A small yet vocal group of Batchewana First Nation band members took part in a peaceful demonstration in Rankin Tuesday in order to voice their concerns with the forthcoming distribution of the Robinson Huron Treaty annuities settlement.
The event — organized by a group calling itself the clan grandmothers — saw a number of signs erected outside of the band office, calling on chief and council to implement a 100 per cent per capita distribution of the settlement dollars among nearly 3,000 registered members.
Batchewana First Nation scrapped the possibility of such a payout earlier this year, opting instead to provide each band member with $100,000 when settlement dollars begin flowing into Robinson Huron Treaty First Nations this summer.
The historic $10-billion settlement for past treaty annuities was paid in full by Canada and Ontario in March, and has been accruing approximately $1.3 million in daily interest while it sits in the coffers of the Robinson Huron Litigation Fund, which first brought the annuities claim to Ontario Superior Court in 2012.
“They brought a premature motion to the table without having the members vote on it — it was to be brought to a vote, and that motion should be rescinded because we have a say,” said clan grandmother Patti McIntomney. “It’s not chief and council’s money.”
McIntomney says many of the First Nation’s decisions concerning the distribution of the settlement were made in closed session during band council meetings, leaving community members in the dark. “The members have a right to know. That’s our inherent right under our treaty,” she said.
Some demonstrators also expressed their concern with the litigation management committee for the Robinson Huron Treaty Litigation Fund, which was responsible for guiding legal counsel during the annuities claim court case.
The litigation management committee is comprised of Mike Restoule, Aundeck Omni Kaning Chief Patsy Corbiere, former Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory Ogimaa Duke Peltier, Peter Recollet, former Batchewana First Nation Chief Dean Sayers and Sagamok Anishnawbek Chief Angus Toulouse.
“We did not elect them. We did not appoint them. That is one of the issues that we do have,” McIntomney said.
Another member of the clan grandmothers accused the Robinson Huron Treaty Litigation Fund of dictating to First Nations how the settlement dollars are distributed. “It was a job well done, but that’s the end of it for them,” said Adele Madigan. “Since then, they have been attempting to run all 21 First Nation chiefs, and they’ve been allowed to do that.”
Batchewana First Nation Chief Mark McCoy says legal counsel for his First Nation and the Robinson Huron Treaty Litigation Fund have both advised band council against a 100 per cent per capita payout to membership. Instead, chief and council have moved to distribute $100,000 to each band member, with a portion being held in trust for minors. A second, yet-to-be-determined payment will also be distributed to band members sometime later this year, the chief said.
“We have a fiduciary obligation to the First Nation,” said McCoy, who stopped at Tuesday’s demonstration to listen to band members. “So, we can’t do it.”
McCoy disputed the assertion from the clan grandmothers that band members are being left in the dark when it comes to being informed about the settlement distribution. The chief says information is being relayed to membership through an online portal established by Batchewana First Nation, and that input and concerns from membership were taken into consideration when chief and council decided how the money would be distributed.
He also noted that Batchewana First Nation currently doesn't know exactly how much of the $10-billion settlement it will end up receiving.
But the clan grandmothers group still believe that chief and council are keeping some information on the settlement hidden from band members. “It shouldn’t be confidential to us as members,” said Madigan. “It should be open to us.”
The band office in Rankin was closed Tuesday amid safety concerns after veiled threats were made on social media leading up to Tuesday's demonstration.