(HAUDENOSAUNEE LETTER HEAD)
PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ONONDAGA NATION JUNE 9, 1994
At approximately 12:40 AM on Wednesday morning, Smoke Signals,
a former restaurant, cigarette and fuel shop, burned, damaging
the interior extensively. The business owned by Veronica Beckman
and Kenneth Papineau had been closed since April 1, 1993,
along with OR's Fuel, owned by Oliver Hill, Jr., and Drive-In
Cigarettes, owned by Donald Rockwell.
The Council of Chiefs authorized an investigation of the fire
by local fire authorities. Arson is expected, but there has not
been a final report. Speculation as to who is responsible includes
the business owners.
The fire occurred while the Onondaga people were engaged in an
active blockade at OR's Cigarette shop about 400 yards north of
Smoke Signals.
The events of the past weekend on the Onondaga Nation was fueled
by a marriage ceremony and a birthday celebration involving the
Papineu's. Saturday night, early Sunday morning, resulted in a
brawl that sent a young man to the hospital with a broken
nose and cracked cheekbone. This hyperactivity by business owners
and supporters was evident at the blockade of the business the
following day.
Anticipating an acceleration of proactive activity after the
birthday party of Kenneth Papineu on the 6th, the Chiefs requested
the Sheriff's department to stand by.
A very ugly exchange took place on the barricade with Kenneth
Papineu berating his mother, Alice Papineu, as she tried to reason
with her son. Mrs. Papineu is a respected elder and Eel Clan Mother.
She has taken a principal position against the defiant activities
of her son regarding his actions against the Onondaga Nation.
The night of the fire, Kenneth Papineu and his daughter, Michelle,
were arrested for punching an officer of the Sheriff's Department.
This is a continuance of many assaults by this dissent group against
their own people in their desperate attempt to overthrow the
Onondaga Council of Chiefs.
Mrs. Papineu's story is one of several such painful relationships
that are the product of these closed business peoples' anti-Nation
activities. These individuals have operated their businesses
illegally against the will of the people of Onondaga since 1988.
During that time the have accrued enormous wealth as individuals
hiding behind the sovereign status of the Onondaga Nation. They have
steadfastly refused to divulge to the Onondaga people, the books
holding the records of their profits since 1988.
In the case of Oliver Hill, when requested to produce his books
for inspection and accounting, he informed the Onondaga people
in a public meeting that he "doesn't have any books" and "I
don't keep any records." This is a curious position coming from
one who constantly demands "accountability" from the Onondaga
Nation. For the record, the Onondaga Nation books have been made
available to these people and others, a number of times.
Kenneth Papineu, Veronica Beckman, Oliver Hill, Jr. and Ronald
Rockwell have refused to abide by any law, be it Onondaga Nation
law or the laws of the state and federal governments where it pertains.
They are, in effect, outlaws who refused to abide by any
regulations. They have indulged in unregulated commerce for the
past seven years at the expense of the Onondaga People.
On April 1, 1993, the Onondaga people, led by the Clan Mothers
with the support of the Onondaga Council of Chiefs, physically
closed these three businesses and formed picket lines to discourage
non-Indian customers from patronizing the now officially closed
businesses. The blockade began and the Onondaga Nation women have
been the key figures in maintaining a 24 hour blockade through one
of the coldest winters in the history of the state. The have endured
the elements and physical and verbal abuse of the blockaded
business people and their non-Indian customers and remain adamant
in their resolve to protect and maintain the Nation's integrity.
During this time these three business people brought a court action
against Onondaga County Sheriff's Department who had developed and
agreement with the Onondaga Nation that respected one an others
sovereignty and jurisdiction regarding the boundaries of the
Onondaga Nation and Onondaga County. This compact was respectful
of the Onondaga Nation jurisdiction and through many years has
served the people well with the cooperation and rapport of Sheriff Dillon.
Kenneth Papineu and Veronica Beckman brought a federal lawsuit
against Sheriff Dillon to enforce state and federal law within the
boundaries of the Onondaga Nation. They contended that they were
"New York state citizens" and that this compact, unique in the
United States, was illegal and violated their human rights.
This was an astoundingly vindictive attack against all Indian sovereignty.
Fortunately, for Indians across America, they lost. They lost
because the US Justice Department issued an amicus brief supporting
our compact as a common sense approach to very difficult legal
and political problems.
Simultaneously, they brought suits in N.Y. State Supreme Court
against 2 Clan Mothers for picketing their businesses. This suit
also failed on the same grounds. These suits fly in the face of
common sense and reason, if one is an American Indian living on his lands.
They actively took part in an Iroquois Businessmen's Association.
One of the stated goals of this group was to overturn the
Haudenosaunee traditional governments and replace it with an
elective Bureau of Indian Affairs regulated government so that
they could now use the wealth they accrued to place themselves
in power and control the lands for their continued exploitation.
This then, is a short narrative and background to inform you
to disregard the recent flurry of faces and computer messages
attacking the Council of Chiefs of the Onondaga Nation. These
messages are signed by Oliver Hill, Jr and contain misinformation
and lies.
For further information contact:
Onondaga Nation
Council of Chiefs
Box 200
Nedrow, N.Y. 13120