Twinn upset with media focus

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By holding a press conference in the lavish setting of the Petroleum Club in Edmonton, members of the Sawridge, Ermineskin and Tsuu T'ina First Nations opened themselves up to critical questions from a small, yet persistent gallery of media.

The press conference was held to relate the good news that a 1995 court ruling that resulted in the bands' loss of an appeal of sections of Bill C-31 had been overturned. Instead, media attention focused on the bands' opulent surroundings rather than the importance of the ruling.

In 1995, Judge F. Muldoon ruled that the bands had no grounds to base an appeal of the government bill that returned Native status to thousands of people. The Court of Appeal ruling on June 3 found that Muldoon was "biased" in his judgement and his findings should be dismissed. This decision allows the bands an opportunity to go back to the courts to start the appeal process again.

In a plush conference room set up for about 70 news conference guests, only a dozen people showed up. Food and beverages lined tables along the back and side walls of the room in anticipation of a much larger crowd. Sawridge First Nations chief and Canadian Senator Walter Twinn, along with wife Catherine, were not impressed with the line of questioning that tended to scrutinize the bands and not the court ruling itself.

Twinn said it is an indication of a bigger problem. Not only was the judge in the original appeal found to be biased, but the media - not all, but most - are biased against the Sawridge Band.

"This should be a proud story for Canadians, not a negative one," said Twinn, as he was circled by reporters following the press conference.

He didn't apologize for the success and prosperity of the Sawridge Band, but said the constant reference to his community as "oil-rich" was starting to get hard to take.

The community is successful and that should be something good, he said.

"Being oil rich isn't bad. It's that there's no credit for the chief and council for what we have achieved," he said, referring to the band's success on the reserve and in the courts.

Wife Catherine came to her husband's side and said the Aboriginal communities should be applauded for the work they have done.

It's as if people don't want to see Aboriginal people succeed, she said.

"It's as if you [the media] want to see all of the Indians on their backs and suffering. . . It's like the Indian just can't win," she said.

Chief Twinn told reporters that the press conference was held at the Petroleum Club because he is a past member and because it was one of the only places available on such short notice.

He said the reporters should be happy with the location.

"We've actually respected the media by bringing them to such a nice place."

The cost to rent the conference room for a morning, with standard food and beverage [pastries, muffins, juice, coffee and tea] is approximately $500. Additional beverages [wine, beer, and liquor] add to that cost.

The news of the victory in court deserves to be announced in such a place and the band members deserve the recognition, said Philip Healy, one of two lawyers representing the bands in court.

"It is important that bands come forward and come to court. It should be something that is admired," he said.

Martin Henderson, the other half of the legal duo representing the bands, said the matter will now go back to the courts.

He didn't want to guess at a time-line on the proceedings, but suggested that once it got back into the courts, the outcome wouldn't take as long as the 10 years Bill C-31 and the appeals have been in the system already.

"I expect it will be shorter because we've all been through this already."

The plan of attack when the appeal goes back to trial, he said, will be fundamentally the same as the previous appeal by the bands, with a few new pieces of evidence.