By Ben Powless

The rhetoric was sharp enough to cut down Amazonian hardwoods. Yesterday, Sunday June 7th, after a number of ministers had been paraded out Saturday and the day before, Peru’s el Señor Presidente, Alan Garcia decided to make it personal. After a joint police-military operation aimed at stopping an Indigenous protest had gone awry, leaving many dead on both sides, Garcia declared the Indigenous elements to be standing in the way of progress, in the path of national development, wrenches in the gears of modernity, and part of an international conspiracy to keep Peru down. In a troubling statement on the resemblance of the Indigenous protesters to the infamous Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) armed insurrection, Garcia seemed to imply the Natives were a band of terrorists as he stood in front of hundreds of military officers in a nationally televised speech. He continued to decry the Indian barbarity and savagery, and called for all police and military to stand against savagery.


Indigenous and non-Indigenous protesters confront the police on the highway outside Bagua PHOTO: Thomas Quirynen


Clearly, the battle lines were being drawn. Garcia demonstrated he is not about to allow anything to get in the way of “our development” of the oil and mineral resources the Amazon has to offer. Especially by a bunch of confused savages (his words) who are pawns to the international market and to Indian elites and therefore have no real reason to be resisting. At this point, it was obvious he thought nothing of the Indigenous cause, and what they actually stood for. There is too much money to be extracted from oil, from minerals, from logging, and from possible agriculture in the Amazon region, the 2nd largest stretch outside of Brazil. All on land with less than 200,000 Indigenous people. All now supposed to be open for business, as a result of a series of laws passed under the auspices of Free Trade Agreements signed with both Canada and the United States.

All those who lost their lives – certainly more than the 30 or so officially cited – have in the end given their lives for these free trade agreements and their domestic implementation. After wresting a concession from Congress – a la Bush – Garcia was able to push through 99 changes to the law of Peru. A number of these were ruled unconstitutional later, one dealing with property law standing out. Indigenous groups disputed from the beginning that these laws threatened the integrity of the Amazon, its cultural and biological diversity. Since the beginning, they were ignored. Living up to their Amazonian warrior mythology, they decided to take action.


Police clearly seen with automatic submachine guns, not fit for use against civilians PHOTO: Thomas Quirynen


Protests have lasted now over 50 days, only recently erupting into bloodshed when Garcia suspended civil liberties, declared a state of emergency, and decided to send in the military to end the dispute. This was all done in the name of Garcia’s idea of ‘democracy,’ which should be farcical to anyone who has the least idea what democracy means. Indigenous groups have maintained they want to be included in this so-called democracy, meaning they have a say over what happens in their lands, and that their rights be respected. This is clearly within international law now, after the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was approved two years ago.

The Declaration lays out provisions that clearly establish the rights to free, prior and informed consent over development projects in Indigenous territories, and the right to be involved in any decision making processes that would impact on Indigenous Peoples’ lands, resources or rights. Repeated demands have called for there to be dialogue with Indigenous groups. Garcia’s response? Yes, there has been dialogue – within the government, by elected officials. Obviously, this hasn’t done enough to safeguard the rights, the lives, and the livelihoods of Amazon peoples, and a number of the new laws have been shown to be unconstitutional. Indigenous leaders quickly condemned the tragic loss of lives as the fault of the government, who was not committed to dialogue, but arms. Even the ex-president has placed the blame on Garcia for not seeking dialogue with Indigenous representatives.


Police take away identified ‘terrorist’ PHOTO: Thomas Quirynen


Lamentably, this whole situation could have easily been prevented, had the government cared enough about its own citizens’ lives and effective dialogue more than getting its own way. Instead, on Friday morning, police and military descended on an Indigenous encampment near the Amazonian towns of Bagua Chica and Bagua Grande. Reports from the ground contradict the government version, in which security forces, reluctant to use force, were ambushed and had to defend themselves with bombs, helicopters, and machine guns. Other reports establish that a private meeting was held between the military, the Indigenous leadership, and a local bishop, among others, the night before the violence. Indigenous groups were reportedly given until 10am to make a decision to leave or stay, and were guaranteed that nothing would happen until then. In response, many decided to go home. But the government apparently lied. The operation started around 6am.

Local sources instead claim they were sleeping, unarmed, when bullets were fired in their direction. When the police finally arrived to physically remove protesters, it was then that many police were disarmed, killed, or taken prisoner by the masses of protesters, probably numbering over 2,000 in days prior, now down to a few hundred. By now, the war had been declared, and wouldn’t stop well into the night as police and military continued in a violent sweep, ending up going into the towns and reportedly searching house by house in vengeance. Police entered with weapons of war against civilians. Now the military has been reported to be wearing civilian clothing to carry out what seems more and more to resemble a civil war. Families decry that they haven’t been allowed to enter the areas to search for missing family, or enter jails to visit and feed prisoners. All this done in a declared state of emergency, with many liberties and human rights withdrawn for local citizens.


Protesters re-converge near the split in the highway PHOTO: Thomas Quirynen


Then came the outrage. But not by locals or Indigenous groups, though that was palpable. By the very same government who initiated the action. Their reports came out throughout the next day – a dozen security forces murdered in cold blood, maybe 3 Indians hurt. Now 24 police and military cruelly assassinated, about 9 Indians dead (no information how). The choice of words is translated from government pronouncements, and reflects their dim view of Indigenous deaths, despite many being civilians, with a few children among those murdered.

On the other side, Indigenous groups reported at least 30 civilians and Natives were killed, but also that government officials had gone through lengths to disappear some of the bodies, a claim documented by Amazon Watch (see link below). Some AIDESEP members in the communities dispute that the number is much higher, closer to 100, including peasants and civilians. Video evidence clearly shows Natives armed only with spears against a tactical unit in one confrontation, and photos show police firing live weapons from the roofs, reportedly into crowds gathered below. A national newspaper even reported that one could clearly find pictures of more than a dozen Natives and civilians dead, online. No matter, the numbers had suddenly taken on a new importance.

This had been the worst episode of violence since the 90’s, so one might think the government might want to cut its losses and signal a shift towards more productive measures. Indeed, both sides could claim that they lost a number of lives, impetus to stop the bloodshed. Except that the war had already been declared, and may only be heating up. Hence the president’s fiery rhetoric, about how dare the savage Indians hurt our humble police, who didn’t want to raise their weapons. With their claim of nearly 30 deaths to the Indians’ 9 pushed them to call it a massacre (matanza, masacre) and seemed to pave the ethical and emotional road towards stronger retaliation, as all news channels were flooded with pictures of the soldiers bodies being flown out. The president of the ministers’ congress today appeared before congress and on national television to decry all the foreign news reports that fail to coincide with official numbers. Not only that, of course, these Natives were getting in the way of our development, of our modernity, denying us our basic human rights. Many of these government claims are thin disguises to misrepresent the Indigenous movement and its positions.


Police seen shooting on crowds below in Bagua, after protesters re-assemble PHOTO: AIDESEP


Take the issue of development. Indigenous communities have repeatedly said they aren’t against development, but it has to be a different kind of development, one more responsible. A reasonable claim, especially considering that the loss of the Amazon rainforest is one of the top drivers of climate change. On the issue of leadership and responsibility, the government has maintained that this was a top-down movement led by Alberto Pizango, president of AIDESEP, the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest, an Indigenous organization with representation from Amazon communities. This flies in the face of the history of the protest, which has literally involved thousands of communities, and shown itself to be led by local communities in their own decision making structures. The government has instead tried to pin the blame on Pizango as the main instigator, as a political agent of other parties or perhaps other countries, and a criminal mastermind who has tricked his followers into rallying against perfectly good legislation. They have gone so far as to issue a warrant for his arrest now, with many news reports hinting he has fled to Bolivia, and the Indigenous leadership have lost contact with him.


Protesters – many clearly non-Indigenous – attend to a civilian shot dead PHOTO: Thomas Quirynen


The other easily disputed claim is that this is an Indigenous movement uniquely, the implication being that this does not apply to anyone non-Indigenous, and others should repudiate the movement. It is well known in and around the Amazonian towns, however, that there have consistently been Mestizos, those of mixed race who make a slim majority of Peruvians, as part of the movement. In recent days reportedly a number of disenfranchised army reservists also decided to join the Indigenous cause. Looking at the protests in and around Bagua, it can clearly be seen that as many as half the protesters were not Indigenous, but were there in support. Also in the past, it has been a number of labour unions and farmer groups that have participated in national strikes, concerned over the same free trade agreements as Amazon communities. The implications here are critical, though, and seem to seek a precedent in declaring the Indigenous movement to be a criminal, or even terrorist, movement and outlaw their activities, organizations, and politics.


Civilians with bullet wounds attended in Bagua hospital PHOTO: AIDESEP


What comes next? On the Indigenous side, there have been calls for a national strike on Thursday, the 11th. In this case, many labour groups have been involved from the beginning, so it remains to be seen whether this will go farther than strikes in the past, which have shut down vital transportation and oil infrastructure, as well as Machu Picchu, the main tourist destination of Peru. Indigenous leaders have said, however, their protest will continue until they are able to renegotiate the controversial laws. On the government side, we can only wait and hope for the best. If the inflamed words and rallying of the troops are any indication, however, they may be getting ready to try and strike down harder on the Indigenous movement sooner rather than later. Reports have come in that Special Forces have been seen in the area. All this may spell out more bloodshed in the name of democracy. However, they are also acutely aware they are under the international microscope right now, despite the lack of substantial media reporting about the situation here in Peru.

And that may be where hope rests. This is a critical moment, as the government plans its next steps. There needs to be a strong international focus on Peru, to let them know they cannot get away with more human rights abuses. Already, protests are planned across the United States, with more in planning in Canada. Letters have been sent to the government and to representatives at embassies around the world. AIDESEP has called for a national inquiry into the events of Bagua and the deaths. They have also issued a request for an international observer committee to come and be witnesses to the situation. A national strike is planned for this Thursday, with participation from diverse groups, calling for resolution to the situation and the resignation of Alan Garcia. AIDESEP is also collecting funds to aid in its work and support observers to get into the region.

A curfew has been imposed. Amazonian towns have been militarized. AIDESEP officials are in communication with the communities that there are many missing, many presumed dead. The government has begun persecuting and threatening jail for Indigenous leaders, while the leaders have said they are ready to go to jail to defend their rights. The fear is growing that the government is trying to build support to further repress Indigenous groups. This is not a path to peace and reconciliation.


Indigenous leaders of the Peruvian Amazon hold a press conference to talk about the whereabouts of Pizango and their reaction to the violent outbreak, Saturday June 6th. PHOTO: Ben Powless


For now, the protests will continue. If we are serious about safeguarding the human rights of the Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples of the Amazon, we need to act now. The violent repression of Indigenous protests and the loss of civil liberties must come to an end. If we want to protect and preserve the Amazon, and its bio-cultural diversity, especially in the face of climate change, there is no better protection than keeping it under the control of those who have maintained it forever. The free trade laws that open up the Amazon to logging, mining, oil and agroindustry must be suspended. Indigenous Peoples’ rights – to self-determination, to their lands and resources, to their lives - must be protected and guaranteed. If we are to stop other atrocities and bloodshed, the battle line must be withdrawn, immediately, and there must be dialogue.

For up-to-date information and planned actions: http://peruanista.blogspot.com/
So far actions are planned in Canada, the US, Australia, India and more.

Website of AIDESEP: Aidesep, pueblos indígenas amazónicos del Peru | Portada

Donations can be made under "SOLIDARIDAD AIDESEP”, at
Bank Name: Banco de Crédito del Perú
Account number: 193-1070011-1-01
Account name: AIDESEP-VARIOS
Swift Code: BCPLPEPL
Address: Jr. Lampa 499, Cercado de Lima, Peru

Peruvian news network, with many (shocking) videos: http://enlacenacional.com/

Collection of actions to take and media sources: http://beckermanlegal.com/Peru.htm

In depth analysis of the situation: https://nacla.org/node/5879

AmazonWatch investigates disposed bodies: http://www.amazonwatch.org/newsroom/view_news.php?id=1843

Send a letter to Peruvian officials: http://amazonwatch.org/peru-action-alert.php

Preliminary blog: Calm at the Center of the Storm: Reporting from the Amazonian Peoples' Headquarters in Lima | rabble.ca

More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/powless/sets/72157619320374511/

Democracy Now! Report: http://intercontinentalcry.org/democracy-now-reports-on-bagua-massacre/

Members of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in Paris and London went hungry this World Press Freedom Day - in support of jailed U.S.-Iranian journalist Roxana Saberi, who herself started a hunger strike on 21 April.

Thankfully, Saberi, who was protesting an eight-year jail sentence for spying for the U.S., has since started eating again. But the international campaigning for her release goes on. Next week, an Iranian appeals court will hear her case, and a verdict is expected shortly thereafter.

As World Press Freedom Day was commemorated on 3 May, Saberi is just one of about 125 journalists jailed worldwide because of their work - and an example of the threats hundreds of thousands of journalists and others face for exercising their right to free expression.

Of this figure, nearly 700 journalists have been killed since 3 May was first celebrated in 1993, according to U.S. President Barack Obama, who acknowledged World Press Freedom Day in an official statement (see: ) Tragically, the latest fatality to be added to the list was gunned down on World Press Freedom Day: Mexican journalist Carlos Ortega Samper, who just a day before his death wrote that he had been threatened by local government officials.

The numbers are grim, no matter where you are. A global survey published by Freedom House last week shows media freedom has declined for the seventh straight year - with journalists facing more obstacles to their work in every region of the world.

"Restrictions can happen in any type of environment, including democracies," says Karen Karlekar, managing editor of the annual "Freedom of the Press" report. (See the report here: http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=470 )

"We found that only 17 percent of the world's population live in countries that enjoy a fully free press," she added.

World Press Freedom Day serves as an occasion to pay tribute to Saberi, as well as journalists such as Ortega who risked their lives to give us the news. They understand better than anyone that media contributes significantly to processes of dialogue, mutual understanding and reconciliation, the theme of this year's World Press Freedom Day.

It is also a time to remind the world of the countless other press freedom violations across the globe, while also developing initiatives that defend and promote journalists and the right to press freedom. Continuing on from last week, here's an update on how other IFEX members and partners did just that (for the full listing, see: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/archivefeatures/242/ ):

www.benbikes.org.za/namibia

I attended a speaker event tonight at the community market. The market hosts bicycle repairs and sends them to Africa as part of the Bicycle Exchange Network. This is a great way to recycle cycles while provided support to Namibian cities and communities.

One in five people in Namibia are living with HIV/AIDS. Most people need to walk 20km/day to get to where they are going, whether it be school, grocery shopping, or to the doctor. The bicycles cut their travel time into 1/4 the amount of time that it takes to walk.

There are also perks such as competitive bike teams and HIV/AIDS awareness outreach by local volunteers. They promote healthy lifestyles and carry medical supplies such as soap which may save a life because of reduction of infection for those living with AIDS.

So far, 10 000 bikes have been donated to Namibia through this project-funded organization who are based in Australia and Canada. In a place where employment is 36%, street youth are trained in bike maintenance and gain employment skills. They receive the money to pay for their own bike repairs, as many only make $2 per month volunteering. The bike shop is created in the communities.

SOMMAIRE

A /- L’ORGANISATION

Constitution du CICB Office.
Formation aux différentes tâches du CICB Office.
Rôle des membres actifs.
Collaboration avec le CICB pilote.
Liaison avec la Coordination Générale.
Respect des recommandations du Conseil d’Administration.

B/- L’EXERCICE ANNUEL

Formation continue aux mécanismes boursiers.
Participation à la deuxième édition des Instants Financiers
Universitaires (IFU 2).
Organisation d’un café boursier.
Participation aux travaux de réflexion sur le Fond Commun
de Placement Jeune (FCPJ).
Visite guidée auprès des institutions financières.
Organisation d’une conférence publique sur la bourse des
Valeurs mobilières.
Participation à l’Assemblée Générale annuelle du CBAC.

C /- LA GESTION

Coaching de la Coordination Générale.
Suivi du CICB pilote.
Gestion courante du CICB Office.
Facilitations des responsables universitaires.



A /- L’ORGANISATION

Constitution du CICB Office

La constitution du CICB Office (bureau du club d’initiation à la culture boursière), sera primordiale à toute activité de vulgarisation de la culture boursière en milieu universitaire, en ce sens qu’il permettra de donner une visibilité à l’effectivité du CICB. Il est composé de :

Un Délégué (D/CICB)
Un Trésorier (T/CICB)
Un Responsable de la Mobilisation (ReM/CICB)
Un Responsable de l’Administration (Rad/CICB)

Ces quatre postes sont ceux qui incarneront le relais de l’action de vulgarisation de la culture boursière et de promotion du marché financier sous régional en milieu universitaire. Le Délégué (D/CICB), sera le premier représentant du Club dans l’établissement et il aura la charge de diriger le CICB avec les conseils du CICB pilote et le tout couronné par un coaching de la Coordination Générale. Soulignons que le D/CICB travaillera en étroite collaboration avec tous les autres membres du CICB Office de son établissement.

Formation aux différentes tâches du CICB Office

Cette formation sera indispensable au fonctionnement du CICB. Vu qu’il est établi que le plan d’action arrêté par le Conseil d’Administration exige une certaine rigueur dont les non membres ne pourront déjà maîtriser, la nécessité de former les pressenties aux différents postes prévus par le CICB office résulte capitale. La phase de formation durera 72 heures, étant entendu que la date de début fera l’objet d’un consensus avec le responsable d’établissement.




Rôle des membres actifs

Le rôle des étudiants inscrits aux différents CICB des établissements universitaires de la zone, permettra de comparer la dynamique d’un CICB par apport à un autre. Rappelons justement qu’il est attendu du bon aboutissement de l’action des CICB, une affluence des étudiants autours des enjeux scientifiques à connotation économique et financière qu’entraînera le CICB. Alors, on résume que le rôle des membres actifs, est celui que les étudiants inscrits au sein des CICB de leurs établissements respectifs seront en mesure de promouvoir pour s’approprier la culture boursière, aller à la découverte du marché financier sous régional et transmettre aux profanes de la culture boursière le peut qu’ils se sont appropriés.


Collaboration avec le CICB pilote

Le CICB/UOB avait été stratégiquement constitué en premier, sous une décision du Conseil d’Administration du CBAC ayant siégé en date du 25 Janvier 2009 à Libreville pour servir de model à l’éventuelle expansion des CICB dans les autres établissements universitaires de la zone CEMAC. C’est en cela qu’il s’est également voulu être le CICB miroir ou pilote en raison des expérimentations dont il a fait objet. De ce fait, la collaboration entre tous les autres CICB et celui de l’UOB est conseillée, vu la positive nature du transfert d’expérience que cette collaboration saura engendrer.


Liaison avec la Coordination Générale

Tous les CICB devront faire parvenir des rapports mensuels de leurs activités à la Coordination Générale, laquelle en fera des archives, pour un prochain conte rendu au Conseil d’Administration et pour communiquer avec les partenaires extérieures sur la vie des CICB. D’où la liaison permanente qui devra exister entre les deux.



Respect des recommandations du Conseil d’Administration

C’est en sachant que les activités des CICB sont régies par les grandes lignes édictées par le Conseil d’Administration du CBAC, que, les CICB devront faire preuve d’une certaine pondérance en évitant tout débordement éventuel, étant entendu que les dégâts ne sont supportés que par le Conseil d’Administration du Club dont le Président est le représentant dans la vie civile. Il est donc recommandé de respecter à la lettre les orientations édictées par le Conseil d’Administration à qui incombe la charge de rendre des comptes au nom du Club.


B/- L’EXERCICE ANNUEL

Initiation continue aux mécanismes boursiers

C’est des séances qui se tiendront selon un calendrier décidé par le CICB Office après avoir consulté tous ses membres actifs. Elles consistent à se retrouver pour s’approprier un mécanisme du marché financier. Rappelons justement que l’initiation partira du jargon au fonctionnement du marché financier. Pour ces instants, des membres aguerris du CBAC ou des experts du marché financier assisteront les CICB dans cette tâche. Il s’agira à moyen terme de toucher les aspects fiscaux, les aspects macro économique, l’ingénierie financière, le domaine de la compétitivité des entreprises, la profondeur des cotations, la place des investisseurs, le rôle des intermédiaires financiers et la force de la régulation financière.

Participation à la deuxième édition des Instants Financiers
Universitaires (IFU 2)

Pour les CICB, il s’agit là d’aller à la rencontre des acteurs du marché financiers pour affiner de façon pratique l’objet de la théorie qu’ils auraient reçu. Durant toute une matinée, les étudiants membres des CICB des différents établissements ayant des CICB, discuteront en direct avec les acteurs du marché financier et pourront à l’occasion découvrir les métiers dont ont besoin ses différents acteurs. Il s’agira également d’une possibilité de rencontre entre étudiants venus de différents établissements universitaires.

Organisation d’un café boursier

Chaque CICB devra organiser au moins un café boursier dans son établissement, pour permettre aux autres CICB de visiter leur établissement autour d’une problématique bien spécifique du marché financier. La partition de la Coordination Générale et du CICB pilote devra également être de mise dans la mise en œuvre de cet objectif. A titre de rappel, les cafés boursiers sont des rencontres d’envergure entre profanes et professionnels de la bourse des valeurs mobilières où l’on vient parler ou apprendre à parler bourse.

Participation aux travaux de réflexion sur le Fond Commun
de Placement Jeune (FCPJ)

En sa qualité de structure à connotation scientifique, le CBAC a, sous décision de son conseil d’Administration en date du 16 Mars 2008 décidé de mettre tout en œuvre pour que les travaux de réflexion sur le Fond Commun de Placement Jeune aient lieu pendant l’année académique 2008/2009. Chose qui s’est davantage confirmé suite aux consultations qui ont déjà eu lieux avec d’autres structures académiques à connotation scientifique à l’instar de l’Association Internationale des Etudiants en Sciences Economiques et Commerciales (AIESEC) ainsi que les Cercles de Réflexions des Etudiants en Sciences Economiques et en Droit de l’Université Omar BONGO. A l’heure actuelle, il est question d’impliquer tous les autres établissements universitaires dans cette même dynamique, d’où la nécessité d’implanter des CICB en raison du trait d’union qu’ils peuvent constituer en rendant possible la présence de d’autres établissements à ses travaux.

Visite guidée auprès des institutions financières

Il est prévu dans le cadre des activités annuelles des CICB, que ces derniers visitent quelques institutions financières de la sous région, à l’instar de la Bourse des Valeurs Mobilières de l’Afrique Centrale (BVMAC). C’est donc une des parties des activités qui, permettra aux étudiants de voir de près la plateforme de cotation du marché financier de la zone CEMAC.

Organisation d’une conférence publique sur la bourse des
valeurs mobilières

Au-delà des rencontres entre membres du club issues des CICB ou de la section cadre du CBAC, les CICB devront favoriser une rencontre publique dans l’année, laquelle aura nécessairement lieu dans leur établissement. Aussi est-il, clair que l’implication de la Coordination Générale et du CICB Pilote reste de mise dans la réussite de l’organisation de cette conférence publique.

Participation à l’Assemblée Générale annuelle du CBAC

Les membres des CICB sont également conviés à prendre part aux Assemblées Générales ordinaires ou extraordinaires du CBAC. En ce sens qu’il y parviendraient à flirter avec la réalité de la dynamique des enjeux du Club, notamment l’engagement pour la gestation d’une nouvelle génération d’épargnants et d’investisseurs. Cependant, il faut signaler que ces derniers n’y ont voix délibérative que s’ils en ont préalablement fait la demande en payant les cotisations qui leur permettent de siéger avec pouvoir de vote au cours des assises, sans quoi, ils restent des observateurs dont la voix n’a que pouvoir consultatif.


C /- LA GESTION

Coaching de la Coordination Générale

En sa qualité de mandataire du Conseil d’Administration du CBAC, la Coordination Générale est le responsable du suivi des activités dévolues à la cellule de coordination telque le précisent les statuts et le règlement intérieur du Club. A cet effet, une transmission de la conduite à tenir face aux défis inhérents aux CICB ne s’effectue que par elle. Aussi, une tendance à la transmission des bonnes pratiques et à la maturité dans l’action est rendue possible via sa nécessaire présence, laquelle sert de repère aux CICB. Ce coaching traduira une présence intermittente du Coordonnateur Général et/ou de son Adjoint dans les différents CICB, ce pour des missions de misse au pas et pour des besoins de rapports auprès du Conseil d’Administration et pour communiquer sur la vie des CICB tant à l’intérieur qu’à l’extérieur du Club.

Suivi du CICB pilote

Le CICB/UOB en sa qualité de CICB pilote, fera objet de mandataire de la Coordination Générale pour des besoins de suivi du PROF/CICB 2008/2009. Elle aura souvent la tâche de relayer la Coordination Générale lorsque cette dernière est débordée de chantiers. Ce relais devra souvent se faire sous demande écrite ou verbale du Coordonnateur Général ou de son Adjoint au premier responsable du CICB pilote à savoir le Délégué CICB/UOB (D/CICB/UOB).

Gestion courante du CICB Office

La gestion courante d’un CICB est assurée surplace par le CICB Office. Les besoins de mobilisation autour des réunions courantes incombent au Délégué/CICB (D/CICB) qui aura la charge de s’assurer que chaque membre de son CICB Office assume la tache qui lui est dévolue comme cela se doit.

Facilitations des responsables universitaires

En effet, les responsables des universités et grandes écoles qui accueilliront des CICB, sont un pan incontournable de la réussite de la mission qui est assignée aux CICB, en ce sens qu’ils constituent un pouvoir décisionnel au sein de l’espace universitaire où le CICB est appelé à agir. De ce fait, une collaboration facilitatrice devra nourrir les rapports entre le Club et ses derniers. Un exemple de facilitation sera visible avec l’octroi ponctuel d’un local de travail qui servira au CICB Office dans ses différentes missions d’administration, d’initiation à la culture boursière et de promotion du marché financier sous régional.

Today, I attended a Youth Forum put on by the Urban Aboriginal Youth Strategy in Thunder Bay. I want to reflect on some of the things I learned at the day's event because the pride was inspiring.

Youth discussed some priorities:
Community action
Civic engagment
Positive cultural events/gatherings/activities/ceremonies
Gaining job skills
Completing school
Reclaiming language/culture/identity
More positive Aboriginal media
Resourcing youth

Youth discussed mental health:
Encourage youth to be active in culture
Positive reinforcements
Accessing someone to talk to about problems
Create support groups on anger, depression, family issues, and financial
School counsellors could be elders
Counsellors and teachers collaborating with parents and youth
Issues of stress, lonliness, depression, suicide, ingergenerational effects of family violence
Culture shock
Collaboration with youth workers

Youth discussed some challenges:
Teen pregnancy
Foster care
Substances
Teen pregnancy
Gangs/abuse
Violence

Youth discussed some solutions:
Awareness/Sensitivity
Healing with laughter
Youth groups to attend
Expression through artwork
Speaking up
Learning from elders
Communication and understanding
Keeping a positive lifestyle
Safe sex promotion
Create a club
Cultural sensitivity training in all workplaces
Education/awareness

Who we can get help from in the community are:
neighbours, friends, relatives, teachers, counsellors, police

The pieces that stood out most for achieving healthy communities were mental health, culture/art, safety, diversity, action, and healthy lifestyles.

Over lunch, there was a presentation from Photovoice. Alice Sabourin, who leads the project, recommended youth who were inspired to participate check out Nadya Kwandibens. She has a fabulous video on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MMsdl9-k1s

The motivational speaker was from Turtle Concepts www.turtleconcepts.com. He taught me that I can change the way people see me by changing what I do and how.

Putting the puzzle pieces together:
Get uncomfortable
Change it up
There are 525600 minutes in a year
Do it now
Do what youth steps to change are trying to create

L'équipe de Liaisons Locales CANADA et de TIG a le plaisir de vous annoncer les deux prochains débats en ligne destinés à tous les membres francophones de TIG:

1- OBAMA: quel espoir pour les jeunes?

2- Renouveau de la plate-forme TIG: idées et suggestions!

POUR PARTICIPER, CONNECTEZ-VOUS SUR TIG PUIS CLIQUEZ SUR CE LIEN: http://projects.tigweb.org/clccanada/chat/

Soyez au rendez-vous le mardi 28 avril à 13h EST, ce seront les derniers débats de l'année pour le projet CLC-Canada, donc ne manquez pas cet événement en ligne!

Pour savoir l'heure à laquelle commence ce débat, dans le pays où vous résidez, utilisez ce site: http://www.timezoneconverter.com/

Au plaisir de vous rencontrer le 28,

L'équipe francophone de TIG

Mental health centres are starting, and it's encouraging.

I have some links to places that seem to be incorporating some the values of working as multidisciplinary teams and being welcoming to those who are starting out and becoming involved in their health care or the health of those they support.

The Canadian Mental Health Association http://www.cmha-tb.on.ca/bins/site_page2.asp?cid=284-1627-1632&lang=1 has a New Foundations Clubhouse, where there is support for people who are in transition and looking for a scheduled work day. There is lifeskills training, socializing, and resources for consumers in a safe, friendly environment.

Youth Net incorporates youth engagment for consumers/supporters in centres across Canada. The idea is that the young adults can be facilitators for the youth because they are closer in age and the programming will make for a fun interaction through art, discussion, and recreational activities.

CHEO http://www.cheo.on.ca/english/1030.shtml is unique because they incorporate family and community into the care of children. This centre is one that can be an example for smaller communities who are starting to realize the importance of involving everyone in the treatment of individuals with special needs and mental health.

The Centre of Excellence for Children and Adolescents with Special Needs recently had a conference and web casted their keynote speakers http://www.lcnorth.ca/?display=home This is a great step towards greater attention paid to mental health and children in Northern Ontario. In the future, there will be opportunities like this for young adults and we are getting there.

There is also a good list of Ottawa-based centres that can be found on this link page http://www.youthnet.on.ca/main_english.php?section=viewresource&category=3

I have been thinking of some really cool websites about mental health that have really got me excited about the generation who is coming up and forgetting about stigma.

www.MindYourMind.ca is one of these. The interactive nature and the way you can post things for others to see increases communication around mental health.

The group that I am involved with in Thunder Bay, DEAL, is creating www.heresthedeal.ca, where you will be able to post art and writings.

There is also www.toolstolife.com that I stumbled upon, which is primarily a self-help website, but has a social networking community of support.

I am encouraged by www.mobilizingminds.ca, where young adults will be able to find out about methods of getting help and participate in projects around Canada. I am currently on the Young Adult Team for this project.

Children's Mental Health Ontario has come up with many resources including Ready Set Engage, a manual for youth http://www.kidsmentalhealth.ca/documents/Res_Ready_Set_engage.pdf

www.reachout.co.au is from Australia and there is a really neat simulation game where you can actually explore your mental health by using coping strategies. They also have information about many topics and little fax sheets.

www.youthnet.ca is the Canadian version of this and there will be fax sheets up very soon and they are currently being developed.

I'm feeling really hopeful about mental health care over the net. Although websites are not as intrusive, they can accompany anyone struggling with mental health issues.

My mother came home one day and told me a story. On one of her many visits to our82 year old uncle I found him in a frantic rage. The source of his unusual behaviour was a spot near his barn that had recently been dug up. He explained that he had been at the local farmers’ co-op store to get his corn made into pig-chop and a salesman approached him with a can. The man told him to feed the contents to his pigs and they would put on weight really fast. He parted with $30.00, an enormous amount of money for a subsistent farmer and upon returning home settled in to read the label. The contents of the can enraged him. He told her“That man wanted me to feed that to my pigs! What the hell will it do to me?” he was so upset that he took the can and buried it in a hole five feet deep in his yard, stating that the earth would take care of that poison! His reaction to the “poison” is a prime example of the fears of Indigenous people to the topic of this essay, genetic theft and modification of our food.
In light of everything, my family has always been farmers. Like my uncle I have been keeping my own garden at home. One day I was watching a video called “The Future of Food”, which was documenting the issue of genetically modified foods and the future of the legal safety that farmers are losing over their right to grow their own seeds. The reality of the world we live in as Indigenous people is that major businesses, backed by major governments around the world, are coming into Indigenous communities and stealing and patenting the genes of our foods because of their precious biodiversity. This grave issue is so new that there is little information available on the subject of protection for Indigenous peoples and the biodiversity of their seeds. Much of the information I have on this issue is provided by the Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism (IPCB). “The IPCB is organized to assist indigenous peoples in the protection of their genetic resources, indigenous knowledge, cultural and human rights from the negative effects of biotechnology. The IPCB provides educational and technical support to indigenous peoples in the protection of their biological resources, cultural integrity, knowledge and collective rights” (IPCB).
How is this kind of future, where major food corporations are stealing Indigenous seeds and patenting the genes of the seed, going to affect the Haudenosaunee? We are farmers by right and by tradition. My essay will be a brief outline of the following thought: we have seeds that have been in our possession since time immemorial, is there currently any government protection for our seeds? Or anybody’s seeds? These are questions that I need logical answers to as I intend to pass on my own seeds to my children; they will need a plan for the survival of their right to grow their own food.
The make a brief definition of it, Genetics is the study of the structure and function of genes and the transmission of genes associated with traits between generations (Howard, 2001). It is the study of why we look like our parents, or why a plant is capable of adapting to its environment over time. It is an honest curiosity that when delving into this field of studying what makes us the way we are, one would begin to wonder if we are able to find those traits in our genes would we not be able to change the ones we do not like? What if we could adopt the traits that are enjoyed by other flora and fauna? The grossly unethical questions begin when we begin to practice those notions. Genetic engineers, under the guise of western scientific advancement and progress in the food industry are mixing the identities of plants, animals and humans for “agricultural and pharmaceutical purposes”. According to Stephanie Howard, Nexia Biotechnologies in Canada is crossing spider genes into goats DNA with the hopes of producing spider silk in their milk. These fibres, providing that all goes “well” with the experimentation will be used in bullet-proof vests and anti-ballistic missile defence systems (Howard, 2001). These engineers definitely deserve snaps in the area of creativity. In 1987, Animal genetics “engineer” Thomas Wagner eloquently clarified the notions genetic engineers have of any sort of morality to the creatures whose genes they are crossing when he said “A cow is nothing but cells on hooves.”
As of 2004 in the US, more than two-thirds of 36 commonly grown types of corn, soy and canola seeds that were known not to be genetically modified were tested and found to have traces of genetically engineered DNA (Weiss, 2004). Although the traces were small, it has proven the capability of these genes to hybrid themselves in plants that were grown without the intention of having them added. If federal rules and farm practices are not regulated, the US may soon be incapable of regulating what portion of its food supply is free of genetic modification. This could have grave results on all markets for organic food -- one of the fastest growing segments of food culture in the West. In Mexico, genetically modified corn is being grown in trial. Mexico is commonly known to be the birthplace of corn and some 5000 “known” Indigenous varieties of the plant. Since the 1930’s it is estimated that over 80% of the country’s traditional corn varieties have disappeared off the face of the earth. Now the remainder of those Indigenous seeds are under threat of genetic modification with the introduction of US customary cash cropping and elimination of bio-diversity (Howard, 2001). The evidence is clear of the lack of regulation and the prospective contamination of heritage seeds; the protection being offered to farmers proves to be meagre at best as well. In June 2000 a case entered the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan federal court pitting Monsanto against small Saskatchewan farmer Percy Schmeiser, suing Schmeiser for theft of Monsanto products when Schmeiser’s own Canola seeds became accidentally become crossed with Monsanto’s Round-up Ready Canola seeds. In an interview for “The Future of Food” documentary, Schmeiser had no knowledge of how Monsanto seed entered his crop however he believed they may have blown in from another crop or a passing seed truck. Without Schmeiser’s knowledge, Monsanto had entered his property, took samples of his crops, and tested them in their own labs to find “his seed” to be “their seed”. Monsanto sued Schmeiser for 15 cents/acre, the standard price for their technology. The case was a classic example of David vs. Goliath; however the case was to be viewed as a draw federally; but a loss for farmers and seed savours everywhere. The court ruled that Schmeiser did not have to pay Monsanto for the accidental seeding of his crop however the court recognized that Monsanto had a patent on the seed and therefore should their seeds enter a farmers land, whether knowingly or not; the seed cannot be the property of the farmer (Van Acker). This case should be regarded as a major loss and a point of devastation for all seed growers without a patent on their own seed; including Indigenous people.
The only requirement in the US for the patenting of seeds (and genes) is the same as any other patent you would enter the US Patent office with: as long as it has not yet been patented. This includes seeds that have been both genetically modified, and heritage seeds; this leaves no constitutional protection for Indigenous peoples and pro-biodiversity farmers. It is estimated that Monsanto, a major agriculture corporation in both Canada and the US owns 11 000 seed US patents (The Future of Food). The purpose of this patenting plan would be to own the seed population, and whoever owns the seeds inherently controls the food industry for all countries. Currently, there is a small yet visible movement coming from Indigenous communities around the world. A prime example is the founding of the Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism (IPCB). One of the interesting resources the Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism has been able to proven in terms of protection has been a sample piece of legislation that can be altered and adopted by any and all tribal governments for the regulation of research in their territories. This document, called the “Indigenous Research Protection Act”, was designed by Indigenous academics and traditional knowledge holders in the IPCB who have the collective ability to know when Indigenous Rights are being violated during research, and collaborated to design legislation that can be adopted by Indigenous Peoples for their own protection. This document includes findings and policy, definitions of research, establishment of review committees within the territory comprised of Indigenous Peoples, research proposal requirements, permits and regulation of biological samples and most importantly consent after full disclosure and consultation. This sample-legislation is an outstanding example of good ideas being pursued across Indigenous borders for the benefit of all Indigenous peoples who are affected by genetic and seed theft.
At this point there is no evidence of government protection for the preservation of Indigenous and heritage seed. Quite the contrary is evident; US patenting laws are protected by the US Constitution. Now that the US Patent Office has made it known that they will admit patents for living organisms, corporations like Monsanto are buying patents for every seed that is within their reach. Groups like the Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism are fighting back in the form of self-determination; Indigenous peoples are asserting for themselves what is their property and they are protecting it. I have a few reflections of my own for the future. I don’t consider myself a wise person. I don’t feel that I have ever had a thought that was unique or ground breaking. My knowledge is more an accumulation of wise advice and insight of many different people. In our lives we learn to survive, to build and to love. Our deepest dreams are inspired by our environment; what our senses tell us. In terms of the environment that we now face as Indigenous Peoples; the world that on a daily basis questions our rights to a sovereign existence, my education is not being inspired by Marx, Che, old white university professors with hair growing out of their ears. My inspiration comes from a little closer to home. Haudenosaunee since time immemorial have been farmers. In spite of what we have gone through as a people it is extraordinary that we can continue to find our hope and responsibility in the land. We are keepers of the Earth and are essentially fighting to save what those large companies are not interested in or value. Despite this responsibility our actions in maintaining our stewardship has lead to the incarceration of many in the foreign Canadian system. The era of Indigenous reclamation and empowerment did NOT begin with the creation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It did not begin with the Indian Brotherhood, the NCAI, or even AIM. It began with the realization that our sustenance and life line were being severed. In light of persecution Our People have an extraordinary ability to remain empowered despite massive losses in our lifeline, in the words of Zach De la Rocha, “Hungry people don’t stay hungry for long.” Indigenous people are now faced with the reality that we will never stop being questioned on our right to exist, not at the pace at which the competitive western world chooses to live and fight each other. On the other hand, the land is us; and we begin with the land. Our gardens will never cease to empower us. Eating our own food is empowerment; singing our seeds songs is empowerment. Depending on nobody but us, that is true sovereignty.


Bibliography

Van Acker (2005), Co-existence of GM and non-GM crops in Canada: Current status and future direction. Second International Conference on Co-existence between GM and non-GM based agricultural supply chains. Viewed on November 24, 2008

Howard, Stephanie(2001), Life, Lineage and Sustenance: Indigenous Peoples and Genetic Engineering: Threats to Food, Agriculture, and the Environment. Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism. Edited by Debra Harry, Brett Lee Shelton. Viewed November 23, 2008

Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism (2008). Indigenous Research Protection Act. http://www.ipcb.org/publications/policy/files/irpa.html.viewed November 26, 2008

Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism (2008). www.ipcb.org. viewed on November 26, 2008

Weiss, Rick (2004); Study finds seeds tainted with engineered DNA strands, The San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgibin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/02/24/MNGV356VH11.DTL Viewed November 26, 2008.

Koons-Garcia, Deborah/Butler, Catherine Lynn (2004). The Future of Food. United States. Lily Films

Onhehste’ón:we: “The Original Corn”
Wa’akohyá:ton’ ne: Dakota Brant
Whenever the Haudenosaunee people are talked about in any setting, academic or not, you can be sure of what parts of Haudenosaunee culture and tradition are going to be the point of discussion. The Great Law, Matrilineal heritage and government, and on a lesser scale the Handsome Lake Code, have come to embody the worldview of how one identifies Haudenosaunee core values, beliefs and way of life. This paper will not discuss any of these. Long before there is a Great Law, before we organize ourselves into Clans and produce government, before our value system according to Handsome Lake is brought into discussion: we need to eat! The world in which I was raised taught me that humans are beings with the sole responsibility to feed themselves, their children and keep healthy, fulfilling the instructions that were given to them by the Creator at the time of creation. Ne káti yorihowá:nen nén né:e, é’thone Rotinonhsyón:ni Onhehste’ón:we ne shonkwá:wi ne Shonkwaya’tìson, (For this reason, to the Haudenosaunee people the Creator gives the original corn).
I am proud to be Haudenosaunee. I am afforded the ability to represent My People through both words and actions. I was inspired by my people at an early age and decided that for everyday of my life I would commit to learning the maintenance and practices associated with being a human being. Growing up in Six Nations I learned my roles and responsibilities by being a good listener and observer. My mother Terrylynn (Turtle Clan) raised me and my sisters with a certain lifestyle so we knew how to rely on and have faith in each other. Over the front door of our home hung a sign that read “Mohawk Sovereignty will Never Die.” That kind of lifestyle entailed two things: we grew our food, and we lived away from the road! What has stayed with me from childhood has been the worldview that was imparted to me in the simple act of maintaining the corn seeds of my family.
Sovereignty for my people means the difference between existing as a nation in which we can continue the practice of being Onkwehón:we (an original person, meaning one who continues to follow the original instructions imparted to us by the Creator) and a fallen, captured, and enslaved people. You cannot tell a true Haudenosaunee person that they are Canadian or American, because they are neither European nor subject to European sovereigns. This is what our ancestors believed; this is what we believe. Maintaining seeds equals an act of sovereignty that keeps our relationships in this world true to the integrity of nature and not to the rule of any one human over another. I grew up learning this lesson in the only way my mother knew how to teach it. The seasons of the year passed in a way that while one represented for me getting outside to weed, plant, seeing ugly bugs and running away screaming, another represented the work that needed to be done inside; when cleaning the woodstove my sisters and I lugged heavy ashes to the garden for fertilizer; but not the hardwood because those ashes were special. We burned hardwood on the coldest nights of the year and saved them to lye our corn. There existed a certain peaceful quiet that has been absent to my life since leaving home. The quiet gives you the time and energy to listen and feel for all the things around us that continue the work the Creator gave to them. Wilfred Jamieson, a 94 year old seed grower from Six Nations mentions his own experiences with this quiet and his ability to work in tune with his surroundings.
“I look at things that people just don’t stop and look at no more, the wind, the moons… I like it; it makes me feel like I’m working with the Creator. I ask the creator “I planted the seed. I put the seed in the ground and now it’s up to you to see how they’ll grow.”
I’m only 21 years old; these are not the memories of any of our grandparents, though they may understand the life I come from. My mother raised me knowing that her family is and always was pure bred farmers. I’ve learned from hearing stories of my great-uncles that sovereignty is found in your garden. Our sovereignty has always been in the fact that we can care for ourselves. My favourite story was of how my great grandfather, who was a Mohawk Wolf Clan chief, always planted an extra corn field for the People. The only rule in our house was that you take what you need and you use what you took. You have only Shonkwaya’tìson to thank. My Mother through all of her stories taught me that a Nation is not a Nation until it can feed itself; and we can take good care of one another.
This stressing of the importance of corn in the way of life of the Haudenosaunee people was understood not only by my family, but even recorded to be of utmost importance to our ancestors. In the times dating to colonial America journals of the way of life of the Haudenosaunee have quite commonly made impressed accounts on the sheer sizes of the stores of corn and other food crops within Haudenosaunee villages. Over the course of the 17th century several notable expeditions were dispatched from the French in an effort to break down the power of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, including those of Samuel de Champlain (1615), Courcelles (1655), De Tracy (1666), De La Barre (1684), Denonville (1687) and two separate campaigns by Frontenac in 1692 and 1696 (Parker, 1910). A campaign of note is that of Denonville in 1687 for the accounts that he had made of his expedition concerning the importance to the success of his campaign meaning the destruction of Haudenosaunee corn reserves, and the sheer amounts of corn reserves he had recorded to have been stored within the palisades of the Confederacy:
“I deemed it our best policy to employ ourselves to laying the Indian corn which was in vast abundance in the fields, rather than to follow a flying enemy to a distance and excite our troops to catch only a few straggling fugitives.” (Parker, 1910)
The laying of destruction to the cornfields proved even more devastating to the Haudenosaunee than even the burning of their towns and palisades. Houses can be rebuilt in a matter of days, but fields cannot produce another harvest until the next year. Denonville remained within the area of four Seneca villages within which his men destroyed by fire some 1.2 million bushels of corn.
As far back as the 16th century the scientific community has associated itself with the quest to find the true origins of corn. In many cases it was the hope of western knowledge holders to prove corn to have ancestral origins in the Old World; crediting the Bering Strait Theory for its migration to the New World as well as maintaining an age old belief that New World civilization was not of the sophisticated standards of the Old World to be capable of cultivating and domesticating wild plants. Swiss Naturalist Alphonse de Candolle, credited for the founding of a standard methodology used to find origins of cultivated plants mentions language as being a form of evidence pertinent to the quest to find accurate evidence of plant origin (Warman, 2003). When comparing New World and Old World references to corn there is a distinction to be made. Many New World languages possess a word for corn that is distinct and will not be used for any other grain or plant, both highlighting the importance of the plant in the culture and the age of the word (Warman, 2003). In Mohawk, the word for corn being Onhéhste, cannot be translated into any other word. Most words in Mohawk beginning with an “O” is also an indicator of age; these words being of ancestral origins. Linguistics proves to be a most energetic debate in terms of evidence of corn origins in the world. While in the New World the word for corn in most languages is distinct to a culture or nation, the terms used for the plant in the Old World having origins in local language practices is a rarity. The word for corn in most Old World languages is not unique to the plant. Often the term of reference is borrowed from another culture, such as the word Maize, the word for corn used by the Taino; the Indigenous Nation met by Columbus in 1492 is now a widespread term used for the plant. Columbus himself referred to corn as Mijo, Spanish for Millet. In British English the word corn is used as a generic term of reference for cereals and grain in general. In many African Languages corn is referred to as Egyptian grain, while in Egypt corn is called Syrian or Turkish grain. In France and Spain multiple names are used; Indian wheat, Turkish grain, Spanish wheat (Warman, 2003). Corn in its use in the Old World became so widespread so quickly that corn often replaced not only the Indigenous grain usage but even the very plant to which the Indigenous grain namesakes were referring. As a result, many scholars over the years have attempted to prove the existence of corn in the Old World by referring to old documentation in which the plant was referenced such as the Bible, classic Chinese and Indian texts, only to be later realized that it was not actual corn being referenced but grains Indigenous to the region whose name corn had later adopted (Warman,2003).
While in present times Central America is generally understood to be the birthplace of corn, the debated continues as to which wild plants are the ancestors of domestic corn. One living grass known as Teiosinte is debated to be either a cousin or even the ancestor to modern corn. Other scholars argue that the original wild corn grass is a plant now extinct. While western knowledge holders continue the debate, Corn from the understanding of the Haudenosaunee originates from creation. In the beginning, the Skywoman, who was full in her pregnancy, fell from Karonhiá:ke, the Skyworld, grasping roots of many plants as she fell. She carried with her beans, squash, strawberries, tobacco; all those things we need to have a good life. As she fell, a comet came to her side and gave her corn and a mortar and pestle to take with her to the new world so that she might help herself survive. Skywoman gave birth to her daughter, who in turn died giving birth to twins and to her daughters’ body she gave these seeds. From the Mother Earth birthed the first crops that we need to carry out a good life (Brant, 2009). If you want to know about birth, you go back to the first birth, that of the Skywoman. Katsi’ Cook, a Mohawk midwife from Akwesasne, relates her experiences of birthing and the relationship that connects birthing to corn:
“They say corn is the breast milk of the Mother Earth, and it is very true. Complemented with the beans and squash they create the perfect protein… The very act of husking the corn, is like seeing a new born baby, my how beautiful it is!.. In Mohawk the word for bundling a newborn baby is “putting the husk back onto the corn” so every one of these babies that comes to us is an ear of corn! So that connection is very close to us that corn, the women and the midwifery and the cycles of continuous creation that Skywoman put into place in the beginning, that’s still going on. And so when I am in a field of corn I feel the Creator’s energy in there.”
Living a life in which sovereignty was the main lesson was not easy, or necessarily fun. The hardest part of growing up the way I did was not the smell of canning tomatoes (the smell always made me sick), or waking up early on a school day to frost on my blankets when the fire went too low in the night. The tough part was being called poor and dirty by my schoolmates. My clothes would smell of smoke when I went to school. I hated my Mom for making me go to school in smoke smelling clothes; I was too embarrassed to invite friends over to my house to see that I didn’t even have running water or a colour TV. It took years for me to stop hating myself because I thought I was poor. I have slowly been able to forgive my classmates because I now realize I had more than what they had. What has come out of this lifestyle is this lesson that has been stuck in my head, that the relationship between corn and people is comparable to the first treaty of this land; nature’s treaty with the human being in the Americas. It is the place where the offerings of life, medicine and sustenance from nature have gone beyond just natural offerings to a place where human beings have a hand in that crafting, forging a new type of relationship that embodies every connotation from basic nutritional values, the cropping of it, the whole cycle of life; all represented by this one plant.
What I was able to take away from my childhood is what the old timers had foreseen. All Onkwehón:we (Original People) have experienced a fall from our independence into a lifestyle that will not last forever. Our old ways; they were timeless and self-sustaining. Living a life in which sovereignty was the main lesson was not easy, or necessarily fun. Soil and dust gets everywhere, no electricity meant no air conditioning or TV, summer is too hot and winter too cold. But what has come out of this lifestyle is this lesson that has been stuck in my head by people older and wiser and that I needed to humble myself to understand. The relationship between corn and Our People can be regarded as the first treaty of this land; between Natural Law and the human being in the Americas. It is the place where the offerings of life, medicine and sustenance from nature have gone beyond just natural offerings to a place where human beings have a hand in the crafting of food plant and medicine life, forging a type of relationship that embodies every connotation from basic nutritional values, the cropping of it, the ceremonies and songs involved with it, the whole cycle of life; all represented by this one plant.
With reclamations of both Indigenous identity and rights taking place across Turtle Island, it must be acknowledge that Indigenous Peoples are progressing greatly in our responsibility of reclaiming our children’s birthright. We must remember to acknowledge what that birthright fully involves. We are not reclaiming just a land or a resource; we are reclaiming a lifestyle. Our lifestyle depends on a land-base; they are inseparable. We are sovereign because we answer to no one; but we are bound by the agreements we have with this land. We are the People of the Corn, forging links between us and the women who mothered both us and corn in the very beginning. Sovereignty to me is not a barricade, a smoke shop or a warrior flag; none of these things link us to Creation and it can be very easy to forget this. Sovereignty is hardly the Great Law either, the Kayanere`ko :wa is a link in the long line of things the Creator gave us to survive but it is only a link; not the chain. Sovereignty came to us before that. and it came to us in the form of a garden sprouting from the ground in which the Skywoman’s daughther was buried; our home. Anyone who has the original corn, meaning the majority of Indigenous peoples on Turtle Island, and that treaty-like relationship with this land, has a inherent right to live upon it. This is what maintenance of the original corn represents.
Bibliography
Brant, Terrylynn (2009). Interviewed on Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. February 21, 2009.

Cook, Katsi (1998). The Gift. The National Film Board of Canada. Directed by Gary Farmer. Produced by Jerry Krepakevich

Jamieson, Wilfred(1998). The Gift. The National Film Board of Canada. Directed by Gary Farmer. Produced by Jerry Krepakevich

Parker, A.C. (1910). Iroquois Uses of Maize and Other Food Plants. University of the State of New York. Albany NY, USA.

Warman, Arturo (2003). Corn & Capitalism: How a Botanical Bastard Grew to Global Dominance. The University of North Carolina Press. Chapel Hill, NC, USA.

Here's an inspiring article on how young people in Northern Canada are demanding that more concrete action be taken on climate change.

Whitehorse students petition federal, Yukon governments to act on climate change

CBC News
February 16, 2009

Students at a Whitehorse high school are asking two levels of government to do more to combat climate change, as environment ministers from across Canada converge on the Yukon capital this week.

Federal Environment Minister Jim Prentice will be in Whitehorse on Tuesday and Wednesday to meet with his provincial and territorial counterparts at the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment meeting.

Climate change will be one of the key topics the ministers will discuss, as well as the issue of municipal wastewater.

Climate change is also a key issue being raised by the social justice club at F.H. Collins Secondary School, where students have been circulating a petition calling for stronger government policies that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"We are asking the Canadian government to agree to a target that can be approved by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change," Malcolm Boothroyd, a Grade 11 student and a club member, told CBC News in an interview Monday.

"We are asking the Yukon government to, likewise, to start by setting a target."

About 150 people at the high school have signed the petition to date, but Boothroyd said the club plans to circulate it out into the community, with the hope of acquiring 1,000 or so signatures.

"The people who will be dealing with the effects of climate change will be youth such as myself, not the policy makers who are coming up with policies that will do nothing to curb it," Boothroyd said.

There are already examples in the Yukon of how climate change is affecting people, he said, citing the concerns of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation in Old Crow about changes to wildlife populations.

Boothroyd said he has contacted Prentice and Yukon Environment Minister Elaine Taylor about the club's petition but has received no response so far.

"I was assured that she is very concerned about climate change," he said of Taylor.

"I would hope that she will understand that the youth deserve something done about climate change, so that we don't have to live in far worse of a world."

www.cbc.ca