By Lloyd Dolha

Nine officers and three guards were working in the Whitehorse RCMP cellblock the day Raymond Silverfox (age 43) died in custody. None of them will face charges for allowing the Little Salmon Carmacks First Nations man to perish in a cell after 13 hours of vomiting and lying in his own feces. Following an extensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Silverfox and an independent legal assessment of findings of the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, Insp. Brandon Fitzpatrick of RCMP’s British Columbia Major Crime Section announced on November 10th that “it has been determined that no criminal charges should be laid.”
Continue reading…

By Lloyd Dolha

The Muskowekwan First Nation (MFN) of southern Saskatchewan has entered into a potentially lucrative joint venture agreement to develop a potash mine with Encanto Potash Corporation, a Vancouver-based mining company. “With all that’s going on in the potash industry in Saskatchewan right now, this agreement is unique,” said Muskowekwan Chief Reginald Bellerose. “While there is a lot of interest in potash, this agreement will work towards the first potash mine located on a Saskatchewan First Nation.” The mine will be developed on the Saulteax First Nations lands, encompassing some 43,000 acres of the First Nation’s 58,241 acres of treaty reserve land located about 75 miles northeast of Regina.
Continue reading…

Thirty-two newly certified journeypersons will receive awards for their outstanding achievement in the skilled trades in an awards ceremony tonight. Hosted by the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission (SATCC), the awards recognize the top achievers from among the more than 1,250 new journeypersons certified in the 47 trades in Saskatchewan between July 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010.

“A strong apprenticeship and trade certification system provides the training and support apprentices need to develop skills that Saskatchewan’s employers are looking for,” Advanced Education, Employment and Immigration Minister Rob Norris said. “The 32 exceptional new journeypersons we are recognizing this evening will be valuable additions to the province’s workforce.” Continue reading…

By Clint Buehler

Hundreds of Saskatchewan Metis gathered in Saskatoon during Métis Week to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI), created in 1980 to promote renewal and development of Metis culture through research, collection, and educational programs. Celebration activities included cultural workshops, musical performances, and the presentation of awards recognizing achievements and contributions of outstanding Metis.

The event opened with a keynote address by Maria Campbell, Saskatchewan author, playwright, film producer, and Métis activist whose honours include the Molson Prize for Literary Achievement, a National Aboriginal Achievement Award, and appointment as an Officer of the Order of Canada. Cultural workshops included sessions on beadwork, finger weaving, Métis clothing and art, genealogy, traditional medicine, and jigging. Featured among the performers were singer/songwriter/actor/playwright Andrea Menard, singer/songwriter/musician Donny Parenteau, and Métis hypnotist Scott Ward.

The GDI presents the Order of Gabriel Dumont Gold Medal to recognize those who have distinguished themselves with outstanding service to the Metis, based on lifetime achievement and service. This Year of the Metis there were two recipients: Clarence Campeau and Guy Bouvier. The Order of Gabriel Dumont Silver Medal is awarded to those who have made a significant contribution to the Metis. This year’s recipients are Rose Fleury, Elie Fleury, and Sheila Pocha.

Clarence Campeau passed away unexpectedly at the age of 50, but not before he had laid the foundations for numerous initiatives benefitting Saskatchewan Metis. Growing up as a “road allowance Indian,” Clarence became actively involved in Metis initiatives at an early age. Believing that Métis are great business people, Clarence stressed the importance of creating economic opportunities for Metis people. He designed programs and formed a construction crew to build homes for Sask Housing, and he engaged in cabinet making and other ventures. Clarence believed in grassroots power, and he built his vision on what the people wanted, moving beyond project-based economic initiatives to work for broad-based economic development, integration, and participation for Metis people. Clarence also worked for social and educational development in the Metis community. The Clarence Campeau Development Fund is named in his honour.

Guy Bouvier has worked since 1973 on behalf of the Metis people, promoting the Métis agenda on education, employment, entrepreneurship, health care, culture, and housing. Always willing to help others, he is described as dedicated, hardworking, caring, honest, knowledgeable, and understanding. His contributions over many years of involvement and leadership are wide-ranging and significant. Guy is also a proud Métis father and grandfather who loves his horses, the traditional Metis way of life, and sharing his stories. He changes the lives of people who know him—always for the good. A man of his word, Guy has dedicated his life to serving others.

Métis Elder Rose Fleury has promoted the importance of being Métis for decades. To her, this means knowing your roots, living a Metis life, and promoting Metis culture (past, present, and future). She has been a valuable asset as a traditional knowledge keeper at the Batoche National Historic Site and has never hesitated to share her traditional and contemporary knowledge. Elie Fleury has spent 50 years as an educator. He began his career as a teacher but has spent most of his life making post-secondary education accessible for Métis and Aboriginal people in Saskatchewan. Through the years, he has developed extensive knowledge in planning and policy development, paving the way for Métis students, their families, and their communities. Sheila Pocha has been a deeply committed and respected advocate for Metis and First Nations rights for nearly 30 years. Her unfailing energy, optimism, and real concern for the welfare of others make her a uniquely effective Metis advocate in education and community service. Sheila has been an exceptional leader and is always willing to volunteer her services.

GDI is the official educational arm of the Metis Nation-Saskatchewan (MN-S), offering a variety of accredited educational, vocational, and skills training opportunities for the province’s Metis in partnership with the University of Regina, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology, and the province’s regional colleges, as well as Métis Employment and Training of Saskatchewan Inc. A completely Directed-directed educational and cultural identity, GDI is unique in Canada. At its inception, GDI focused on education through cultural research to renew and strengthen the heritage of Saskatchewan’s Metis. In order to fully serve the multifaceted needs of Saskatchewan’s Métis community, the institute began training Aboriginal teachers and developing Specific-specific curriculum and historical publications. One of their best-known projects was the Saskatchewan Urban Native Teacher Education Program (SUNTEP), training Métis and First Nations teachers to meet the needs of the province’s Aboriginal students in the K-12 system. SUNTEP serves as a model for Aboriginal adult education programs cross Canada. GDI, through its Publishing and Curriculum Department, has recently opened a museum and archive, and has launched the Virtual Museum of Métis History and Culture [www.metismuseum.ca].

The GDI Museum Collection contains Specific-specific historical artifacts and a large collection of contemporary and traditional art, as well as an extensive archival collection of oral history records, photographs, and textual records, including more than 700 interviews with Metis elders. GDI’s decorative arts collection includes numerous examples of traditional beadwork, silk embroidery, moose hair tufting, and porcupine quill embroidery. The decorative arts collection is predominately historical (with some contemporary pieces) and includes examples of clothing, accessories, and household items in addition to costumes, furniture, musical instruments, textiles, and tapestries. The museum’s fine art collection is distributed throughout GDI centres in Prince Albert, Saskatoon, and Regina. It includes work by Metis and First Nations artists from across Canada. GDI information centre and library also offers research services for Métis genealogy and Metis-specific topics.

By Lloyd Dolha

Following seven long months of anticipation, the federal government revealed plans for $10 million in funding to address the disturbingly high number of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls­. Status of Women Minister Rona Ambrose spoke at the Vancouver Police headquarters in October, explaining the funding will provide new tools for law enforcement, improve the justice system for Aboriginal women, and provide better victim’s services for families. “Aboriginal women, including First Nations, Inuit, and Métis and non-status Indians, are 3 ½ times more likely to experience violent victimization than non-aboriginal women. They’re three times more likely to be the victims of spousal abuse than non-aboriginal women and are significantly over-represented as victims of homicides,” said Minister Ambrose.

The two-year funding will support initiatives to improve community safety on reserves and establish a National Police Service Centre for Missing Persons. The new centre would help improve coordination between police forces across the nation and offer specialized support in missing persons investigations. The Canadian Police Centre database will collect additional case information through a “tip” website for missing persons. Amendments to the Criminal Code will also streamline the ability to obtain a warrant in missing persons cases where wiretaps are required. The new measures will help improve the cultural relevance of victim’s services, enhance community safety plans, and develop awareness materials as well as school and community-based projects geared toward young Aboriginal women and girls.

Since 2005, the Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) has been using the Sisters in Spirit campaign to raise awareness and document evidence relating to violence against aboriginal women (especially violence leading to disappearance or death). To date, Sisters in Spirit has identified more than 580 cases of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls. Minister Ambrose acknowledged that the NWAC’s April 2010 report served as a catalyst for the new funding initiative.

Outspoken Aboriginal activist Ernie Crey, whose sister Dawn disappeared from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside in 2000, is pleased about the funding, but agrees that more should be done to improve the social, health, and economic status of Aboriginal women so they are not forced to live on the fringes of society where they are exposed to violence and murderous predators like Robert “Willie” Picton. “Let’s not forget that some of the missing and murdered women, like my sister Dawn, suffered from mental illness and depended on methadone to combat an addiction to street drugs,” said Crey.

Crey says he’s grateful to NWAC for standing by the victims’ families and thankful for people like Gladys Radek who began the Walk 4 Justice. Radek lost a niece, Tamara Chapman (22), who was hitchhiking out of Prince Rupert on the Highway of Tears in September 2005. Radek began her nationwide campaign on National Aboriginal Day 2008, organizing a walk from Vancouver to Ottawa to draw attention to the issue. The event attracted thousands of supporters. “Together, these groups put the issue of missing and murdered women front and center on Canada’s human rights agenda,” said Crey.

Others were less impressed with the $10 million funding announcement. New Democrat MP Irene Mathyssen (London-Fanshawe) pointed out that despite the announcement, none of that money would go to help the Sisters in Spirit campaign. She said the Conservative government is shunning the primary advocate for the victims and putting key information at risk. The five-year funding for Sisters in Spirit expired in March. “We were hopeful that some of the government’s $10 million announcement would go to Sisters in Spirit to help maintain its database of missing and murdered Aboriginal women,” she said. “The important research they have done may now be lost. The minister needs to explain how this data will be protected.”

MP Anita Neville, Liberal Critic for the Status of Women, demanded the immediate restoration of funding for the Sisters in Spirit research project. The Winnipeg South Centre MP called the current funding an inadequate half-measure that “completely sidesteps the fundamental question: why is the rate of missing and murdered First Nations women and girls so high?” Neville points out that the Liberals have demanded and independant public investigation into the issue since May 2009 and accuses the ruling Conservatives of “smothering the valuable work being done by the group intially responsible for bringing attention to this critical issue.” She says, “To really take concrete action on this issue, you need ongoing and updated evidence, which is what the Sisters in Spirit database was all about.” Neville called again for a full public inquiry to investigate “the response of the justice system to these cases, as well as the root causes of violence against Aboriginal women… and why so many cases remain unsolved.”

NWAC had originally sent out a press release stating their support for the announcement of funding from the Department of Justice; however, upon closer inspection, NWAC and Sisters in Spirit have serious concerns about how the money is allocated. They note that details in the announcement were not specific to Aboriginal women, and that it did not include measures to address serious crimes like murder (instead treating violence as a whole). They say the announcement did not address jurisdictional issues of the RCMP and that it reinvents and conducts work already done by Sisters in Spirit. They expressed their dissappointment with the exclusion of Sisters in Spirit in ongoing development of public policy in the matter.

Based on the wording of the 2010 federal budget and the Throne Speech praising Sisters in Spirit, NWAC believed they would be invited to join a discussion with the Department of Justice about allocation of funds and receive additional funding, which did not happen.

The announcement delivered by Status of Women Minister Ambrose was in fact funding supplied by the Department of Justice. When funding for Sisters in Spirit ran out in March 2010, NWAC secured six months of bridge funding of $500,000 from the Ministry of the Status of Women to keep the project going. That funding lasted through October, and a second project called “Sisters in Spirit, Evidence to Action.” In her introductory remarks, Ambrose acknowledged NWAC, Sisters in Spirit, and the “Evidence to Action” project to which NWAC must now apply for continued funding on the issue. Funding for Evidence to Action, from the Status of Women ministry, prevents NWAC from furthering their research and policy development work. Ministry officials have asked that funding proposals from NWAC not include the name Sisters in Spirit or that any funds they receive be dedicated to research for their database of missing and murdered women. Despite the outrage of the MPs and confusion that followed, NWAC clarified their position in an open letter sent to families of the missing and murdered women and girls. “These are two seperate issues and each will be dealt with… We are moving forward to maintain our current funding, secure new funding, and continue our work with you,” stated the letter.

Since the announcement, The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) has written to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, urging him to reconsider his government’s decision to disallow funding to the NWAC for projects using the name Sisters in Spirit or to upkeep its database of nearly 600 missing and murdered Aboriginal women. “The alarming rates of violence against Aboriginal women and girls are of great concern to NUPGE,” stated NUPGE’s president James Clancy. “According to the 2004 General Social Survey, Aboriginal women 15 years and older are almost three times more likely to be killed by a stranger than non-Aboriginal women.” Clancy stated that it “would seem punitive to make funding for NWAC’s continuing work on this critical issue contingent on a name and the abandoning of their database which has made huge strides in bringing to light this national tragedy.” He stressed, “On behalf of the national union’s 340,000 members, many of whom are of Aboriginal decent, I urge you to not desert the families of the 582 missing and mudered Aboriginal women!”

NWAC also expressed concern that the federal government is curbing the success of the Sisters in Spirit intiative. “This change has negatively affected the activities that NWAC can undertake and will hamper our ability to maintain focus on resolving the epidemic of violence that threatens Aboriginal women and girls across the country,” stated the release. They point out that the Sisters in Spirit project has become a global movement internationally recogized in Europe, Latin America, Australia, and North America. The release further stated that NWAC looks forward to collaboration with the government on projects that will continue the work begun almost six years ago and urged that “the staggeringly high number of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls remains a national priority that needs to be addressed immediately.”

by Michelle Morning Star Doherty

During the International Year of the Veteran in 2005, WWII Squamish Nation veteran James Nahanee asked his nephew, veteran Robert Nahanee, to ensure that the great contributions and sacrifices Aboriginal veterans and their families have made for Canada are never forgotten. “Our people have served this country and have helped to make it what it is today. Veterans and their families have reason to be proud. Today we honour and remember the sacrifices of our Aboriginal men and women in the spirit of peace and freedom, brotherhood and sisterhood. It is time that we pass our proud history of service onto our children,” said Mr. James Nahanee at the inaugural Aboriginal Veterans Day March, Ceremony, and Feast in Vancouver in 2005. “It is the custom of our people. If a call for help comes, regardless of where it comes from, we help.”
Continue reading…

By Lloyd Dolha

The Saskatchewan First Nations Veterans Association (SFNVA) has lauched the First Nations Veterans Speakers Bureau, designed to meet the high demand for speakers at school functions and other events. “We want to tell people our version of what happened to First Nations veterans after the war and about the many First Nations men and woman who offered their lives to this nation,” said 68-year-old Phillip Ledoux, vice-president of the SFNVA Prince Albert branch.
Continue reading…