Cheam argues indigenous sovereignty in court

Cheam blockade with members of the West Coast Warrior Society, April 2000

Cheam argues indigenous sovereignty in court

by Oshipeya
March 12, 2010

On March 9, 2010, several indigenous people from the Cheam reserve of the Pilalt/Sto:lo people appeared in court in Chilliwack, British Columbia, to face charges related to defiance of government fishing regulations and to present evidence of their sovereign indigenous right to fish. Several people from Vancouver, indigenous and supporters, travelled to Chilliwack to show support and build solidarity, which the Cheam people said they appreciated.

One person from Cheam was taken into custody in the court room in the morning on another fishing charge and was to be released on probation and conditional discharge afterwards.

Evidence was presented by a Cheam member, without the presence of a lawyer, of indigenous traditions, family ties and teachings handed down through the generations regarding fishing in the area. The immensely destructive impact of residential schools on indigenous traditions was also presented.

A solidarity message from people of the Katzie reserve and information on their salmon sovereignty blockade of the Golden Ears Bridge on February 13 as part of the anti-Olympic convergence was also shared with the Cheam people at the courthouse and was well received.

The judge put the trial over to May 25, setting aside three days for evidence to be presented by Cheam members. More support and solidarity then is requested.

A short background pamphlet on the Cheam struggle can be found here:

http://12thandclark.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/cheamreportback.pdf

Boy charged in arson that gutted B.C. lieutenant-governor’s home

Boy charged in arson that gutted B.C. lieutenant-governor’s home

Thursday, February 5, 2009
CBC News [British Columbia]

A 13-year-old boy has been charged with arson, breaking and entering, and theft following a fire last weekend at the private home of B.C. Lt.-Gov. Steven Point, police said Thursday.

The RCMP arrested the boy, from a First Nations community in Chilliwack, B.C., on Wednesday evening, Cpl. Peter Thiessen said.

The arrest was made after members of the community assisted police in their investigation, Thiessen said.

Police are still investigating the motive for the arson but said it’s not political.

“There is no political component to this.… There are some other possible motives that come into play, but at this point, it would be premature to comment on that,” Thiessen told CBC News in a telephone interview.

Point and his family were not at their home on the Sto:lo First Nation reserve near Chilliwack when the arson took place Sunday morning.

No one was injured in the fire.

The RCMP have since increased security for Point and his family.

The fire caused considerable heat and smoke damage in the home and little was salvageable, although the structure was intact, police said at the time.

Point, a lawyer, former provincial court judge and former grand chief of the Sto:lo Tribal Council, was appointed British Columbia’s first aboriginal lieutenant-governor in September 2007.

Before his appointment, Point was head of the B.C. Treaty Commission.

Point has four children and 11 grandchildren.