Linchpin anarchist Newspaper March 2010 - By Krishna E. Bera, Lori Waller, and Greg Macdougall
In Feb. 2010, the Mitchikanibikok Inik – or Algonquins of Barriere Lake (ABL), a small First Nation community located 130km north of Maniwaki, Quebec, presented arguments in the Supreme Court of Canada defending their latest leadership selection.
Kitiganik/Rapid Lake, Algonquin Territory /– On Friday, October 30, 2009, Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl sent notice to the Algonquins of Barriere Lake that he will not recognize their legitimate leadership, but instead impose elections on the community in April, 2010 by invoking a section of the Indian Act that would abolish the customary method they use to select their leaders.
Les Algonquins du Québec menacent de recourir à des «mesures radicales» pour faire cesser la construction de la gigantesque mine d'or de Malartic, en Abitibi, si la compagnie minière n'accepte pas de les dédommager pour ce projet qui est construit, selon eux, sur des «terres ancestrales».
OTTAWA — Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl has used rarely invoked Indian Act powers to force voting on a small Algonquin community in northern Quebec that has been locked in a years-long battle with the federal government, while being torn by internal divisions.
David Nahwegahbow, a lawyer for the council of Chief Jean-Maurice Matchewan, said the federal government would face a constitutional challenge.
Kitiganik/Rapid Lake, Algonquin Territory /– On Friday, October 30, 2009, Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl sent notice to the Algonquins of Barriere Lake that he will not recognize their legitimate leadership, but instead impose elections on the community in April, 2010 by invoking a section of the Indian Act that would abolish the customary method they use to select their leaders.
Les Algonquins du Québec menacent de recourir à des «mesures radicales» pour faire cesser la construction de la gigantesque mine d'or de Malartic, en Abitibi, si la compagnie minière n'accepte pas de les dédommager pour ce projet qui est construit, selon eux, sur des «terres ancestrales».
OTTAWA — Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl has used rarely invoked Indian Act powers to force voting on a small Algonquin community in northern Quebec that has been locked in a years-long battle with the federal government, while being torn by internal divisions.
David Nahwegahbow, a lawyer for the council of Chief Jean-Maurice Matchewan, said the federal government would face a constitutional challenge.
We are the small community of Mitchikanibikok Inik First Nation - the Algonquins of Barriere Lake, in Northern Quebec. We still speak our language and practice our traditional way of life. Members of our community still live on the land, hunting, trapping, gathering plants and medicines, and making clothing using local materials and traditional knowledge. We also choose our leadership according to our customary practice, through an elders' council that is determined to maintain our language, culture, and traditions. All of this is under threat as the government of Canada tries to destroy our land and our way of life. Read more here.
