ARTICLES BY Alex Roslin

Upheaval at Native Friendship Centre

Montreal’s Native Friendship Centre is in turmoil after a new board of directors suspended its two top administrators and placed them under investigation. The sudden suspensions have sent shockwaves through Montreal’s 50,000-strong Native community. The investigation was announced in a terse, two-paragraph communiqué sent out by the centre on Oct. 31, just ... read more ››

Waskaganish Band to Rein in Police

The Waskaganish band is in the middle of considering major reforms to its police force just as allegations of police brutality surface in the community. One band official said some police officers are not accountable to the community. “Complaints are getting lost in the shuffle and are not being followed up ... read more ››

Gary Cooper Keeps on Truckin’

Somewhere on the lonely highway to La Tuque, Gary Cooper is behind the wheel of his 22-wheeler 1999 model Freightliner hauling a full load of sawdust. “There’s a different view every day,” Cooper says when asked what he likes about his job. Cooper is also doing what he does best. The 33-year-old ... read more ››

SQ Probes Waskaganish Police Officer

The Sûreté du Québec internal-affairs division is investigating a Waskaganish police officer after allegations that the officer assaulted a Cree prisoner. Christopher Stephen, a Waskaganish Cree, said he was assaulted by a police officer while being detained in the community jail on Sunday, Aug. 6. “It’s not right what he did to ... read more ››

Hundreds May Miss Gun-Permit Deadline

Alarm is spreading among Cree hunters and trappers as the December 31 deadline approaches for gun owners to have a firearms license under the new federal Firearms Act. The law imposes harsh penalties for firearm owners who don’t have a license by Dec. 31, including fines, criminal charges and confiscation of ... read more ››

The Spies and I

At the moment Trudeau died, I was being watched by spies, dozens of spies. Almost the entire alphabet was represented – CSIS, CSE, CIA, NSA, MI5. Especially MIB, Men in Black. Somber dark tones are obviously still in style for the discerning intelligence professional. We were all at the annual conference of ... read more ››

Tembec Slams Quebec for Wood Shortage

The president of the forestry company Tembec has broken ranks with his forestry-industry colleagues and criticized Quebec for allowing the forests to be “over-exploited.” “We over-exploited our forests, and we (will now) have to close sawmills and plants. This is a certainty,” said Frank Dottori in a presentation to a National ... read more ››

“Indian-bashing” Erupts at Logging Meet

Non-Native mayors and forestry officials unleashed a racist tirade against Crees at a meeting in Matagami to discuss logging on Sept. 22, according to reports. “It was interestingly shocking. It was quite disturbing,” said Romeo Saganash, the Cree negotiator with Quebec, who attended the meeting. The meeting was organized by the Quebec ... read more ››

International Turtle of Mystery

I walked off the plane at the Chibougamau airport and heard Paul Dixon’s familiar greeting: “Welcome to James Bay.” But waiting in his truck was an unfamiliar sight… a turtle! The Dixons had found the little guy hitchhiking on Route 113 about 25 kilometres east of Senneterre. “I could clearly see the ... read more ››

Controversy Might Shut Down Nuskan

The Waskaganish band council is thinking about closing down its profitable construction firm Nuskan LP after questions have been raised about possible conflict-of-interest and accountability. The surprise move stems from concerns that the band has little control over Nuskan’s operations and isn’t kept up-to-date on the company. The band owns 51 percent ... read more ››

When Ex-cops Go Bad

A sleepy street in the Montreal suburb of Châteauguay was the last place police expected to find the mastermind of the biggest drug-smuggling ring ever to hit northern Quebec. But that’s exactly where ex-Mountie Michel Leblanc quietly made his headquarters for a thriving business of smuggling hash and cocaine into the ... read more ››

Establish Guaranteed Harvest: AFN

As Canada overhauls its endangered-species legislation, the government should set aside guaranteed harvest levels for First Nations, says Matthew Coon Come, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations. “It seems like every time there is a list prepared, First Nations are the first ones to be affected,” said Coon Come ... read more ››

Billy Diamond Voted for Court Action – Minutes of 1999 Meeting Contradict L’Actualité Story

It’s hard not to walk into a corner store or magazine shop in Quebec without seeing his face. Plastered on the cover of L’Actualité, former Grand Chief Billy Diamond made a big splash in the Quebec magazine denouncing the “parasites who orchestrate the ‘Quebec-bashing’ of the Crees.” Billy Diamond’s main criticism was ... read more ››

I am Quite Surprised: Reporter

Calling Billy Diamond. L’Actualité reporter Luc Chartrand wants to speak with you. Chartrand is the journalist who spent hours interviewing Billy Diamond for a nine-page cover story in L’Actualité that slammed the Cree decision last year to go ahead with an injunction in the forestry court case. Now it turns out Diamond ... read more ››

Charly Washipabano Goes National

Charly Washipabano had the surprise of his life when a letter arrived at his home in Chisasibi one day in July. The 18-year-old was told he’d been chosen for Team Indigenous, an elite squad created and coached by Ojibway hockey legend Ted Nolan. Washipabano was joining 22 other Native teenagers from across ... read more ››

Article Sparks Strong Reactions

The reactions ranged from sadness, to anger, to confusion. Some were left scratching their heads. Many tried to figure out what was going through Billy Diamond’s mind as he trashed the Cree leadership in L’Actualité. “Hogwash, man,” is how one Cree responded. “What a guy! I think he’s jealous of Matthew.” (The ... read more ››

Billy Diamond Declares “War” on Cree Leaders, Backtracks on Hydro-Quebec

The article dropped like a bomb in the Cree world. After a long silence, former Cree Grand Chief Billy Diamond made a stunning return to the public eye with a cover story in the August issue of the Quebec magazine L’Actualité. In the nine-page article. Diamond made many surprising revelations and ... read more ››

Guarded Optimism After Leaders’ Summit

Quebec Premier Lucien Bouchard is promising to unblock the impasse in relations with the Crees after his first meeting with Grand Chief Ted Moses. Bouchard said he would release $18.6 million in long-awaited funds for Cree community projects that have been in limbo since last year. Bouchard and Moses also agreed to ... read more ››

Unconditional Discharge for Freddy Jolly

Nemaska tallyman Freddy Jolly is declaring victory in his two-year legal battle with the Quebec wildlife department. Jolly’s lawyer entered a guilty plea to the charge of violating the federal Migratory Birds Act. Then, in a May 30 decision, a judge granted Jolly an unconditional discharge. The sentence means Jolly won’t have a ... read more ››

Health Boss Resigns Amid Criticisms

In a surprise move, Jean Dupuis has resigned from his position as chairman of the Nunavik Health Board. The sudden move came after a series of articles in The Nation about the miserable state of health care and social services in the Inuit communities of Quebec. In Dupuis’s place, the board of ... read more ››

Crees Hit With ‘Unjust’ Phone Bill Hike

Crees will be hit with another whopping increase in phone bills starting July 1, with monthly rates in most communities shooting up 17 percent for a basic hookup. Télébec, the Bell Canada subsidiary that serves northern Quebec, already charged the highest residential rates in the country. Even before the latest spike, its ... read more ››

Quebec Gives in One Hour Before March

Just an hour before Waswanipi youths were supposed to start a 750-kilometre protest walk to Quebec City, the news came from the Quebec government. The province had agreed to release $2.2 million in promised funds to finish the community’s long-awaited youth centre. At first, youth chief Marcel Happyjack and the 11 other ... read more ››

Health Board Botched Rescue: Coroner

The Quebec coroner’s office has blasted the Nunavik Health Board for a lack of “good sense” and “compassion” after taking 18 hours to rescue a badly burned Inuk Elder. The woman died from burns that covered almost all of her body. The coroner’s report, dated April 25, comes at a time ... read more ››

AFN “Has Been Bought”: Coon Come

Matthew Coon Come is running for National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations on a platform that’s certain to put some noses out of joint. He says the AFN “has been bought” and is failing to give First Nations a voice in Canada. He says the group needs new strategies ... read more ››

Social Services Are Failing Inuit: Survey

The people of Nunavik are largely dissatisfied with the social services in their communities, according to an official 1997 survey obtained by The Nation. The Inuit feel social services don’t listen to their needs, don’t offer enough programs, they don’t trust some of the social workers and there is a language ... read more ››

Logging Fight Going to Supreme Court?

The Cree forestry battle looks like it’s going all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada. Cree officials last week had all but made up their minds to take the Cree forestry lawsuit to the country’s highest court, after the Quebec Court of Appeal overturned a ruling that found Quebec ... read more ››