A4 - The Terrace Stafidard, Wednesday, June 14, 2000 TERRACE STANDARD ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988 PUBLISHER: ROD LINK ADDRESS: 3210 Clinton Street Terrace. B.C. = V8G 5R2 TELEPHONE: (250) 638-7283 * FAX: (250) 638-8432 EMAIL: standard@kermode.net , Honour SECHELT CHIEF Gary Feschuk is getting off far too easy by having his people walk away. from a land claims treaty agreement in principle with the provincial and federal governments. With great sound and fury, Mr. Feschuk would have us believe the Sechelt decision to choose a court route instead of negotiations is the fault of the provincial and federal governments. Well, it’s not. The simple matter is Mr Feschuk signed an agreement in principle last fall which contained the essential elements of a proposed treaty. Anybody following the complex process by which land claims are negotiated in this pro- vince, knows that by the time the parties sign an agreement in principle, the treaty in question is pretty much a done deal except for hammering out the fine print and some minor details. The key here is that an agreement in principle represents the accumulated good will of the nego- tiators and is used as the document from which the final treaty then flows. All this appears to be news to Mr. Feschuk. He now wants us to accept his statements that the process established to settle claims is flawed and that the provincial and federal governments. have to fix it. The reality is different. Last fall, Mr. Feschuk and his Sechelt negotiators signed an agreement in principle which exchanged land for cash and which would end the Sechelt tax exempt status after eight years. The Sechelt would also agree not to pursue any future land claims. All of this is pretty much standard fare, 1. These élemenits passed'‘threé teste" fir rst a ae Mr. Feschuk and hi8 negotiators leading into thé agreement in principle stage when it was being. put together, secondly when they signed the agreement in principle and thirdly, when Mr. Fe- schuk was returned to office last fall by the Se- chelt after the agreement was signed. It now seems the deal isn’t rich enough and Mr. Feschuk is engaged in a high-risk game to | wring more out of the provincial and federal gov- ernments by casting them as the bad guys. So in the end, this is all about money. It’s not about any assumed conspiracy on the part of the provincial and federal governments to ignore the principles upon which land claims are negotiated. Provincial aboriginal affairs minister Dale Lo- vick was restrained in his comments about Mr. Feschuk’s decision to use the court route, The one thing he did say was that the agreement in principle was as “good as it will get.” The word ‘honour’ has been used repeatedly over the years to hammer home the point that the federal and provincial governments must negoti- ate land claims. Given that Mr. Feschuk wants to rip up a deal he so freely negotiated and signed, it’s time to consider that word in another context. 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Pubished on Wechesday of each week al 5210 Cinton Street, Tecrane, Briich Coheriia, VEG 5A Stones. phonigraths, Bustrafons, designs and iypestyles in the Terrace Standard are the property of the ici inaa incucing Carbo Press (1969) 11d. its iWustraton repm services and advertising Fapodsctonin whke oti part. wie writen permecion,specicaly prchibted. . Aashorzed 24 second-dass mail pending the Pest Office Department, for payment of postage if cash. Special thanks. to all our contributors and correspondents "for thelr time and talents THAD A SCUFFLE “Wit THE BOYS AND | GOT NICKED.. xe C a ALITTLE... Conservation law far Too harsn VICTORIA = In December last year, Melvin Vander-Hoek, an Agassiz farmer, bought a piece of property to expand his farming operalions. . Part of the property was gravel, which he intended to sell. The projected profits from the sale of the gravel were a vital part of his business plan. Without it, the plan wouldn't have been viable. All obstacles had seeming- ly been overcome. Vander- Hoek had obtained approval from the Agricultural Land Commission and had verbal approval from the District of Kent that he could take gravel from his property. And then, the roof started caving in. : First, he received an ancn- ymous phone call, warning him not to touch the gravel or he would be fined a million oe dollars. Next, he *gafeg calkes from the provincial ‘heritage people, ordering him to cease all operations on the property or face a fine of up to a mil- lion dollars. And finally, the RCMP showed up on his property making sure he had stopped operations. A grass show of force to bring to bear on a hapless farmer. The reason? The property FROM THE CAPITAL HUBERT BEYER may contain artifacts from a First Nations settlement which may have existed prior to 1846. A whole bunch of maybes here. The provincial bureaucrats have told Vander-Hoek that he may be abe to expedite mat- ters if he pays for an archeolo- Bical. asgessmenk study, at the “hikely'Cost of $30,000, which he would have to bear. Is it a case of buyer be- ware? You be the jucgce. The government has designated 21,259 historic an archeologi- cal sites located throughout the province. Only two of them are registered at the land titles office. In other words, except for the two sites that are regis- lered, nobody has a clue where those other 21,257 sites ate. What's more, the govern- ment won't tell anyone for fear it may result in the wholesale theft of artifacts. Which is fine and dandy if you're an artifact or a’First Na- tions member. If you're an un- suspecting farmer like Vander- Hoek, who purchases a piece of land in good faith, you're up the creek without a paddle. Vander-Hoek's plight was brought to my attention by Barry Penner, the Liberal MLA for Chilliwack. Penner says that this situa- tion leaves thousands of land- owners at risk. What's mare, the government has introduced amendments to the Heritage Conservation Act that will make it even more draconian. Under Bill 8, the govern- ment proposes to extend the - period ‘during which it can pra- secule property owners. Penner has written to lan Waddell, the minister responsible for the Heritage Conservation Act, telling him that it is unfair to ask property owners to pay for an archeolo- gical assessment study. To his credit, Waddell re- plied to Penner's concerns. “I am particularly worried about the Vander-Hoek case,” he ¢ said. “I think it's a good exam-’ ple (of what can go wrong) and it disturbs me,” The way things stand now, everyone buying property is at risk of losing his shirt. Every lawyer who conveyances real estate transactions is exposed to potential law suits. This mess is one more ex- ample of how a good idea ends up doing bad things to good people. The basic idea of herit- age conservation is laudable. We all need roots. Without our past, we are poorly equipped to face the future. It is absolutely right to do ali we can to preserve artifacts from the past, be they testim- ony ta the presence of First Nations or early settlers, or Vikings, for that matter. But to saddle individuals with the cost is unpardonable. * If the ‘government ‘isn't pre- pared to pay for such an ambi- tious program out of general re- venue, thus spreading the cost over the entire population, it shouldn't be inthe busiriess of heritage preservation at all. Over to you, Minister. Beyer can be reached at: E - mi a i i hubert@coelcom.com; Tel (250) 381-6900; Web hitp:/iwww. hubertbeyer.com The joy Of a school assembly TWO FRIDAYS ago, at the invitation of my grade three granddaughter, I attended Copper Mountain School’s weekly assembly. Her class was singing two songs they practised for the music festival in March but were unable to perform because of the strike by school support workers, I arrived as the piano trun- died past from the music room to the gym. At the back of the gym, seated on two long benches, waited three doting mothers. Two more, in leotards and tee-shirts, joined us; they had biked in, coaxed by the sunshine. Al precisely 8:45 students began filing in, little grades first, ta sit: cross-legged on the hardwoad floor, watched aver by a teacher seated on a fold- ing chair at the end of each row, All were eager to know if they’d scored a Wowie, The principal welcomed - WHAT MADE OKAY! BUSRMIAN)! THIS TRACK ?, i rm THROUGH BIFOCALS CLAUDETTE SANDECKI everyone, Students sang O Ca- nada accompanied by the music teacher. Then several teachers took turns presenting special awards to students. who had either made strides in treading or done an outstanding _-assignment. With. the solemnity of a movie star receiving an Oscar, -— 99-53 GEE! 15 So peer’) WOULD You BELIEVE BUT SO NARROW?! A PASCHUND With TGIVEUP!! A BIG TAIL? each recipient shook hands with the teacher while accept- ing a certificate of recognition. Next my granddaughter’s class sang for us. Their first song compared a prowing child to a tree. Their second song was funny, of penguins, “arms akimbo, off we go, waddling, waddling, through the snow.” Meantime, like a Border collie bunching stragglers, the principal paced the perimeter, camera in hand, nipping ram- bunctiousness here, snapping a photo there, Finally, the high point. The principal read the names of those receiving Wowies. What's a Wowie? Whenever a child is observed doing some- thing kind, helpful or consider- ate, the child's name is written on a ship of paper and dropped into the Wowie box. Many Wowies stuffed the box. Some students got more than one. Almost everyone in ( TOUGH SLOGGIN‘Y the first four grades stood for a Wawic. Bul as an older bay said later as he passed me, “I don’t even know what I did!” It was 9:15, assembly was over, the kids filed out of the gym and back to class. We waved to our stars and followed them out of the room. To the kids, assemblies are entertainment, a fun alternative to study, a time when they're praised for hard work and good behaviour. Bul assemblies are more than that. Assemblies teach Students to wait their turn, to be polite, and to accept praise graciously. Performing before the whole school - and parents - helps kids to be at ease in the spotlight. That’s no small accomplish- ment. It’s a skill many of us wish we had. For grandparents, assem- blies are a chance to bask in ‘reflected glory. Et FRED?"