the planners and
arrangers behind the interview had clearly decided for whatever reasons --
presumably related to reports that the February 18th meeting between Mr.
Irwin and the Lubicons had gone well -- to go with whatever they had.
(Exaggerating the numbers to the point of flat out lying is sadly a common
tactic of both levels of Canadian Government.)
Mr. Olsen phoned Chief Ominayak the following day to ask for reaction to
the Chief Thomas interview clearly in anticipation of doing a story for the
February 23rd edition of the Edmonton Sun. However the Federal budget was
announced on February 22nd relegating the Thomas story about more Lubicons
joining the Woodland Band to a couple of passing paragraphs in an article
obviously written earlier on the February 18th Irwin meeting. Ironically
for the architects of the Laboucan family initiative the headline of that
article was "Lubicon Hopeful Settlement Near".
When the Olsen story fizzled in the February 23 edition of the Edmonton Sun
a press release over Michael Laboucan's name was hurriedly drafted and
issued. Again very legalistic in nature -- nobody who knows Michael
Laboucan believes for a minute that he wrote it or that he even understands
its implications -- the Michael Laboucan press release is as revealing as
the Woodland membership application for Lubicons. The Michael Laboucan
press release reads:
Michael Laboucan announced today in a press release that the Edward
Laboucan and Calliou family group have applied to the Federal and
Provincial Governments to have their Treaty Entitlement arranged
with the Woodland Cree Band. (The "Calliou family group" reference
in the Michael Laboucan press release pertains to a man named Peter
Calliou who married one of Michael Laboucan's sisters.)
This family group, who are the most traditional aboriginals at
Little Buffalo, have asked Michael Laboucan to be the spokesperson
for them. Michael stated:
"Our families represent slightly over 100 persons who were on
the original Grimshaw list. This number represents a majority
of the members left of those who can legitimately claim to be
part of the Lubicon Band and have an outstanding land claim".
He further continued by stating that he has asked both Governments
to respect the families' decision to request membership in the
Woodland Cree Band and to support their efforts to "have our
legitimate claim settled as an adhesion to the Woodland Cree Land
Settlement".
Michael ended his press statement by stating that the group he
represents have completely lost trust in the Lubicon Band's
consultants and leadership and accordingly "our minds are made up --
there is no turning back -- we want to join with the Woodland Cree
Band. They are our close relatives, as well as our closest
neighbors, and although we will only be a small part of their band -
- we trust them to treat us fairly now and in the future".
This Michael Laboucan press release was faxed to media outlets the evening
of February 23rd. However in a manner similar to what happened with the
February 21st Chief Thomas interview the Provincial budget was announced
the following day resulting in the story not being assigned to a reporter
until February 25th. Somebody was clearly having a hell of a time getting
the story the kind of prominence they were seeking. However just as
clearly they weren't going to stop trying to create the public perception
that the population on which the Grimshaw Accord was based no longer
exists.
The thrust of the Michael Laboucan press release is clearly to undermine
the Grimshaw Accord. That's the essence of it -- what it's all about. If
it were true that Michael Laboucan represents "slightly over 100 persons
who were on the original Grimshaw list", and if this number really
represented "a majority of the members left of those who can legitimately
claim to be part of the Lubicon Band and have an outstanding land claim",
then there would be less than 100 Lubicons left of the 479 on the Lubicon
membership list at the time that the Grimshaw Accord was signed.
The trick of course is in the phrase "those who can legitimately claim to
be part of the Lubicon Band and have an outstanding land claim". As
determined by whom using what criteria? Depending upon the criteria
employed the results can vary substantially. Some years ago, for example,
the Boutillier group massaged the numbers and reduced the number of
Lubicons with unextinguished aboriginal land rights from 500 as determined
by historic criteria to 7 or less as determined by new criteria devised
specifically for the purpose of reducing the number to 7 or less. (This
kind of deliberately deceitful numbers manipulation is characteristic of
Boutillier and Co. -- suggesting that they're the ones behind this current
numbers manipulation as well.)
Whether true or not, and all of the available evidence suggests that the
numbers have again been manipulated as they have been so many times in the
past, these claims about greatly reduced "legitimate" Lubicons with
"outstanding" land rights will almost certainly be used by the Provincial
Government or at least some people associated with the Provincial
Government to try and break the Grimshaw Accord. Breaking the Grimshaw
Accord would of course represent a major step backward and return the
debate to a deliberately endless and non-productive discussion of numbers,
entitlement, who determines entitlement and how.
Needless to say Michael Laboucan doesn't think in such terms nor would
there be any reason for him to issue a press release making such claims.
Why he would consent to his name being used in this way is another
question. Likely his understanding is that the press release simply asks
that the Laboucan family be allowed to have their unextinguished aboriginal
land rights recognized with the Woodland Band instead of the Lubicon Band.
The claim made in the Michael Laboucan press release that he is the
"spokesperson" for "slightly over 100 persons" is not likely accurate
either. "Slightly over 100 persons" would almost certainly mean the entire
Laboucan family and Michael Laboucan doesn't represent the entire Laboucan
family. He doesn't represent a couple of his grown brothers and their
families and he reportedly doesn't even represent all of his own grown
children -- some of whom are upset with the claim in the press release that
Michael represents the whole family.
On March 1st Chief Ominayak sent Mr. Irwin the promised proposal on re-
starting Lubicon negotiations. As of March 20th no response has been
received from Mr. Irwin. (Some reports suggest that Mr. Irwin is facing
"internal opposition" to accepting Lubicon negotiation proposals -- not
terribly surprising in light of the foregoing. Again the best way to help
Mr. Irwin do the right thing is to press him to accept Lubicon negotiation
proposals which he can hopefully translate into leverage with his Cabinet
colleagues.)
On March 2nd the Peace River Record Gazette included an article on the
Michael Laboucan press release complete with quotes from Chiefs Thomas and
Ominayak. A copy of the article is attached. The article adds little
that's new but does confirm some things -- such as Chief Thomas making
clear that the Woodland Band is only prepared to accept "those with claims"
(as determined by the governments of Canada and Alberta). The main problem
with the Record Gazette coverage, of course, is limited circulation of a
small town newspaper. One doesn't create generally accepted public
illusions with articles in one small town newspaper -- especially when the
article confuses the issues by quoting both sides.
(Continued in Part Two)