“TERRACE — If an acquittal of
‘a Moricetown man on charges

"of illegal fi ishing isn’t overturn-

ed the province will begin to
lose’: control of its freshwater
fisheries, s says a lawyer interven-
ing in the case,

-Lawyer Chris Harvey, acting
for.:the. Pacific Fisherman's
Defence. Alliance, said the ac-
quittal last’ spring of Jerry Nikal

was: based ‘on a. Moricetown .

barid: fisheries bylaw that takes

: precedence aver provincial and

federal fi shite regulations.

“as. ‘much fish as they. want at any

time’ ‘by any means,” he said."*It
allows <them’ to ignore the

‘fisheries® ‘closures, It also gives
‘them. the: right to sell fish and

the right’ to .exclude sports
fishermen, ian

‘The: 'Nikal case threatens to
set a 1 “precedent affecting . all
rivers passing through reserves

-if- the acquittal is not overturn-
- ed, Harvey said.

-He described the case as a

. battle between the government
_and native bands for control of
fisheries that

victimizes the
fishing ‘public. ‘‘The rights of
the public tend to be overlooked
in: these matters.”*

- He said a 1986 B,C. Supreme

Court injunction obtained to

block further use of the bylaw is

_ being. ignored by the native
- bands.

” “The fisheries bylaw is in ef-
fect a takeover of the rivers by

. the. Indian bands that goes

_ beyond the power of the Indian

Act,’* he said. ‘‘It overlooks the
tights of the public in those
rivers. Fhe public has fished
there since the time of first set-

tlement. They (the rivers) were -

never intended to be the private
property of Indian bands.’’

MORICETOWN FALLS s one of the more visible native fishing spots in the northwest. Those opposed ta

a band fishing bylaw there say it would remove control of the fishery from the provincial and federal
governments. The matter is now before the courts and is the subject of negotiations between the
federal and provincial governments, BIBBI D0ZZI PHOTO

Federal lawyers concede that
the native bylaws would be dif-
ficult to overturn. Instead they
are trying to prove that
tiverbeds are not part of the
Teserves, ard therefore the
bylaws do not apply to them.

“‘What they're saying is this
bylaw doesn’t apply to the river
— which gives the Gitksan and
Wet'suwet’en the right to
regulate a dryland fishery,’
said Gitksan-Wet’suwet’en
lawyer Peter Grant, who is
defending Nikal. “And it means
the minister of Indian Affairs

passed bylaws to regulate a
dryland fishery. Now that
sounds pretty bizarre, maybe,

and their argument is quite.

simply that.” .
Harvey agreed and said the
bylaws should never have been

‘passed, ‘'They were a political
folly perpetrated by David |

Crombie, then minister of In-
dian and Northern Affairs,” he
said. ‘‘Now the courts have to
deal with it.”’

Grant said the case is a result
of the government's refusal to
negotiate fisheries control with

the bands, and is an example of

_how bitter the struggle is

becoming.

“Instead of sitting down and
discussing how to manage the
fishery together, the federal
government through the justice
department and fisheries is

fighting Indians tooth and nail .

throughout the province,”’ he
said. ‘And they're slawiy going
to lose all of those fights.

Grant said negotiations
‘won't be the route theyll take
until they’re forced into it by
ihe courts.’

_ Lawyers in legal wrangle —

: TERRACE — A court case that

7 could decide the control of B.C.

-.their. position, a

‘rivers as they flow through In-
dian reserves has been adjourn-
ed while federal lawyers-rethink

lawyer
representing sportfishing
groups says. -

Jerry Nikal was acquitted last

- spring of charges of illegal

‘fishing on the Bulkley River at
Moricetown on the basis that a
Gitksan-Wet’suwet'en fishing

~ bylaw. permitted the violation

: and supersedes the Fisheries Act
- fegulations he was charged

under.
At Issue is whether band

- fishing bylaws should take

precedence over federal and
provincial fishing regulations.

_.The courts have said they do

and, unless Nikal’s acquittal is

overturned, federal and provin-'

cial governments will be unable
to tegulate fishing on reserves.
’ Sportfishing groups say that

= would. mean complete native
‘= control’ of rivers passing

through reserves, with no way

tO: enforce conservation of fish”
. ‘stocks. vos

“Chris: Harvey — a lawyer i in-
tervening - ‘in the case for the
‘Pacific Fisherman's Defence
Alliance '- '— said the appeal is

putting justice department
lawyers in a quandary that pro-
mpted them to call for the last-
minute adjournment of the case

- granted last month,

“You've got the department
of Indian affairs on one side,

the department of fisheries on -

the other, and the department
of justice is in the unfortunate
position of having to enforce

the law,’’ Harvey said. ‘‘They |

farced to fight the native bylaw
approved by the Indian affairs
department in 1986,

““Mr. Nikal is relying on a
federal regulation to defend
himself against another federal
regulation. So the federal
government in this case is op-
posing their own bylaw in the
court,” said Grant.

The B.C. Court of Appeal
and the Supreme Court of
Canada, indirectly, have upheld

Sportfishing groups say band fishing bylaws
would mean complete native control of rivers pass-
ing through reserves, with no way to enforce con-

servation of fish stocks.

inevitably get representations
from both departments,
representations that are bound
to be conflicting in questions
like this." ;

But. Peter Grant, Nikal’s
lawyer, said the department of
Indian affairs is remaining
silent on the case and has refus-
ed band requests to support
Nikal's defence.

He said the Crown is being

the precedence of the native
bylaws over provincial and
federal fishing legislation,
Grant said.

But instead of trying to over-
turn the native fishing bylaw,
government lawyers are arguing
the Bulkley River — which
flows through the Moricetown
Indian reserve -— is not actually
part of the “reserve, and
therefore the bylaw doesn’t

govern fishing on the river.

‘There's no dispute that the
bylaw takes precedence over the
fisheries act,” Grant said. ‘‘The
dispute is where does the bylaw
apply.”

Grant said the adjournment
came after a federal lawyer told
him there would be major
changes to the Crown’s posi-
tion. He said he reluctantly
agreed to the adjournment to
avoid being ‘‘ambushed’’ by the
new argument of the federal
Crown. The case was to have
gone ahead Dec. 10.

No new county court date has
been set, but new written
arguments are being filed by all
sides this month. Ron Gamble is
Tepresenting the Crown and
Terrace lawyer Darrell O'Byrne
is acting for the Attorney-
General of B.C. Both the pro-
vincial Attorney-General and
the Pacific Fisherman’s Defence
Alliance were granted in-
tervenor status in October.

Dozens of other reserve
fishing cases are awaiting the
outcome of the Nikal appeal.
Whatever the result, all sides
agree the case will probably be
appealed to the B.C. Court of
Appeal and perhaps eventually
the Supreme Court of Canada.

Birth rate down, deaths increase

The following comes from
figures and statistics compiled
by the vital statistics branch of
the provincial government.

Birth Rates
Births increased to 42,732 in
1988 from 41,595 in 1987. All
-but one-half of one per cent of

these ., births took place: in —

hosp! tals.
The 1988 birth rate, at 14,3
pets 000 population, is the se-
. cond lowest ever recorded,
The youngest mother bearing

a. child i in the province last year

_ was 12 years old, the oldest was
48
ah Death Rates

r

ithe 1988 death rate, at 7,5).
er 1,000 population, ls the:

Sites since 1979... Bele

a

The stillbirth rate, at 6.9 per :

1,000 births is the lowest ever.

Deaths from motor vehicle
accidents totalled 490 in 1988,
the largest cause of accidental
deaths.

Total accidental deaths,
however, continue a downward
trend over the last few years,
1,873 in 1984 to 1,571 in 1988,

The top 11 causes of death .
‘have hot been changed in the

past five years, The .twelfth
cause in 1988 was AIDS;
chronic bronchitis was the

twelfth leading cause of death in,
1984 through 1987.

Compared to a decade ago,

. deaths from causes of perinatal. .
‘mortality have ‘dropped, and —
deaths from. ‘chronic liver
disease and cirrhosis have a.
much lower rank in the leading -

Causes of of deat

Deaths from diabetes
have @ higher rank than
& decade ago.

Deaths from diabetes have a
igher rank than a decade ago,
and deaths from. pnepmonia
have a much higher rank in the
leading causes of death.

_ The oldest person who di d iti

B.C. in 1988 was aged 111 years
old and there were 171 deaths to
individuals aged 100 years or
more.

‘ Leading Causes

of Death
. Disease of heart.........6,198.
Malignant ntoplasins..5,912.
Cerebrovascular disease

PS AnUeeeaerseisereresesemencaeswen 11,822.

Accidents ...scsccssteene D145. .
registered in British Columbia.

Disease of arteries.........630.
Diabetes ..........ccscenseeee 423.
Suicide. ....ccessceseseseereee3O5,
Chronic liver disorder and
CHLTHOSIS cee cereeseecteeeewesenes 235.
Emphysema.........-..00066137
Causes of perinatal mortality
veannanee sesevnecnsstaeeranecenease La2s
AIDS related se csaetaensanes 114.
Marriage Rates

The number of marriages, at
24,469, is the highest level since
1981.

The youngest woman married
in B.C. in 1988 was 14 years
old,. the oldest was 88. The
youngest man was 17, the oldest
was 91, .

Fifty-five per cent of the mar-
riages were performed in
religious ceremonies, 45 per
cent were civil marriages...

There ‘are’ 122 different
religious denominations

Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 10, 1990 — Page AS

_LETTERS _

TO THE TERRACE STANDARD

An open letter to:
The Honourable Claude
Richmond
Minister of Forests
Dear Mr. Richmond,

Re: Invitation for
Pulpwood Agreement Ap-

’ plication; Pulpwood Area 17

(Terrace -Houston)

We note with extreme con-
cern the recent advertisment
of 6.82 million cubic metres
of pulpwood available: for
bid in the Kispiox Timber
Supply Area (TSA). We find
this advertisement of surplus
quota objectionable for the
following reasons.

1. A public planning pro-
cess mandated to recommend
a Kispiox TSA management
regime and annual allowable
harvest level is currently in
an initial stage. It seems in-
sulting to announce a 20 per
cent plus increase in the ex-
isting Kispiox TSA annual
allowable cut before the TSA
planning process is conclud-
ed. There is enough mistrust
of the Ministry of Forests

without making a mockery -

of yet another public ad-
visory pracess.

2, On Nov. 30, 1989,
village staff requested to
view a map of the areas
where 6.52 “million cubic
metres of pulpwood are
available in the Kispiox TSA.
We were told that although
the general logging areas
could be pointed out that no
exact map existed, and there
had been no referral to the
Ministry of Environment or
other Crown agencies regar-
ding which areas considered
for logging were en-
vironmentally ‘‘safe’* for
such harvest.

Isn't it premature to adver-
tise a cut volume as available

1 When-yousdon't: know wheres:
ve the. cut js, and:.youhaven’t.

yetted the proposed harvest
folios with other agencies of
the provincial and federal

governments.
3, The Gitksan-
Wet'suwet’en Hereditary

Chiefs have recently in-
stigated blockades in the
Kispiox TSA to force reduc-

tion of the harvest of local

forest resources until a
1995-97 Supreme Court of
Canada decision can be made
regarding issues of aboriginal
rights and title.

“Wood Sale said
very bad deal -

To advertise additional
timber quota as being
available in the land claims
area is an insult to. the’
Gitksan-Wet'suwet’en, and
an invitation to have the
Chiefs force a complete shut-
down of the Upper Skeena
forest industry, .

4. In 1988 the B.C. Ap-
peals Court upheld an ap-
plication by the Gitksan-.
Wet'suwet’en hereditary
chiefs for an injunction .
against opening of a new log-
ging area north of the Babine
River. .

Although this area
represents a significant por-
tion of the timber available
in the Kispiox TSA there has
never been a reduction of the
annual allowable cut to
recognize this legal fact.
Ministry of Forésts adyertise- -
ment of an additional cut
allocation in ‘the Kispiox
TSA, some of which is ap-
parently located in the in-
junction area, is beyond our
comprehension,

Is the biological sus-
tainable yield of a forest
dependent on the whim

of government
foresters?

Is the Ministry of Forest
beyond jurisdiction of the
B.C. judicial system? Is the
biclogical sustainable yield
of a forest dependent on the
whim of government
foresiers?

The Village of Hazelton
would like to go on record as
opposing the offering of any _
additional pulp or sawlog
tenures in the Kispiox TSA
until: i . crit Teaiis
1. land claims have been set- -
tled ,
2. a proper TSA resource
managment plan is com-
pleted with full public con-
sultation
3, all tenure areas offered for
sale have been properly map-
ped and assessed by other
Crown agencies as to their
suitability for clearcut logg-
ing

Yours truly,
Alice V. Maitland
Mlayor
Village of Hazelton

Theft does hurt

Dear Sir:

I am a senior citizen and
have not been feeling well
lately,

On Monday, Dec. 11, 1989
I went to the hospital x-ray
department to have some in-
ternal tests done. The tests

’ took better than two hours,

When I left the hospital so-
meone else was $190 richer.
My pension card was. also
with my $190 but they left it,

1 live out of town and had

Not the

An open letter to:
The Hon, Claude Richmond
Minister of Forests °

Dear Sir:

I fully appreciate. your
wishing to give small
business financial relief and
reducing. deposit re-
quirements is certainly com-
mendable, but, with all due
respect, not the answer.

In the first place, if timber
sales were truly for small
business, no deposit would
ever reach the proportions
given as an example in the
release, No truly small
business enterprise sale
should exceed 10,000m’,

Secondly, if government
were really serious about
assisting small business, they
would concern themselves
with the inequities of the pre-
sent system.

The third. item I wish to
raise, is that of surrogate bid-
ding which, until. stopped,

will continue to have the ef. °

fect of making a mockery. of:

intended to go grocery shop-
ping and then get Christmas
presents for my grand-
children.

I sincerely hope that the
person responsible for this
act really needed it, and that
he or she think of me when
eating Christmas dinner.

Our Christmas dinner does
not include turkey this year.
Sincerely,

G. Hayward

answer

any small business program.
Because of the reluctance

‘Of your predecessor to stop

the practice, bona fide small
business operators have all
but disappeared in this
wonderful “‘free enterprise’’
province of ours,

Incidentally, if I were you,
I wouldn’t commend your
Predecessor Mr, Parker as
the saviour of small business
until I were in full possession
of all the facts of what has
taken place in the last two
and a half years.

Ia summary, Mr. Minister,
small business enterprise in
the forest industry of British
Columbia, remains in name
only, For it to be resurrected
from the grave in which it
was placed primarily by the
actions and non actions of
‘your predecessor’’,’ one
would have to do much more
than simply reduce Umber’
sale deposits. Ss ;

Yours. sicnerely
Jack J. Kempf, MLA
Onineca