[antiwar-van] Today! No Indigenous Consent to Pipelines and Mining

[Harsha W.]

CHRISTY CLARKE IS LYING:
NO INDIGENOUS CONSENT TO PIPELINES AND MINING

Statement of the Second Indigenous Assembly Against Mining and Pipelines

Linked here:
http://noii-van.resist.ca/?p=4533

Demonstration on Sunday November 6th at 3 pm, beginning at Vancouver Art
Gallery

Press Conference on Monday November 7th at 10 am in Union of BC Indian
Chiefs Boardroom, 342 Water Street

November 6, 2011 Unceded Coast Salish Territories- Indigenous communities
from across the province are gathering in Vancouver this weekend to oppose
destructive mining and pipeline practices.

The assembly is a united response to the Canadian Aboriginal Mining
Association’s conference being held at the Pan Pacific Hotel this week.
This pro-mining “Meeting Minds, Making Mines” Conference is seeking to
create economic certainty for mining corporations operating on
non-treatied unsurrendered native land. Grassroots Indigenous communities,
however, are opposing these plans and have come together in the Second
Indigenous Assembly Against Mining and Pipelines.

The Second Indigenous Assembly Against Mining and Pipelines will hold a
demonstration on Sunday November 6th at 3 pm beginning at the Vancouver
Art Gallery. On Monday November 7th at 10 am, the communities will hold a
press conference in the boardroom of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs at 342
Water Street.

The Assembly includes grassroots community members of the impacted
communities of the Saliammon, Secwepemc, Wet’suwet’en, St’at’imc,
Tsimshian, Dakelh, Carrier, Nuxalk, Tla-o-qui-aht, Haida Gwaii, Nak’azdli,
Nlaka’Pamux, Siksika, Ahousaht, Ktunaxa, and Sayisi Dene.

According to the Second Indigenous Assembly Against Mining and Pipelines:

The plans of Christy Clark and the BC government to push mining (including
eight new mines in four years) and pipeline developments into unceded
Indigenous territories will fail. We are opposing these plans and will be
protesting the Provincial and Federal Government for continually violating
inherent Aboriginal Rights and Title.

The BC government also hopes to proceed with a plan of signing ten
non-treaty agreements to create economic certainty for corporations. But
Clark’s government has no jurisdiction to pursue her economic agenda
without free, prior, and informed consent because we - grassroots
Indigenous peoples – legally, politically, economically, spiritually,
culturally, and inherently maintain Aboriginal title and jurisdiction over
our territories.

The promoters of the exclusive “Meeting Minds, Making Mines” Conference
give the false impression that mining has broad support from Indigenous
Peoples. But there are only a small number of Indigenous Peoples
benefiting from industrial developments. The meagre share of profits and a
few jobs that are promised by corporations and the government is not worth
the devastating impact on our water, salmon, food networks, cultural
sites, traditional livelihoods, children and future generations.
Indigenous Peoples are disproportionately impacted by industrial
development with high rates of toxic waste, pollution and ill health in
our communities, as well as systemic poverty through the encroachment into
and destruction of our territories.

For this reason, we reject the short-term interests of profit that
motivates those mining and pipeline developments that are trespassing on
our unceded Indigenous lands. We are Indigenous Peoples United Stopping
Pipelines and Mining!




-- 
Harsha Walia

https://twitter.com/HarshaWalia
https://www.facebook.com/nooneisillegal
http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/author/dtes-power-women-group



-- 
Harsha Walia

https://twitter.com/HarshaWalia
https://www.facebook.com/nooneisillegal
http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/author/dtes-power-women-group



-- 
Harsha Walia

https://twitter.com/HarshaWalia
https://www.facebook.com/nooneisillegal
http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/author/dtes-power-women-group