Native leaders planning 'rolling protest'

Cathryn Atkinson, May 30, 2008, Globe and Mail -- 'Strategic' rallies could coincide with Canada Day, B.C. Day, future elections and the 2010 Olympics, chief says

VANCOUVER — Aboriginal leaders in British Columbia will meet in mid-June to arrange the first "rolling protest" designed to highlight native poverty, land claims and other issues, and to flesh out plans for further demonstrations before the next provincial and federal elections and the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Grand Chief Doug Kelly of the Sto:lo Tribal Council said the protests would be similar to those that drew about 1,500 people to events around B.C. during yesterday's National Day of Action for aboriginal rights.

"My expectation is that they will be peaceful, that they won't be disruptive in the sense of causing significant inconvenience to the public," he said in an interview after yesterday's Vancouver march, which drew 300 participants.

He said the first protest could take place as soon as Canada Day, others could coincide with B.C. Day and some could come during celebrations planned later this year for B.C.'s 150th birthday.

Native pupils ask Strahl for school
"First nations will look for opportunities ... whether it is on Canada Day or B.C. Day, and keep the profile of our issues front and centre," he said.

"And I think first nations leaders wouldn't see B.C.'s 150th birthday as a cause to celebrate. Their view would be there has been 150 years of denial of aboriginal rights and title. We want governments to move beyond the platitudes and pretty speeches."

Mr. Kelly said two new committees created by the First Nations Summit and the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs will decide the locations of the protests.

"What we need to do is be very strategic. We want to make sure we build public support and have it translate into how people vote," he said.

Mr. Kelly's group, the New Relationship Action Committee, was formed by the First Nations Summit in March. Originally called the 2010 Action Committee, the name was changed at the request of Squamish Nation Chief Gibby Jacob, a member of VANOC's board of directors.

"Chief Gibby wanted us to avoid making it about the Olympics instead of the new relationship we want with government," Mr. Kelly said.

"We support the Olympics, but it is also an opportunity to share a status report. In the winter of 2010, the world will be coming to visit, and this is the reason we are giving the governments a two-year notice."

Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, will meet with Mr. Kelly and 12 other native leaders in mid-June.

He said fundraisers in native communities would be organized to cover travel costs for band members going to the one-day protests.

"Grassroots is important to us, and as we move forward we think the number of those getting involved will increase," he said.

"We're going to have to work hard. I hope the public understands that this is a human-rights issue in this country."

Mr. Phillip said more than 300 people protested in Keremeos yesterday, and about the same number went to the B.C. Legislature in Victoria, while 40 turned out at an early morning demonstration in Chilliwack at the office of federal Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl.

In Merritt, 200 members of the Nicola Valley Tribal Association held an "informational blockade," said Chief Tom Manuel, with drivers handed leaflets on "the issues that hit us every day in the valley."

In Prince George, about 100 people marched 10 blocks from the Carrier Sekani Tribal Council office to the downtown court complex.

"It's an opportunity for first nations across B.C. and Canada to draw attention to issues of importance to them," said David Luggi, tribal chief of the council.

Mr. Kelly said such protests would have international appeal.

"The message that will be shared with the world when it comes to visit in the Winter Olympics will very much depend on what Premier [Gordon] Campbell does ... and what the government of Canada will be doing to respond to our issues," he said.

One native leader used yesterday's day of action to lash out at the environmental policies of the governments of Alberta and Saskatchewan during a break in the western premiers' conference in Prince Albert, Sask.

Albert Mercredi, chief of the Fond Du Lac Denesuline Nation in northwestern Saskatchewan, accused mining companies of taking over traditional lands for uranium exploration without consulting natives. He also said oil sands activity north of Fort McMurray, Alta., is affecting water quality in Lake Athabasca, which straddles both provinces. He was among dozens of people who marched to Prince Albert city hall to mark the annual event in the shadow of the statue of former prime minister John Diefenbaker, who was considered a champion of aboriginal rights.