Hello All,
I am jotting down a few words about this blockade business because everyone here needs a little context about this matter to help understand what is actually happening.
I can assure you that the initial push behind this blockade is not the collective First Nations of the Ring of Fire area. This is (to the best of my knowledge) the result of a rather simple, elemental business dispute. Essentially, Marten Falls First Nation is upset that Webequie First Nation is currently (via Webequie Logistics-a Webequie based service company) getting the business of the mining exploration companies in the area. Marten Falls does not, in the opinion of the other companies, have the organisation or capacity at this time to provide the level of service required to do the job... period. The problem then is that Marten Falls leadership does not know how to address this matter and so they have threatened blockades to try to force the industry to use a currently unworkable service. The industry needs a service that they can rely on, hence they are using Webequie Logistics.
When First Nations people are quoted as saying that all the other communities are going to show up to support a blockade that may be set up, they are probably wrong. Webequie will not be there because they have arrangements with the industry and their business is being utilized to bring money and other benefits into the community. It is pretty doubtful that Webequie will support any blockade that has been, quite frankly, set up to take business away from them.
The above is rather important to know before anyone starts tarring all First Nations communities with the same brush in this matter. In my opinion, Matawa Tribal Council is muddying the waters with their current posturing. One of the problems coming out of this is that Matawa Tribal Council now has a person working for them who has what appears to be a somewhat militant background in First Nation politics. This is surely a fine example of using the wrong person, in the wrong place, at the wrong time. Matawa has multi-community influence and they are thus in a position to rev up other communities by not necessarily presenting the complete and wider view of the issue. Many of us are unsure of Matawa's motive here. Is it simply empire building, or is it self aggrandisement? Who knows? Let's hope that they show some responsibility in this and do not turn a business dispute into a major political dispute. I fear that they may not be that responsible but am fairly hopeful that some of the communities themselves will step in and put a muzzle on some of this nonsense and posturing.
I believe that the above is a bit more rounded picture of what is currently happening. The press does not do a particularly good job of getting to the reasons behind things and tend to generalise too much in their quest for punchy sound bytes.
Hope this is a least a little helpful for people,
RHammer
