(328.3283) WISE Amsterdam -(See also WISE News Communique 319.2156.) The letter was leaked to NAUC. Dated 26 Jan. 1990, it was written by WJ Stephen, Director General, NWT Region, Northern Affairs Program, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. In it Stephen predicts the timing of and strategies relating to land claims, self-government, d evolution and resource management issues in the NWT. With regard to Urangesellschaft Canada Ltd's proposed Kiggavik mine he writes, "After very thorough environmental screen- ing and extensive public hearings and political debate, the territorial government will approve the Kiggavik Uranium mine. Construction will start about 1995."
In response to the leaked letter, Louis Pilakapsi, President of the Keewatin Inuit Association, as well as a member of NAUC, demanded of the Territorial Government an explanation of why it is - in public - sitting on the fence regarding Kiggavik when it knows the great majority of Keewatin Inuit oppose the project, while Deputy Ministers tell the federal government - in private - that they believe the project will be approved. In reply, Dennis Patterson, the territorial Government Leader, avoided a direct answer by saying Stephen's letter was only an opinion and "should not be attributed to any single source other than Mr. Stephen, the author." The territorial government, he said, is awaiting results of a review (the FEARO Review) before taking a public stand. He added, "People should bear in mind, however, that the ultimate authority over the project and indeed all mining in the NWT rests with the federal DIAND minister."
Pilakapsi replied to that with a reminder that while the "final authority may be federal, and the assessment and review jurisdiction may be federal, the land is Inuit land...The federal government may hold the land in trust for us until the implementation of the provisions of our land claim, but it is still our land."
In his letter to Patterson dated 17 Feb., Pilakapsi added, "You may be aware that we have good reason to be wary about statements which actors in the FEARO review process choose to make - or not to make. The Executive Vice-President of Urangesellschaft Canada Ltd. used to promise us that the Kiggavik project would not go ahead without the support of the people of the region. When it became apparent that they were not going to receive our support, UG simply broke their promise and changed their position. They now claim that they didn't mean 'support' in the 'political' sense of the word....
"We know there are senior employees of both the territorial and federal governments who believe that Kiggavik should be approved. We have heard influential political figures argue that the real decision will be made at the highest levels in Ottawa, not by the FEARO panel.
"Your government's silence has led some people to hopelessness and frustration, to the conclusion that a 'deal' has already been 'cut.' Some people claim they can detect the smell of a 'backroom deal' on the political winds, the contents of Mr. Stephen's leaked letter has confirmed many people's worst fears."
Meanwhile, the Baker Lake Hamlet Council has abandoned its previous policy of neutrality with regard to the Kiggavik proposal At a meeting held 14 February, the Council decided to hold a plebiscite on the Kiggavik question "as soon as legally and administratively possible." The proposed mine lies west of Baker Lake.
Source and contact: NAUC, c/o Keewatin Inuit Association, Rankin Inlet, NWT X0C OGO, Canada, tel: (819) 645-2800 or 645-2805.
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