Ad - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, February 28, 1996 TERRACE. STANDARD ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988 ADDRESS: 3210 Clinton Street Terrace, B.C, * V8G 5R2 TELEPHONE: (614) 638-7283 * FAX: (604) 638-8432 . MODEM: (604) 638-7247 The Nisga’a deal HERE’S FIVE reasons why we like the Nisga’a Agreement in Principle, 1. It’ll put an end to the reserve system, a federal government creation dating back to the last century. And it'll give the Nisga’a a land base upon which they can build an economic base. How could anybody favour the reserve system of land use that does not provide a sense of owner- ship and pride? 2. At long last there’Il be a break in the wearying and destructive chain of welfare dependency. What use is it simply to pour untold dollars into communities simply to maintain them? The em- phasis on economic development can only be a good thing in the long run. 3. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms will apply to any governmental actions on the part of the Nisga’a, 4. The Nisga’a will get a piece of the Nass River fishery. Although that’s raised cries of ‘‘racially- based fishing’’ there are at least catch limits and conservation measures built into the fisheries side agreement. The same is true for native hunt- ing — that undefinable aboriginal right to shoot whatever there is in the bush will end. 5. The Nisga’a will, on a graduating scale, be subject to income and sales taxes. Even if this is only accepted for its public relations value, this provision will end the feeling that natives are getting a free ride. HERE’S FIVE reasons why we don’t like the Nisga’a Agreement in Principle. 1. ‘The cost. No, not the $190 million cash por- tion but the unknown amount of money it'll cost each year to run the myriad of governmental bodies and agencies that'll be required to keep the wheels turning in the new administrative sys- tems. 2. Too much government. It’s a good thing to wipe out band councils (a creation of the Indian Act) and replace them with a municipal system. But to then overlay these bodies with a central government and then to have all of those agen- cies to run specific initiatives such as conserva- tion, resource management, etc., can only lead to some kind of bureaucratic paralysis. 3. A lot of unknowns. Granted, this is a frame- work which will lead to a detailed treaty but lack of specifics, particularly in the area of ex- tinguishing native title to lands once claimed, could give us some surprises down the road. 4. What about other Nass Valley residents. The agreement is too vague in terms of how these people will have their views and opinions represented on the various Nisga’a governing and administrative bodies. 5. In or out. The agreement in principle says the Nisga’a will have the same rights and benefits of other Canadians. But it also says they will have the same rights and benefits as granted to other natives. Which is it to be? Oo PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link ADVERTISING MANAGER: Mike L. Hamm PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edouard Credgeur’ NEWS Jeff Nagel * NEWS SPORTS: COMMUNITY: Cris Leykauf OFFICE MANAGER: Audra Creek ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS: © Sam Collier, Janet Viveiros, Tracey Tomas ADVERTISING ASSISTANT: Emma Law, Keliy Jean DARKROOM: Susan Credgeur CIRCULATION SUPERVISOR: Karen Brunette MEMBER OF B.C. PRESS COUNCIL mo Serving the Terrace and Thombhill area, Published an Wednesday of each week by Carlboo Press (t969) Lid. at 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, Brilish Columbia, ; : Stories, photographs, illustrations, designs and typeslyles fn the Tenace Standard ara the property of the copyright holders, including Cariboo Presa (1969) Ltd, Its illustration rapto services and advertising aqencigs, > , ‘ . : Reproduction in whole of in part, without written parmission, is specifically prohibited. Authorized as second-class mail pending tha Past Office Depariment, for payment of postage ft cash. Special thanks to all our contributors and correspondents for their time and talents Gana CoNA 4 earner GRCULATER CONTAGI LEE HAVE YOU SEEN CHRETIEN 7, , NOTA MOMENT AGO | HAD HIM IN MY POCKET 1. +, VICTORIA — Glen Clark’s career as premier pot off to a shaky start. The day belore he was to be swom in, the Liber- als sprung a trap they’d been selling for more than eight months. It’s the stuff John Grisham novels are made of, involving Virgin Islands Cayman Islands company, a power project in Pakistan, and big potential profits to be made by people in the know. It also involves typical Brit- ish Columbia politics - charges of friends and insiders standing to profit from a project the calalyst of which was B.C. Hydro and the maa about to be sworn in as the province’s 31st premier. Tke Liberals launched their offensive at 10 o’clock Wed- nesday morning. By 3 o’clock in the afternoon, Clark did his best to mount a counter of- fensive which resulted in the firing of two Hydro bigwigs - John Laxton, the Crown corpo- ration’s board chairman and Hydro president John Sheehan. Here’s a chronology of what led to this latest scandal: In September, 1995, B.C. Hydro International, an arm of the Crown corporation that secures international busincss for B,C. Hydro’s expertise, created and entered into partnership with privately-owned — corporation called International Power Corporation. The two corporations then set up a third one — B.C. Hydro International Limited Power Corporation. The latter investors, a | FROM THE CAPITAL. HUBERT BEYER was formed to invest in various off-shore power projects, the first of which was the Raiwind power project in Pakistan, To invest in the Raiwind pro- ject, B.C. Hydro Intemational entered into a joint’ Venturé with another group of investors - Southern Electric Limited, which is owned by several resident and non-resident Pakistanis. That company is registered in the Marshall Is- lands, The joint venture between the two became the Southern Company Limited, which was incorporated in the Cayman Is- lands. So there you have the corpo- rate structure, which by itself would not raise an eyebrow, The problem for Clark is the Cayman Island connection and a list of investors who were of- fered and took advantage of a private share offering. While private share offerings in themselves are quite com- mon in the pursuit of risk capi- “who © shares. ier tal, it gets a lite embarrassing when more than half the in- vestors turn out to be promi- nent NDP friends and relatives of Hydro officials who also have connections io the NDP. That list includes: Chandra Laxton, John Laxton’s daughter, who bought 300,000 shares; Breda Sheehan, John Sheehan’s wife, who bought into the deal with 50,000 shares; former IWA boss Jack Munro with 50,000 shares: Workers Compensation Board chair Connie Munro with 25,000 shares. And then there’s Toin Berger, former NDP leader and current Supreme Court judge, who acquired 25,000 shares, and Don Rosenbloom, a long- lime friend of Mike Harcanrt’s also bovght —_25,000' The other aspect is the fact that Southern was incorporated in the Cayman Islands, There are two reasons for registering a company in the Caymans — to avoid scrutiny and to avoid taxes, None of the foregoing is il- legal. Private share offerings happen all the time, and pri- vate money always shies away from scrutiny and taxes. All five of Canada’s big banks have a prominent presence in the Cayman Islands, But don’t ever try to cash a cheque there, or use your bank card. Clark's problem is that the deal involves a Crown corpo- ration and himself. Clark was the minister responsible for B.C. Hydro, and the Liberals ica Clark say be should have made sure that the list of investors didn’t look like a who is who of the NDP. Clark’s counter offensive was a good as could be ex- pected under the circum- Stances. Within hours, the two Hydro officials were fired, It WaS a response typical for Clark. Clark told a press conference that he had given the board of B.C. Hydro explicit instruc- tions not to invest in the deal, even. though it would have been legal. Allowing relatives lo buy into il, he said, certainty was agalust the spirit of his in- structions. The controversy comes at the worst possible time for Clark. With an election only months away, this latest Liberal assault is; bound to stop the NDP’s recent surge in popularity. The fact that the Liberals launched the altack on the even of Clark’s swearing-in ceremony is hardly an accident. And even though there is nothing illegal about any aspect of the affair, it looks bad when the party that takes the moral high ground on cor- porate taxes, ends up being linked to a Cayman Island company that stands to make a lot of money for a lot of its friends. And none of the money is subject to taxes here in British Columbia. Beyer can be reached at: Tel:(604) 920-9300; Fax:(604) 381- 6922;E-Matt: hbeyer@direct.ca Hey CBC: Stop the tinkling THE LATEST movie craze is the scene whire two men stand side by side slarting at a public washroom wall while both tinkle. I first met this scenario in “Witness”’, the Harrison Ford movie where an Anish boy traveling to the city in- advertently witnesses a stab- bing death in a train station men’s room, Since then, urinal scenes have become the lilillation of choice, replacing some of the viovence and sex so many ob- jeci to. CBC-TV’s recent Sunday movie, “Dance Me Outside”, twice sank to the basement where men standing at atten- lion in a community hall washroom urinated, “Dance Me Outside’? was the pilot for a new series called “The Rez:”? — short for reser- vation — scheduled for Friday nights. Expect to visit the men’s washroom several trips m A Mouse ! A Mouse ! THROUGH BIFOCALS CLAUDETTE SANDECKT every week or so long as the new series lasts. Why mevic makers let their storics go down the toilet this way baffles me. Do they save on wardrobe costs since actors are photographed only from the waist up? Or do they economize on sound effects and set decorating? The only prop is usually a waste basket, I grew up with three brothers | NORTHERNER S AREN'T AFRAID OF MICE ! HUMANS (TINFECTS. and I've been marricd for years. Watching men shake and brake doesn’t make me flush. But my attention sidetracks. Like a beaver determining how big a job repairing a dam will be, J listen for the force of the stream. Was the man in desperate need of relicl? Is he inhibited by public scrutiny of such 4 private bodily function? If I were a urologist, might I detect . akidney condition? Eventually these porcelain scenes will loose their shine. Directors may then stage scenes in women's washrooms, crowding the camera inlo the cubicle to focus on a woman’s dishabille as She sits on the throne, fold- ing tissue in readiness for wiping, Urinal scenes rank with teeth brushing, gargling and vumit- ing. Though physicaliy neces- sary, Watching — even imagin- ing such behaviour — makes my stomach heave like a cork in a storm sewer. Griping to CBC won't persuade them to pull the plug on bathroom voyeurisin cither, In January, 1992 ] com- plained to the director of CBC's movie ‘The Diviners’’ about Tom Jackson groping Sonja Smits under the kitchen table. The director replicd it was important to her ‘not to avoid the real drama that hap- pens between men and women.?? I know people pee, brush their teeth, gargle, even spcak profanity. 1 just don’t want to sce them do it. The fellow who invented the 'V’ chip to block out TV violence should return to his drawing board and design an alphabet chip. Then [ ‘could puach B to block out bathroom Scetics of tecth brushing or up- chucking in the toilet, punch U to blank out urinal scenes ... ‘hat WAS Before. SkooKumM! GET YOUR THEY CARRIEP HANTAVIRUS WHICH KILLS 50% oF THE vw core CEQ ART ¢ RS OLE OL Oe H ev & an BUTT IN HERE Now / | oA Pst £7