_ __ _____ __ _ __ ___ ____ _ __ ___ ' ) / / ') / / ) ' ) ) / ) / ' ) ) / ) / / / / / / /--/ / / / ___ / / / / ___ (_(_/ (__/ ( / (_ / (_ (___/ '__/_ / (_ (___/ ' O ( N A T I V E A M E R I C A N ) O o O ____ _ , ___ _ , ___ O o O / ' ) / / ) ' ) / / ' O o o o o O / /-< / /--/ /-- VOLUME 01, ISSUE 013 O o O __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, 19 June 1993 O o O ( N E W S ) O <----<<<< >>>>----> This newsletter is a way of keeping the brothers and sisters of the Invisible Band and those who share our spirit informed about current events within the lives of those who walk the Red Road. It is hoped that our presence will be rewarded with a Native American RoundTable on GEnie. It is also being circulated to idoy@crux2.cit.cornell.edu (Michael) for archiving to his Native American FTP site; and to gst@gnosys.svle.ma.us (Gary S. Trujillo) should he wish to include it in his NATIVE_L or NATCHAT lists. "If you live on this land, and you have ancestors sleeping in this land, I believe that makes you a native to this land. It has nothing to do with the color of your skin. I was not raised to look at people racially. What I was taught is that we're flowers in the Great Spirit's garden. We share a common root, and the root is Mother Earth." -- Oh Shinnah O'siyo Brothers and Sisters! The last weekend was a wonderful experience for me and Janet. We had the immense pleasure of joining Free Cherokee Principle Chief Sings Alone, Buffalo Woman, Smokes, Panther, and David in the building of a Onikare and the following Inipi. It was a good time for us and for the the Wanagi. Thunder spirits joined us throughout the construction. The fire remained strong, though, and it was a good time for prayer. As can be seen from the banner above Wotanging Ikche now carries its message to distant bands. It is a way to tell others the Invisible Band lives and shares The Way on GEnie. As others chose to join our fire it will be easier to justify the need for a Native American RoundTable. Mitaquye Oyasin! Night Owl ------------------ clip here for news feature -- 8< ----------- --------- "Re: Convocation of Concordia University" ---------- From: A.HOROVITCH Art Horovitch Subj: Convocation of Concordia University June 10. 1993 Montreal, Que. Art Horovitch The Montreal gazette recently reported on the convocation of Concordia University, One of the largest English universities in the province. Alanis Obomsawin, an Abenaki film maker, was the speaker at the graduation for fine-arts students. Her message was one of hope tempered by realism. She said, " Our elders tell us we must get along, all the nations in this country." She continued that the lives of aboriginals are different now and they were not going back to the decades of poverty and all the problems of marginal life. There was a time when aboriginals had a better chance of ending up in prison rather than in a university. She cited the ever-increasing number of aboriginal professionals who return to work in their communities Obomsawin was raised at the Odenak reserve near Sorel, Quebec and has been a National Film Board of Canada producer for the last 25 years. She was "behind the barricades" during the Oka crisis of 1990 and was disturbed " to see how racism was alive and well in Canada." Her experiences during that crisis are the basis of her latest film, Kanesatake: 270 Years of Resistance. The film was completed in January, but apparently has not been broadcast due to it's controversial nature. Obomsawin concluded her speech by saying," In the Great Circle of Life, everyone must feel included. We should treat others as if they were our relatives. Remember to be responsible for all your actions because they will be a reflection of your generation." --------- "Re: An FTP site for Native Issues and Information" ---------- From: idoy@crux1.cit.cornell.edu (Michael) Subject: An FTP site for Native Issues and Information Available Hello Everyone: Cornell has generously donated some disk space for an FTP site for the purpose of distributing information having to do with Native Americans and Native American issues. An FTP site is a place where we can store files (text and binary files) for you to pick up at your convenience. Almost all mainframe support FTP (file transfer protocol). To logon, type ftp ftp.cit.cornell.edu You will be asked for a name: type anonymous [sometimes on IBMs you have to type "user anonymous"] You will be asked for a password: type guest [This is the method to get on most anonymous FTP sites.] Then you need to get to the proper directory: type cd pub/special/NativeProfs/usenet [case matters!] And you are in. Right now, all I have in there is the Charter for the UseNet newsgroup soc.culture.native, and a file of the recent postings there (about 177k, somewhat large). To a copy of either of these files, type get charter or get soc_culture_native.june14 When more stuff is there, type "dir" to see what's there. In the near future, I hope to have a place where we can keep the Frequently Asked Questions file about the newsgroup, a place where we can keep important posts that someone might need later, and an archive of soc.culture.native posts, either in one file or in some other more convenient format. I can put other stuff in there as well: electronic newsletters and so forth. The sky is not the limit on disk space, however; so I probably won't be putting in Native American graphic art, which is disk-space intensive (sorry). Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions about how best to employ this FTP site. Best, Mike >>>>>>====================> | "A man never discloses his own Michael Wilson | character so clearly as when he idoy@crux1.cit.cornell.edu | describes another's." <====================<<<<< | -- Jean Paul Richter - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - From: idoy@crux1.cit.cornell.edu (Michael) Subject: Files Now Available Through the FTP Library Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Here are the files available so far at the FTP site ftp.cit.cornell.edu Directory: pub/special/NativeProfs/general great_law.txt Great Law of Peace of the Iroquois hopi_to_un.txt Hopi Address to the United Nations [Thanks to Richard Darsie for the above files.] tribal_colleges.addresses Address of Native American Tribal Colleges in the U.S. Directory: pub/special/NativeProfs/usenet charter Charter of the UseNet newsgroup soc.culture.native soc_culture_native.june14 A 177K file of the collected posts in soc.culture.native for the week ending June 14 If you have anything you would like to put into this library, or if you have questions about how to get these files, contact me at idoy@crux2.cit.cornell.edu. Mike --------- "Re: End Chief Wahoo Campaign info request" ---------- From: Vince McElhinny Subj: End Chief Wahoo Campaign info request I am working with a coalition of Native American and non-Native groups in northeast Ohio, on a campaign to discontinue negative stereotyping in sports and the media. Our campaign is focused on the Cleveland Indians baseball team to the stop the use of the Chief Wahoo logo and the name Indians, and is at a critical juncture. We are gathering information to support our effort to convince the Cleveland baseball management to change, and to build greater public support. To my knowledge, much of the information related to this effort nationally has not been collected or published. I would appreciate any in information, contacts, or research sources that anyone has on the following topics: - sports teams that have changed their names, mascots, etc. (or are in the process of changing) because of pressure from Native Americans. - newspapers, tv, or other media that have adopted policies of not using offensive logos or names. I am aware of the Portland Oregonian. - any information about Louis Sockalexis, the Penobscot Indian, after whom the Cleveland baseball team was allegedly named. - any suggestions for strategies to pressure the Cleveland baseball organization to stop using Chief Wahoo and the name Indians. Thanks from Cleveland, vmcelhinny --------- "Re: STOP the Selling of Sacred Materials" ---------- From: coyote@latrans.alphai.org (Scott Robert Ladd) Subj: STOP the Selling of Sacred Materials [ This article relayed from the Usenet "soc.culture.native" newsgroup ] The American Indian Movement (AIM) of Colorado Springs is addressing the blatant disrespect and misuse of Native American spirituality by New Age hucksters. In Colorado Springs, Manitou Springs, and throughout the Southwest and Colorado, profiteers commit sacrilegious acts that desecrate sacred objects and spiritual activities. The Creator endowed Indian People with precious spiritual practices -- including the Sacred Pipe Ceremony, the Sacred Vision Quest, the Sacred Sun Dance Ceremony, and the Sacred Sweat Lodge Ceremony. These sacred traditions provide strength and vitality to face monumental struggles; they create a "Life Raft" that carries Native people through a storm of life-threatening adversities and oppressions. Because of their importance, we cannot allow precious sacred traditions to be misused for profit. The Indian people of the United States must still fight for their human rights and fundamental freedoms. Of paramount importance is the struggle to protect our religious freedom and sacred traditions from sacrilege and profiteering. "Plastic" (false) medicine men and women steal Indian ways for use in New age ceremonies -- continuing the white man's 500-year tradition of cultural genocide through the trivialization of Indian spirituality. In Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs, and throughout the state of Colorado, business concerns have succumbed to greed by selling and exploiting sacred objects in stores, galleries, museums, private sales, and fake pow-wows. This is completely unacceptable and intolerable to the Indian ways of life. The exploitation of our sacred ways includes the buying and selling of sacred items, artifacts, and the presentation of "New Age" ideas as Indian wisdom or Indian-based. These practices violate the sanctity of sacred instruments and ceremonies, which are never offered for sale. This is an appeal to shop owners, gallery managers, museum directors, art dealers, pow-wow committees, and government officials: Please correct the gross violations of our Indian people by doing the following and by taking precautions when purchasing "Indian" artwork and objects. Please discontinue all sales of sacred pipes, raptor feathers, sage/cedar/sweetgrass smudge sticks, rattles, drums, tomahawks, medicine bags, head dresses, staffs, and all facsimiles of the above. Also avoid selling imitation Indian artifacts, plastic "Indian" toys made in non-Indians, and Indian novelties. These items perpetuate racist and derogatory attitudes toward Indian spirituality and culture. Indian people are tired of this and will no longer tolerate these abominations. If you wish to right these wrongs, please contact Colorado Springs AIM at P.O. Box 25292, Colorado Springs, CO, 80936. -- Written by Scott Robert Ladd, Coyote Gulch Productions <<<---------------------------()=()------------------------------->>> ** Scott Robert Ladd ** | internet: coyote@latrans.alphai.org Coyote Gulch Productions | fido: 1:128/112 nativenet: 90:80/3 423 North Cooper Avenue | bbs/modem: 719/578-1340 Colorado Springs, CO 80905-1120 | *** FREE CLIFFORD DANN! *** ------- "Re: 1993 Nations' Restoration of Our Sacred Instruments" -------- From: coyote@latrans.alphai.org (Scott Robert Ladd) Subj: 1993 Nations' Restoration of Our Sacred Instruments ==================================== American Indian Movement of Colorado ==================================== National Notice --------------------------------------------------- 1993 Nations' Restoration of Our Sacred Instruments --------------------------------------------------- at: Garden of the Gods Colorado Springs, Colorado *** June 19, 1993, at 11:00 AM *** The American Indian Movement of Colorado Springs will host a national demonstration in the continued effort to restore and protect the dignity of our sacred instruments. All AIM directors, security, members, supporters, and their families are invited and urged to be present. Please call us with the number of people from your group to attend, or for directions and more information, at 719/380-0996 or fax 719/473-8103 or write to P.O. Box 25292, Colorado Springs, CO 80936. --------- "Re: Teme Augama Anishnabai Treaty of Co-Existence" ---------- From: brennain@web.apc.org Subj: Teme Augama Anishnabai Treaty of Co-Existence TREATY OF CO-EXISTENCE On August 17, 1992, the Teme Augama Anishnabai and the Ontario Government announced the beginning of "substantive" negotiations for the Treaty of Co-Existence. Chief Gary Potts of the Teme-Augama Anishnabai called it a promising step in the 116th year of struggle for a treaty. The first step was taken by Chief Tonene in 1877 when he travelled to Lake Nipissing to protest his incursion by lumbermen into n'Daki Menan, his people's traditional homeland. Excluded from the 1850 Robinson-Huron Treaty by the colonial government, Chief Tonene told the federal Indian agent that the Teme-Augama Anishnabai never signed the 1850 treaty. He said the lumbermen had no right to be on n'Daki Menan until a treaty was signed. Still without a treaty 96 years later, Chief Potts filed "cautions" under the Land Titles Act in 1973 on all unpatented land in n'Daki Menan to stop incursions by the Ontario government. In 1984, after 119 days of proceedings, the Supreme Court of Ontario ruled in favour of Ontario. The Teme-Augama Anishnabai - shocked at the court's disregard for history and human rights - appealed to the Appeal Court of Ontario and finally the Supreme Court of Canada. At the end of an arduous 18 year journey through the Canadian court system, the Teme Augama Anishnabai's appeal was dismissed. While recognizing that the Teme-Augama Anishnabai had an aboriginal right, the highest court ruled that right was lost by adherence to the Robinson-Huron Treaty through subsequent arrangements. There were two such arrangements : some members of the Teme-Augama Anishnabai accepted $4 treaty payments and a one-square mile reserve was created on Bear Island. This decision was especially devastating for the Teme-Augama Anishnabai because no one from their nation ever signed the 1850 treaty. Instead, it was imposed on them - 141 years after the fact. While ruling that the aboriginal right had been extinguished by subsequent arrangements to the 1850 treaty, the court went on to say: "It is conceded that the Crown has failed to comply with some its obligations under this agreement, and thereby breached its fiduciary obligations to the Indians. These matters currently form the subject of negotiations between the parties". As the Supreme Court of Canada pointed out in its decision, the "Crown" has breached its fiduciary duty. (A duty to act for someone else's benefit, while subordinating one's personal interests to that of the other person. It is the highest standard of duty implied by law, eg. trustee, guardian. - Black's Law dictionary, Abridged Sixth Edition). The solution is now a Treaty of Co-Existence. The Treaty of Co-Existence will be based on the concept of stewardship. Under the treaty, land stewardship is divided into three categories of care. The first category is sole stewardship lands where the Teme-Augama Anishnabai governments would exercise its own authority. The second category is shared stewardship. This means that a joint Native/non-Native governing body made up of local representatives would have authority over an area of n'Daki Menan. The third and final category of land covers organized municipalities whose borders fall within n'Daki Menan. Authority in these areas will remain with the municipalities and Ontario. Negotiations for the Treaty of Co-Existence will cover : land resources, compensation, taxation, economic development and government. Private property is not on the negotiation table. The Treaty of Co-Existence is a much needed solution to problems affecting the region. - The Teme-Augama Anishnabai will benefit by acquiring the means for meaningful self-government, self-sufficiency, and economic development. - Local economies will benefit from new economic development and responsible resource management that provide for long term sustainability. - Stewardship of the land will be the responsibility of local people who must live by their decisions. - Co-Existence will foster a spirit of co-operation among people in the area. Teme-Augama Anishnabai land stewardship is based on 6000 years of living within the natural framework of n'Daki Menan. Fundamental to Teme-Augama Anishnabai land stewardship is a deep respect for n'Daki Menan as the source of, and provider for, all living things. There is a basic understanding that all of Creation is sacred and everything in it has a special meaning and purpose. This natural, holistic and centuries-old approach to land stewardship is expressed today in the land management principles of Sustained Life and Sustainable Development. The goal of the Teme Augama Anishnabai is to manage n'Daki Menan according to these principles and to protect and enhance its natural integrity for the benefit of those not yet born. Today our stewardship role includes improvement and rehabilitation of areas that have been abused and degraded in the interests of short-term monetary gain. We are not against any particular uses of n'Daki Menan but we insist that the land itself dictate the type and intensity of those uses. As stewards of n'Daki Menan, this is our sacred trust and responsibility. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING The Memorandum of Understanding was signed on April 23, 1990 by the Teme-Augama Anishnabai and the Ontario Government. The "MOU" committed the Teme-Augama Anishnabai and Ontario to three processes: - negotiations for a Treaty of Co-Existence; - establishment of a stewardship council; - bilateral consultation in forestry management. Under the bilateral process Teme-Augama Anishnabai staff review the Ministry of Natural Resources' timber management plans and make recommendations based on the principles of sustained life and sustainable development. The stewardship council was established with the signing of an addendum to the MOU on May 23, 1991; the council was named the Wendaban Stewardship Authority and is a decision-making body with equal Native and non-Native membership. The authority is a land management regime which studies and plans for all uses and activities in its jurisdiction (four townships, or about 3.5% of n'Daki Menan). The Treaty of Co-Existence process, the most important part of the MOU, provides for actual treaty negotiations; this includes all of the research and administrative work being done in support of negotiations. [N'Daki Menan is a 4,000 mile territory covering 110 townships, north of North Bay in northeastern Ontario. N'Daki Menan is the homeland of the Teme Augama Anishnabai, the Deep Water People, who have given their name (Temagami) to the largest lake and village in their homeland.] Call or write for further information : Teme Augama Anishnabai Negotiations Unit Group Box 46, Bear Island, Lake Temagami n'Daki Menan, Ontario P0H 2H0 tel (705) 237-8933 fax (705)237-8908 --------- "Re: The Long Struggle at Big Mountain" ---------- From: bill@phony25.cc.utah.edu (Bill Faulk) Subj: The Long Struggle at Big Mountain The Long Struggle at Big Mountain Arthur J. Miller, Big Mountain Support Network, Bayou La Rose "The white man does not understand that the Indian is bonded to their land and cannot be treated as parcels to be distributed like the U.S. mail." --Askie Betsie (NLNS)--The struggle at Big Mountain is one of the longest and most complex struggles in modern times. To understand the current situation we must take a look at the history which leads up to the resistance of today. Long before the white man ever came to the area the Dine (Navajos) and the Hopis lived near each other and were trading partners. In 1583, Spanish "Explorer" Antonio de Espero reported Dine and Hopi living side by side in the so-called disputed area. In 1680, in the Pueblo Revolt both Dine and Hopi fought together to drive the Spanish out. In 1693, Spanish reoccupied all the area [except for the] Hopi land. In 1848, after the U.S./Mexican War the Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo was signed and the U.S. agreed to never remove the native People from their land. Starting in 1849, white settlers began to flood the area and the U.S. war on the Dine thus began. Colonel Kit Carson destroyed Dine livestock and crops and forced all captured Dine [to go] on a 400 mile walk to Fort Sumner, New Mexico. Thousands of Dine died on the walk and while they were imprisoned in a concentration camp. After four years of starvation in the concentration camp the Dine were forced to agree to the Navajo Treaty of 1868, which forced them on to a "reservation." In 1871 all "Indian affairs" were placed into the Department of the Interior and a program was started to "civilize" them by kidnapping Dine and Hopi children and placing them in prison-like schools for indoctrination. There they were told that their traditional ways were bad and they were not allowed to speak their own language. In 1882, President Arthur issued an Executive Order which created the "Joint Use Area." There were three lines drawn on a map by the white government in Washington. First, the Hopi Reservation in the center; around that was the "Joint Use Area," and around that was the Navajo Reservation. At that time all land that Indians were placed on was viewed as worthless. The government was short-sighted in the creation of the "Joint Use Area" because neither Dine or Hopi were given control over the area. It was just viewed as a dumping ground of Indians who had no other place to go. In 1909 coal was found on the Black Mesa. The companies found it very hard to sign leases so in 1923 the first Navajo Tribal Council was set up by the Department of the Interior at the request of Standard Oil. In 1934, the Indian Reorganization Act was passed which imposed these government controlled Tribal Councils on all Native Nations. In defiance the Dine and Hopi repeatedly disbanded their tribal councils. Since much of the Black Mesa coal was beneath the "Joint Use Area" the government had a problem; neither the Navajo or Hopi Tribal Councils could sign leases. So in 1946, Mormon lawyer John Boyden was sent to try to get a job with the Navajo Tribal Council to press a claim to lease rights in the area. He was rejected by the Dine who wanted no part in the government's plan. Then the Department of the Interior picked Boyden to go back and settle a dispute over the land that did not exist. He organized a Hopi Tribal Council and hired himself to resolve mineral rights. In 1958 Boyden wrote P.L. 85-547 which passed Congress, authorizing a Boyden suit to settle the land claims. In 1962 the Boyden suit "Healing vs. Jones" won and was upheld by the Supreme Court. This suit gave 1,000 square miles to the Hopi Tribal Council. In 1966 the Navajo and Hopi Tribal Councils signed the first leases for the largest coal strip mine in the U.S., with Peabody Coal. Boyden also represented Peabody in these leases. Because of the difficulty in passing a law to divide up the whole area a "ranger war" was fabricated by the Mormon P.R. firm, Evans and Associates. This was exposed by the Washington Post. Still, the plan worked. In 1974, Congress passed P.L. 93-531 which divided the area 50/50 between the two tribal councils. It called for the forced removal of all Indians on the "wrong side of the fence." There were about 100 Hopis and over 10,000 Dine living where the government said they could not. To help with the forced relocation the law included a 90% livestock reduction to try to starve the Dine off their land. In 1977, U.S. District Court decreed the partition line.In 1980 P.L. 96-305 was passed, which set the deadline for the forced relocation on July 6, 1986. This deadline was misunderstood by many, for when the government did not move in on that date people thought the Dine had won. What the deadline really meant was that the government could move in at any time after that. Two things are important to understand. First, this has nothing to do with any dispute between the Dine and Hopi people, rather this is all about mineral development. Most of the "Joint Use Area" and most of the Hopi Reservation is within the Black Mesa mineral formation. Within time all Native People living within that formation will be in danger of losing their homes. Next, as many people think, you cannot just repeal P.L. 93-531 because there are other laws and court rulings. Peabody Coal plans to strip mine coal from the area, move the coal by rail to Dong Beach, CA, and ship it to Japan. Japan wants this coal so that they can stop buying coal from South Africa. Already Peabody has two strip mines operating on the Black Mesa, just outside of the "Joint Use Area." They produce about 12 million tons of coal annually. The coal is shipped to the Navajo Generating Station at Page, Arizona, and the Mojave Station 273 miles away. The coal [going] to the Mojave Station is slurried by pipeline along the Colorado River. The water table is being lowered by this and springs are running dry. The Dine people have resisted the forced relocation. This started with Dine Elder Pauline Whitesinger confronting fencing crews in 1977. Since that time many miles of fence have been taken down. Many Dine people have been arrested and some have been beaten. In 1977 both Dine and Hopi people met with outside supporters and requested assistance. The government has continued its harassment of the Dine resisters in the form of low flying military jets, livestock reductions, a ban on all new construction, poisoned wells, the threat of military force (Reagan bragged that U.S. Marshalls and the military could complete the relocation in 30 minutes), court ordered destruction of homes (April 1982, District Court), and a misinformation/intimidation campaign. They have also tried to force our supporters from the outside by a court ordered destruction of the structures at the Survival Camp, which was set up for outside support people. While faced with the great powers of greed against them the Dine Resistance stands strong in their fight to stay on their land. And with just a handful [of] outside supporters they vow to fight to the end. As Dine Elder Ruth Benally put it, "When the time comes, if we don't have any other choice we are going to use our fists. No matter how small I am, I'll fight all the way to the end. After we throw our punches, if we get clubbed to death, they will have to drag us out." The Dine Resistance needs YOUR help! You can help by organizing a support group in your area, and plugging into the Big Mountain Support Network. P.O. Box 5464, Tacoma, WA 98415-0464. Go out and get other organizations, churches, unions or human rights groups involved. Gather together with your friends in your home to write letters. Get this article printed in papers and newsletters wherever you live. We must work together and everyone of you are very important for the forces of greed are very powerful. Bayou la Rose can be reached at PO Box 5464, Tacoma, WA 98415-0464. ------- "Re: MP's Letter to Indian Affairs Minister (re Lubicon)" -------- From: Roland Leitner (leitner@lion.hsc.ucalgary.ca) Subj: MP's Letter to Indian Affairs Minister (re Lubicon) Mailing List: NATIVE-L (nn.nativecan@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Lubicon Lake Indian Nation Little Buffalo Lake, AB 403-629-3945 FAX: 403-629-3939 Mailing address: 3536 - 106 Street Edmonton, AB T6J 1A4 403-436-5652 FAX: 403-437-0719 June 02, 1993 Enclosed for your information is a copy of a letter to Federal Indian Affairs Minister Tom Siddon supporting the recommendations of the Lubicon Settlement Commission. The letter is from Ethel Blondin-Andrew, Member of Parliament for the Western Arctic and Aboriginal Affairs Critic for the Liberal Party of Canada. * * * * * May 25, 1993, letter to Tom Siddon from Ethel Blondin-Andrew Dear Mr. Siddon: I am writing in regards to the Lubicon Cree of Northern Alberta and their struggle for more than forty years to secure a permanent land base. Their outstanding land claim has not only been a disgrace to Canada, this issue has grabbed the world's attention and is now considered an international human rights issue. As you are well aware, negotiations have not taken place between the Lubicon people and the federal government since 1989, at which time the federal government made a "take- it-or-leave-it" offer, which did not compensate the Lubicon for lost benefits or oil revenues, nor did it offer a chance for the Lubicon to develop a self-sufficient land base. The Federal Government's failure and subsequent inaction, to resolve the Lubicon issue despite the U.N. Human Rights Committee statement that the Canadian government's treatment of the Lubicon threatens their way of life and culture and constitutes a violation of Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, has been a clear indication to all Canadians, that this Government has reneged on its fiduciary responsibility. Too much time has already been wasted on studies, reports and bureaucratic mechanisms which have only delayed and diminished Lubicon progress. The priority must be, to resolve each issue as quickly as is possible. I urge that as Minister, you actively support the recommendations in the Final Report by the Lubicon Settlement Commission of Review, starting with recommendation #5 which suggests that beginning immediately, all royalties be held in trust and that no additional permits or leases be granted on traditional Lubicon lands without Lubicon approval. With multinational corporations continuing to extract over one million dollars each day from Lubicon land, it is absolutely imperative that as the Minister, you make a commitment at once, to end third party pillaging of Lubicon resources. I would also urge you to consider recommendation #8, which states that extinguishment of aboriginal rights, including land rights, not be a condition for settlement. It is the hope of the Lubicon people and that of Canadians across the country, myself included, that the Prime Minister (or his expected replacement) and his government will respond to the Report's recommendations. As the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs, you must find the political will and return at once to the negotiating table to resolve this outstanding land claim and international human rights issue. I hope that you will give your earliest attention to this issue. I look forward to your reply. Sincerely, Ethel Blondin-Andrew, M.P.