No progress on Lubicon claims

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Little or no progress was made on settling the 50-year-old Lubicon land claim following Indian Affairs Minister Tom Saddon's recent visit to Little Buffalo.

And according to Lubicon spokesman, Fred Lennarson, the talks are still bogged down over when Ottawa will respond to the Lubicon proposals for ending the dispute.

"I don't see how we can settle if they (the federal government) don't look at the proposals," he said in an interview following the two-hour meeting at Little Buffalo.

Siddon would not comment to reporters following this first face-to-face exchange since February and the first-ever visit to the community 100 km northeast of Peace River by a federal minister.

Following the meeting, Lennarson said Ottawa has not backed down from the so-called 1989 "take-it-or-leave-it" offer of a 95-square mile reserve and up to $43-million cash settlement.

Lennarson said Ottawa has revamped the original offer to account for inflation and added information about support programs the Lubicon can apply if they settle the claim. But he said the current proposal may actually represent a decline in the actual amount due to adjusting the figures for inflation.

"What these guys are doing is like a carnival shell game," he said.

The Lubicon presented Ottawa with a counter-offer last year. The offer agreed to the 95-mile reserve and called for $170 million in compensation for resources taken from traditional lands over the last 50 years.

Despite several promises, Ottawa has yet to provide a detailed response to the proposal, Lennarson said. He said Siddon promised a detailed response again at the last meeting.

Meanwhile, an independent commission made up of political, religious and community leaders began public hearings in Edmonton to examine various proposals on settling the Lubicon issue.

The commission will be holding public hearings throughout the month and plans to issue a report in July. Federal and provincial officials have been invited to observe the hearings and it is hoped they will make submissions at a later date.

A handful of Lubicon supporters also staged a small rally outside federal government offices in Edmonton last week to press for a settlement after a visit to the community by church leaders.

Reverend Williams Phipps, who was part of the tour, said the Lubicon way of life is dying and that churches will continue to lobby Ottawa for a settlement.