Feb 18/97: Bill Lightbown statement - Judicial Conspiracy?

STATEMENT BY BILL LIGHTBOWN

- posted to sovernet-l by Steve Kisby

TS'PETEN DEFENCE COMMITTEE
174-1472 Commercial Drive
Vancouver, Salish Territory, V5L 3X9
Phone: (604) 322-7934, Fax: (604) 323-0224

Press Release
February 18, 1997
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Judicial Conspiracy?

The following questions must arise in the minds of most Canadians.

1. Why has the judicial system in British Columbia made every effort to block Attorney Dr. Bruce Clark from presenting his legal argument in regards to the lack of legal jurisdiction of the Government of B.C., over unceded aboriginal territory in B.C.?

2. Why did the Government of Canada and the B.C. Government decide to send over 400 RCMP officers, and 8 Canadian Armed Forces armoured vehicles manned by Canadian soldiers, to surround the camp of the 14 spiritual Sundancers and 4 non-aboriginal supporters in the Gustafsen Lake Sundance camp and give orders to kill the occupiers in the camp? (Information source: transcripts from the Gustafsen Lake Defenders Trial).

3. Why are the RCMP, on orders from the government, so determined to intercept and stop Dr. Bruce Clark from attending and participating as the lawyer of choice of most of the defendants as their defence attorney?

The RCMP smear and disinformation campaign, waged through the lies fed to the media, was intended to get public support to go into the camp and murder the occupants. Is the B.C. Law Society and the judiciary complicit in a conspiracy to use illegal and immoral tactics to block Dr. Bruce Clark from presenting his legal arguments in the B.C. courts? If it is, this is the worst case of chicanery in Canadian legal history.

If the RCMP, the judicial system, and the B.C. and Canadian Governments are allowed to get away with what I consider immoral and illegal tactics in dealing with the rights of the aboriginal peoples of Canada, then no one in Canadian society is safe from those illegal tactics.

Canadian citizens have the right to know the truth about these issues. We demand a public inquiry and call on all Canadian citizens to support us in this demand.

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Statement by Bill Lightbown
Kootenai Elder and Ts'peten Defence Committee spokesperson
February 18, 1997 - shortly after Dr. Bruce Clark was detained by RCMP

For more information: Bill Lightbown, (604) 251-4949


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