[IPSM] Tensions mount in aboriginal logging debate

[Devin Butler]

 >TENSIONS MOUNT IN ABORIGINAL LOGGING DEBATE
 >
 >MONTREAL - First Nations leaders say the province's forestry legislation 
needs to be reformed.
 >
 >The Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief for Quebec and Labrador, 
Ghislain Picard, says the arrest of a group of Algonquins blockading a 
logging road near Val d'Or, Que., proves the laws must be updated.
 >
 >  A Sûreté du Québec riot squad moved in on Nov. 24 and 28. Lac Simon 
Algonquin community members were arrested. Now, the situation in La 
Verendrye Park is very tense, Picard says.
 >
 >  Those arrested were members of the "Algonquin Coalition", comprised 
mainly of citizens of the Anishinabe Nation of Lac Simon and Long Point 
First Nation, communities near Val d'Or.
 >  The coalition was staging a protest against logging on their traditional 
lands when the arrests took place.
 >
 >
 >
 >"It's becoming very hard for the chiefs to calm the tension and calm the 
spirits within the community," Picard says.
 >The men were subsequently released, but Picard says the issue that led to 
the confrontation has yet to be settled.
 >Logging deal
 >
 >The communities are trying to renegotiate a deal that has given logging 
rights in the area to Domtar.
 >
 >
 >"We absolutely must determine with the First Nations a fair and equitable 
framework for the use and management of lands and resources," Picard says.
 >
 >"The province committed to doing this in a 1985 resolution from Quebec's 
National Assembly and in the Mutual Political Commitment signed by the 
Charest government in 2003. They must honour their promises to First 
Nations."
 >
 >The Algonquin have been battling Domtar for years, saying the company is 
threatening their way of life by cutting down too many trees.
 >
 >He reminds government and business of recent Supreme Court decisions 
obliging governments to consult First Nations on resource issues.
 >
 >
 >"It's becoming more and more important that the government of Quebec open 
its eyes, in terms of what goes on outside this province," Picard says.
 >
 >Picard wants Quebec to give First Nations decision-making power to manage 
natural resources in Quebec.
 >
 >
 >National attention
 >
 >"The AFN and all First Nations are very concerned that our people have 
been arrested for trying to uphold their rights and protect their 
territories," said National Chief Phil Fontaine.
 >
 >"I am calling on Quebec Premier Jean Charest to accept the recommendations 
of his own mediator, so that his officials and the Algonquin Coalition can 
resolve their differences through agreed-to processes and peaceful 
negotiation.
 >  This is not the time for heavy-handed tactics or unilateral actions that 
will only inflame the situation."
 >  Fontaine and Picard offered AFN help to bring about a peaceful 
resolution.
 >  The Assembly of First Nations is the national organization representing 
First Nations citizens in Canada.
 >The Assembly of First Nations Quebec- Labrador is the regional 
organization representing First Nations in that territory.
 >
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