Mining and natives peoples

On April 28, 29 and 30, 1979, Native Americans in the Southwest will come together near Grants Mineral Belt.

The action will specifically protest the uranium exploration and mining on Mt. Taylor near Grants. Mt. Taylor is one of the four sacred mountains of the Navajos and has spiritual significance to the nearby Pueblos. Such uranium activity is considered to be an act of violence to our sacred Mother Earth. Gulf Oil Company is sinking the world's deepest uranium mine shaft into the side of Mt. Taylor. In fact, the Mt. Taylor-Ambrosia lake mining district has the heaviest concentration of uranium mining and milling in the country.

The Grants Mineral Belt also contains over half of the nation's uranium supply. It is mostly located on the Navajo and Laguna reservations.

The protest action will include the following activities:
spiritual ceremonies, speeches, uranium issues conference and workshops, briefings and tours, and discussion of future direct action strategies.

Contact: John Redhouse
American Indian Environ. Council
1503 Central Ave.
NW Albuquerque, N.M.
USA 87104

Northern Native Rights Campaign '79, an initiative undertaken jointly by Project North and Northern organizations engaged in the struggle for the recognition of their rights, will take place March 15 to 29 in most major Canadian cities.

The event will kick off in Ottawa with a public presentation of the -Northern Native Organizations' position on the recognition of rights, constitutional development, Indian Act revisions, land claims and other statements relevant to their negotiations with Canada. Five teams of Native speakers will fan out from Ottawa to Atlantic Canada, Quebec, Ontario, the Prairies and British Colombia for public meetings with the community church, native, political and public interest groups.

The aim of the national campaign is to focus public attention on the struggles of Native People to achieve recognition of their rights in the face of stiffening opposition from government and the continued increase in northern development schemes before a political settlement is negotiated with Native People in the North.

Contact: Project North
154 Glenrose Ave.
Toronto, Ontario M4T 1K8 Canada

A French government/Rothchild owned multi-national corporation, AMOK, has been given full permission by the government of Saskatchewan to develop one of the richest known uranium deposits in the world, near Carswell Lake, Saskatchewan. (See WISE II) Both the Government and AMOK are ignoring the existence of the DENE INDIANS, who have treaty rights to the land, by refusing to consult or negotiate with them. Citizens of Saskatoon are organizing letter writing campaigns and financial help for the Dene struggle.

To help contact:
Carswell Lake Dens
Support Committee
134 Ave. F South
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Canada

There is still to be an appeal in the way of a legal challenge to the Ranger Agreement. On November 3, 1978, Oenpelli aborigines were forced by the Australian government to allow the Ranger company to mine uranium on their land. (Cf. WISE III) Numbers of Oenpelli, Goulburn and Croker Island people have demanded an appeal. A delegation of Oenpelli people, plus the labor parliamentarian for the region will tour the Eastern states of Australia in April, campaigning for support.

Contact: CAMAL
23 Smith St.
Collingwood 3065
Victoria,
Australia

The Campaign Against Nuclear Energy in Adelaide has taken responsibility for the distribution of international information in Australia.
CANE has written to groups in, other countries for newsletters and other correspondence, in exchange for their newsletter and other information. Hopefully this initiative will develop stronger links of solidarity between Australia and the rest of the world, which then develops strength and unity in the struggle.

Write to:
CANE
310 Angus St.
Adelaide 5000, SA
Australia

A campaign has been launched by CANUC, Campaign Against the Namibian Uranium Contract, to halt Britain's illegal purchase of Namibian Uranium.

Through a contract with Rio Tinto-Zinc, signed in 1970, Britain has recently begun to receive its first supplies of 7,500 tonnes of Namibian uranium. The British government is refusing to recognise the United Nations Decree for the Protection of Namibia's Natural 'Resources which bans their removal.

CANUC, convened by the Namibian Support Committee, seeks to bring pressure at all levels for termination of this illegal and exploitative contract. Working through the trade union and labour movement and assisted by pressure groups, CANUC is requesting urgent support for its campaign.

Contact: Namibian Support Committee
188 North Cower Street
London NW1, England
tel. 01 388 55 39

The International Workshop for Indigenous Affairs has produced two new reports, in its superb documentation series, which are of widespread interest.

The Integration of the Indigenous Peoples of Roriama, Brazil by Ernest Migliazzi (Document 32) graphically describes the recent incursions on Indian land by farmers, and by mining companies after cassiterite and uranium. "Uranium prospecting", says Migliazzi, "will be a major contribution to the rapid extinction of the Yanomama-people" (who constitute the largest single linguistic group in the territory, and probably in Brazil). Theoretically, the Indians have redress through the government agency FUNAI, but it is controlled by the Ministry of the interior, through its "colonialisation" agency, INCRA.

The Massacre of Panzos describes the events of last May, when a hundred or so peasant- Indians (descendants of the Mayas) were slaughtered by the Guatemalan military after a largely non violent protest against landowners seizing their traditional lands. (land values have shot up recently, thanks to the exploration of oil and nickel companies).

Source: CIMRA
5 Caledonian Rd.
London, England