[Indigsol] Barriere Lake Court Support/Action Alert!

[Indigenous Peoples' Solidarity Movement -Ottawa]

Call-out for Support
Pack the Courtrooms in Support of the Algonquins of Barriere Lake

In October and November of 2008, members of the Barriere Lake First
Nation, Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement (IPSMO)- Ottawa,  and
Barriere Lake Solidarity Montreal participated in a blockade led by the
Barriere Lake Algonquins. A number of charges were laid against Ottawa,
Montreal and Indigenous protesters. Two Barriere Lake Community members
and two Barriere Lake Solidarity  activists from Montreal with charges
stemming from the
October 2008 blockade will be in court on the 26th of AugustWe want to
pack the court room to show that we don't trust the courts sense of
justice and that we want to be there to
witness the decision.

August 26-

@ 9:30am at the Maniwaki courthhouse 266, rue
Notre-Dame, Maniwaki, PQ . Rides should plan to leave by 7am.

Please e-mail IPSMO at riseup.net to request a ride or offer a vehicle.

BACKGROUND:

Why a blockade
The purpose of the non-violent demonstration was to force the Quebec and
Canadian governments to negotiate with the Barriere Lake people in regards
to their rights and treaties. Since 2001, Canada has been in breach of the
1991 Trilateral Agreement. This agreement was hailed a landmark
sustainable development and resource co-management agreement praised by
the United Nations and the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.
Unfortunately, Canada backed out of the agreement.
Changes outlined in the agreement included:
-Barriere Lake reserve of 59 acres would be enlarged
-co-management of resources would be implemented
-Barriere Lake would receive a share of $1.5 million of the $100 of
resources currently extracted from the territory by Hydro Quebec and
private logging companies
The demands of the blockade included upholding this Trilateral Agreement.
A second demand of the blockade was for the Department of Indian and
Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) to respect the outcome of the traditional
leadership process. The community has documented three instances of
interference in the traditional leadership process, including two coups.
In fact, the demands that Barriere Lake people were looking to discuss
were no more than what Canada had already agreed to, the Trilateral
Agreement, and not interfering with the traditional governmental
structure, both which expected within Canada's own legal and policy
framework.

For more information please visit:
http://barrierelakesolidarity.blogspot.com/
Police Brutality and Misinformation at the Blockade
-misinformed those stopped on road, and reporters by claiming that
protesters had guns. This was a lie- the protest was completely
non-violent. Some reporters did not come close as a result
-shot tear gas at crowd that had many children and elders present
-multiple members from Barriere Lake have served jail time. Canada has a
duty to negotiate and consult with the Barriere Lake people, but instead
it has stood back and allowed the courts to criminalize the community
through targeted arrests of the community's leadership during blockades.
Meanwhile, the root issues of Canada's aggression towards the community is
not addressed.

Description of police brutality and subsequent reactions:
"Police move to shield the remaining blockaders from view, forming a human
wall around the lock-boxes. Peering between riot police standing with
batons at the ready, we can see an official (he's wearing a different
uniform) giving orders. We see those locked in kicking or flailing in
agony. We will later learn that police used "pain compliance" methods. We
will hear from those who were locked in that the police pinched and pushed
at pressure points, causing severe pain. We will hear that police told
those locked in that by remaining, they were causing more pain to their
comrades. We will hear that police used a crowbar to attempt to pry one
blockader's arm loose. We will hear about sexual harassment. We will argue
about whether or not "torture" is too strong a word to describe what the
police did. We will decide that causing someone pain in order to convince
them to do something they do not want to do does in fact qualify as
torture, but that the media will not take us seriously if we use that
word. An elder will say that "pain compliance" is a good description of
the government's policies towards the Algonquins of Barriere Lake. . . "
Full article detailing blockade, "Pain Compliance as Indigenous Relations"
by Dru Oja Jay, is available at:
http://barrierelakesolidarity.blogspot.com/search/label/media

What You Can Do:
Pack the courthouse! 266 rue Notre-Dame,
August 26
at 9:30am
2nd floor

 You can help support the community and solidarity organizers by coming to
court with us on August 26th . Also, please read the update below and take
a minute to send a message to Minister of Indian Affairs John Duncan and
regional minister Pierre Nepton regarding Indian Affairs recent forced
imposition of Indian Act governance on the community, despite massive
popular resistance:
http://barrierelakesolidarity.blogspot.com/2007/10/blog-post.html

We would like to pack the court house to show that there is a community
behind these
people, to make the court aware that we are there to witness the
proceedings and decision, and to cut the intimidating and oppressive
atmosphere by bringing some humanity to the place. Please e-mail
IPSMO at riseup.net if you would would like to go, but need a ride, and if
you have a car and are able to drive people that day. The proceedings will
begin at 9:30 am in Maniwaki.


Thank you for your support.
IPSMO Legal Support Committee


Below is a recent update from the community

-- 

Spend 5 minutes to support the Barriere Lake Algonquins as they take
action to protect their inherent right to govern themselves according to
their customs!

On August 12, the Canadian and Quebec Governments are using the Quebec
police to impose the Indian Act election process.  The Algonquins of
Barriere Lake are boycotting!

Say NO to Canada's armed-imposition of an unconstitutional regime!


Send an online letter to the new Minister of Indian Affairs John Duncan
and Indian Affairs Quebec Regional Director Pierre Nepton here:
http://barrierelakesolidarity.blogspot.com/2007/10/blog-post.html

Call Minister of Indian Affairs John Duncan: 1-800-667-280, 613-992-2503,


---> If you can DONATE to or ENDORSE Barriere Lake's campaign, please
contact us: barrierelakesolidarity at gmail.com


For BACKGROUND:
http://www.barrierelakesolidarity.org/2010/06/harper-strahl-erasing-algonquin.html
or http://www.ipsmo.org



PRESS RELEASE


Wednesday, August 11, 2010



Barriere Lake Algonquins mount boycott of government-imposed election poll
in face of threats of arrest by Quebec police


Kitiganik, Rapid Lake, Algonquin Territory / - On August 12, the
Algonquins of Barriere Lake will protest and boycott a nomination poll for
Indian Act band elections that the Department of Indian Affairs is
unilaterally forcing on their community.

The Quebec Police, the Sûreté du Québec, will be guarding the polling
stations in the community’s territory and have threatened to arrest anyone
who tries to interfere or set up blockades.

After community members peacefully blockaded a federal government
electoral officer from entering the reserve on July 22, the Department of
Indian Affairs rescheduled the nomination poll for August 12.

“The Canadian and Quebec Governments are shamefully treating our community
like criminals for peacefully protecting our inherent right to govern
ourselves according to our customs,” says Tony Wawatie community
spokesperson. “The Canadian government is attempting to unconstitutionally
abolish our traditional leadership selection. They claim imposing this
regime is a democratic move, but the overwhelming majority of our
community members are opposed and want instead to maintain our own system
of government.”

The government officer is seeking nominations for a Chief and Council that
would be voted for in an election the Department of Indian Affairs has
planned for September 26, 2010. Barriere Lake is one of the few First
Nations in the country who have never been under the Indian Act’s
electoral system, continuing instead to operate under a Customary
Governance Code that they have used for generations.

During the July 22nd nomination meeting only 4 nominations were sent by
mail-in-ballot – and all from individuals who have never lived within
Barriere Lake's traditional territory.

“The Canadian government claims they are imposing Indian Act elections
because our traditional system doesn’t work, but it's in fact the
government's interference in our internal affairs that has destabilized
our governance,” says Marylynn Poucachiche, another community
spokesperson. “The real reason they are imposing band elections is to
sever our connection to the land, which is maintained by our traditional
political system. They don’t want to deal with a strong leadership and a
community that demands the governments honour signed agreements regarding
the exploitation of our lands and resources.”

Barriere Lake’s inherent right to customary self-government is protected
by section 35 of the Canadian Constitution and is enshrined in the United
Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. A May, 2010
report by the Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples affirmed
that First Nations have the right to maintain control over their internal
affairs and be free to pursue their vision of customary government.

The Assembly of First Nations has passed a unanimously-backed resolution
condemning the government and demanding that the Minister of Indian
Affairs rescind the band elections, imposed through section 74 of the
Indian Act.

Under Barriere Lake’s customary governance code, participation in
leadership selections is open only to those band members who live in the
traditional territory and have knowledge of and connection to the land.



-30-



Media contacts:

Tony Wawatie, community spokesperson: 819 – 860-4121

Marylynn Poucachiche, community spokesperson: 819-441-4923

To arrange interviews you can also email :
barrierelakesolidarity at gmail.com

NOTE: Attached is an August 10th letter addressed to federal and
provincial ministers from the Algonquins of Barriere Lake.


In Solidarity,
IPSMO
on unceded Algonquin Territory
--
Check out IPSMO's Videos:
http://ipsmo.wordpress.com/video-archives/

IPSMO's Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=120142932547&ref=ts
*** Please forward widely!  ***




-- 
In Solidarity,
IPSMO
on unceded Algonquin Territory
--
Check out IPSMO's Videos:
http://ipsmo.wordpress.com/video-archives/

IPSMO's Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=120142932547&ref=ts