| Tahltan Elders Occupy Band Office | 14 February 05 |
 On Jan. 17, 2005, a group of 35 traditional Tahltan Elders, some of them in their mid-80s, occupied the band office in Telegraph Creek to protest mining development on their territory and repudiated Chief Jerry Asp's authority to speak on their behalf.Elder Pat Etzerza stated that they have no intention of leaving any time soon, despite the fact that Chief Asp has obtained an injunction that would legally oust them. The tribulations of Chief Asp serve as a powerful reminder of something that government and industry frequently fail to take into account. Elders such as those occupying the band office in Telegraph Creek, have a moral suasion in aboriginal communities that simply does not exist in mainstream society, where seniors are routinely marginalized and their social role trivialized. Elected Aboriginal councils, with which mainstream government and industry prefer to deal, remain a colonial veneer upon the traditional forms of government, which are influenced by the complicated dynamics of ancient family territorial jurisdictions, hereditary clan ranks and affiliations, and rights to intellectual property based on lineages legitimized by principles that don't apply in mainstream culture. Traditional forms of governance will have to be acknowledged and accommodated if government and industry are sincere about wanting to establish certainty in resource development. View coverage of the Elders' action on the Mines and Communities web site Visit the Tahltan Band Council web site Source: Vancouver Sun |
|
