For many years the Haida Nation along with our neighbors, have been working toward a future that maintains respect for the land as the foundation of Islands cultural and economic well-being. We have worked hard to resolve our issues in an orderly way through negotiations, diplomacy, and through the Courts. The BC government has shown nothing but contempt for the Supreme Court ruling with continued attempts to run ‘roughshod’ over our interests, stalling, sharp dealing, trickery and deceit.
We have made alliances and partnerships and entered processes in good faith in attempts to balance the interests of the land and culture with an economy. We have also shown that the ‘Island Community’ is compatible with Haida Aboriginal Title during this time and have presented jointly-supported solutions for resolve.
In the past two years, the Province has taken the approach of getting out of the way of industry, and practically handed all management responsibility and accountability to the companies. Never in the history of the Province has a government been so weak in its ability to manage and regulate natural resource industries.
After an 18-month ‘Land Use Planning’ process and strong consensus amongst the Island people, the BC Ministry of Forests continues to compromise the outcome through approval of logging inside of areas cited for protection.
Weyerhaeuser has shown no respect for the land, the culture, or the people who have worked for them. Weyerhaeuser has also shown no respect for its own word. In commitments made to the CHN, the communities and the people who work for them, five of the six commitments have been violated. Now the company is poised to sell its interests and in its final hours is attempting to strip all that it can from this land.
The opportunity to design a future that maintains the land and culture while providing for a sustainable economy is in our hands. The next generation will not have the same chance if the forest industry is allowed to strip our lands in the next few years.
When law, diplomacy and negotiation fail, it is time to stand and accept our responsibilities. The BC government has indeed impoverished the honour of the Crown; let us help to restore that honour.
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WHAT HAS HAPPENED? Logging and barges have been stopped today. Individuals are standing together in Queen Charlotte and on the road by East Yakoun, near Juskatla. The action is taking place as Weyerhaeuser is poised to sell off the Tree Farm License to Brascan. The slogans on the road say it all - Enough is Enough
Weyerhaeuser and the Ministry of Forests have shown complete disregard for our communities' needs and wishes. This was shown when the BC government compromised the Land Use Plan by approving cutting in areas that the Islands community had designated protected. The Land Use Plan was designed by all Island communities to ensure a sustainable future for Haida Gwaii.
The action on the road at both ends of the Island is taking place to address these serious issues that affect us all. If we don't move forward together the opportunities for change and a stable economy will no longer exist for us. These are first steps towards tackling issues, the forest companies, and the province of BC. The Islands community is serious about change - the future is now!
Volunteers are needed to be part of this all-Islands action. Please contact
Melinda Pick 559-8834 or cblake@haidagwaii.net to find out what you can do.
Information is also available at www.haidanation.ca/islands/islands.html
Keep checking the web site for updates.
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March 23, 2005
To all Islands people,
ISLANDS SPIRIT RISING GWAII SGAANAWAAY SIIGAA IIJAA
The Islands Spirit Rising convoy left the Yakoun River this morning heading to the Honna Road at Queen Charlotte to join the lines of defence.
The Haida have placed seizure notices on wood that has been logged in the last little while by Weyerhaeuser. Some of the wood is in the water, some is on the dry land sort and some is in the bush. This action is a result of Weyerhaeuser breaking five of six commitments made to the Haida Nation, the Forest Workers’ Association and the IWA Camp Committee in June of 2002.
Update on Lines of Defence The Honna Road camp is growing and people are settling in. It’s a comfortable place to be and is manned day and night by individuals from all communities. Songs are being sung, stories are being told and information is being shared. More common ground is being discovered and the comfort level is growing.
The Yakoun River camp has been established in a beautiful, scenic location alongside the river. A bonfire is burning, food is being served and there is plenty of singing, drumming and story telling. Again, there is participation from all our Islands communities.
Howa to those people who have generously donated food, chairs, tables and other supplies to both lines of defence. Any and all donations are gratefully accepted and deeply appreciated.
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ISLANDS BULLETIN NO. 4
March 24, 2005
To all Islands people,
ISLANDS SPIRIT RISING GWAII SGAANAWAAY SIIGAA IIJAA
A community meeting was held in Sandspit last night. The meeting was chaired by Gail Henry with over 100 people attending. Dale Lore, Mayor of Port Clements, Guujaaw, President and Arnie Bellis, Vice-President of the Council of the Haida Nation, were invited to attend as people involved in Islands Spirit Rising. The hall, which was full of Sandspit residents listened quietly and attentively to the guest speakers, the first being Dale Lore, Mayor of Port Clements. Sandspit residents asked questions about the Islands Protocol Agreement that has been signed by Masset and Port Clements and also discussed the role Sandspit will play in Islands Spirit Rising movement.
A turkey dinner was held in Port Clements last night. Again, over 100 people came to the community hall to enjoy delicious food with two songs being sung honoring others for their participation. People came and went through the evening in a warm casual atmosphere and were happy and laughing together. To raise money raffle tickets were sold with some very beautiful prizes. Watch for the tickets around town. Friday the 25th is the big day for the draw.
Update from the Lines Lines at Yakoun and Queen Charlotte are getting better organized, coordinators are building lists of people to set up an orderly schedule for maintaining the watch. Sign up to secure your future. The atmosphere at the lines and in the camps is friendly and warm, if you are nervous about coming down, don’t be, you will be warmly welcomed. This is an Island-wide community action.
We would like to say a big HOWA to everyone who has brought out hot delicious food and beverages – it warms our hearts and lifts our spirits at the overwhelming generosity.
Donations An account has been set up at the Northern Savings Credit Union, thank you for continuing to open your hearts and wallets.
Please contact Melinda Pick at 559-8834 or melinda_pick@hotmail.com or cblake@haidagwaii.net to find out what you can do.
Information is also available at www.haidanation.ca/islands/island.html
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ISLANDS BULLETIN NO. 5
March 25, 2005
To all Islands people,
ISLANDS SPIRIT RISING GWAII SGAANAWAAY SIIGAA IIJAA
From the Lines Last night, Allen Wilson came down late in the evening to share news and stories from the line at the Yakoun. People from the QC line are also visiting the Yakoun Line to share stories and support their neighbours.
We have visitors from a couple of organizations coming in this weekend to view the situation and to figure out what they can do to support us. We have been told that demonstrations of support are being organized in Vancouver, Toronto and Seattle. Other First Nations around the province have been in contact and are strategizing.
Islands Spirit Rising, the web site, is getting a lot of action and we are receiving emails from all over the world, we are asking people to engage their networks to get the word out. One fellow, a lawyer from New York, said that he is representing a community in a similar situation. A group of people there are tackling similar issues about resource extraction in a way that is not working for their community. We are not alone in our action and people around the world are inspired by the stance we are taking.
Robert Davidson has been visiting the lines, he was saying to us that this is not about winning, it is about who we are becoming.
Here at home, we have a couple points of clarification The logs seized at Ferguson Bay were taken in the interest of all Islands people. The action was taken because of a breach of the Six-Point Agreement with Weyerhaeuser. We have had legal consultation on this matter and will keep you updated as the situation unfolds.
There have been a few hang-ups at the line for people seeking access to the interior of the island. Please be patient as we work out these glitches. We want to thank everyone for their understanding while we work it out. The respect all of us show our neighbours and guests plays a large part in Islands Spirit Rising.
Volunteers Call We are calling for a volunteer coordinator to organize food banks in our communities. Money is starting to come in to support this action, thank you.
To strengthen our action we need people to join us at the line. We are setting up shifts of 4 hours each, come out and sign up. Call Nika’s, Danny to sign on 559-8133, leave a message if the machine comes on.
Please contact Melinda Pick 559-8834 or melinda_pick@yahoo.com or cblake@haidagwaii.net to find out what you can do.
Information is also available at www.haidanation.ca and click the link
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ISLANDS BULLETIN NO. 6
March 29, 2005
To all Islands people,
ISLANDS SPIRIT RISING GWAII SGAANAWAAY SIIGAA IIJAA
INTERESTING FACT Between 1982 and 2004 some 40,600,000 cubic metres of trees have been logged on Haida Gwaii and shipped to distant mills. One cubic metre is the size of one telephone pole. This is over $6-billion worth of logs.
WHY IS THIS ACTION TAKING PLACE? Basically it’s as the sign says – Enough is Enough. Industy has been logging on the Islands since the last century and during this time there have been many attempts to resolve the issues. In the 1960s, Tree Farm Licenses were issued in a shadow of corruption and cronyism and logging accelerated, reaching a peak of 2.2 million cubic metres a year. Through these years, as the wealth left the Islands and while the license holders made their fortunes, communities were left with nothing. It is also clear that the amount of forest being cut is not sustainable. In many attempts to address the issue of Rights and Title, there has been little in the way of concilliation through negotiation. • As the Haida Nation attempted to negotiate with the Provincial government, the Province has insisted that it must be business as usual for the forest industry. • The Province has chosen to ignore the orders of the Supreme Court of Canada in upholding the Honor of the Crown. Instead of fair dealings, the Province has passed legislation to get out of its obligation, giving almost all regulatory authority over to the forest industry. • As the Haida Nation and fellow Islanders finished a 2-year land-use planning process, the Ministry of Forests began issuing cutting permits in areas that are needed for purposes other than logging.
THE OBJECTIVE A sustainabile economy for the Islands in consideration of the well-being of the land that support the conditions for a continuing culture.
WHAT DOES THE WEYERHAUESER SALE MEAN AND WHY NOW? The sale of Weyerhaeuser to Brascan is a $1.2 billion dollar deal. The reason the action is happening now is that the province has refused to consult the Haida, and if the deal goes through the new buyer will need to generate quick returns on investment, which can only mean a faster rate of logging. Just like Weyerhaeuser practices now are having a negative impact on our communities, it will be just more of the same.
IS THIS ANTI-LOGGING? No. This is about ensuring a future for all of us. This is about keeping enough forest standing so that our future is secure and there are jobs, trees and salmon for all of us for the long term. Together we are designing a future that will work, and we can make it happen if we all pull together. We have watched the big companies operate here and we all know it doesn’t work for Islands people, communities. We have to take this stand to be able to design a future that will take care of the land and the people who live here. This action is based on local control and making things here on the Islands – not shipping raw logs off to be cut up somewhere else.
VOLUNTEER SIGN UP INFORMATION Call May Russ to sign on: 1-250-626-5252 or toll free 1-888-638-7778 or home 626-5037. Call Nika’s Danny at 559-8133 and leave a message if the machine comes on. To strengthen our action we are inviting people to join us at the line. Shifts on the Line have been set up. They are 4 hours each – a small investment to ensure our Islands future. Please contact Melinda Pick or at 559-8834 or or Cindy Blake. Information is also available at www.haidanation.ca
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