Update: Shawn A-in-chut Atleo wins second term as National Chief
Kakawin returned to Ahousaht on July 18. The Orca whales were a sure sign to the residents there that their hereditary chief would be successful that day in Toronto.
A-in-chut, Shawn Atleo, was in a battle in that big Ontario city. He was up for re-election for the position of national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, a job he had held for three years.
Atleo was facing seven contenders, and his re-election team had worked tirelessly to secure A-in-chut a respectable base of support heading into the AFN annual general meeting.
Photos at: http://www.hashilthsa.com/gallery/election-day-july-18-spoiler-alert-shawn-atleo-wins
On Tuesday, July 17, before any speeches had been made or delegates welcomed, estimates put A-in-chut’s support at 33 per cent of the registered voters. He would require 60 per cent to secure a mandate from the chiefs.
The seven other candidates would presumably split up the remaining votes, but was there one that could be a lightning rod for any dissent or complaint of Atleo’s leadership over the last three years?
One candidate stood out from the crowded field, and she had been very disparaging of Atleo during her campaign. Pam Palmater, a Mi’kmaq lawyer and academic, was an AFN outsider, having never been a chief or set foot in the political arena at any level before.
This was her very special appeal, it would seem, for those chiefs hoping for a sea-change in the direction of the national chiefs’ organization.
Day One of the AFN assembly was set aside for a candidates’ forum, and it was a long affair, starting after lunch and lasting well past the estimated 6 p.m. end time.
Each of the candidates had 15 minutes to address the delegates or have their nominees speak on their behalf. Then there was a question period.
This was the time when the candidates would either be separated into the also-rans or would inspire the undecided to a commitment.
First up was George Stanley, regional chief of the AFN for Alberta. He is a former RCMP member and former chief of Frog Lake First Nation, serving for six consecutive years. His demeanor was low-key and quiet as he talked about the pressures the world was putting on First Nations as their territories are eyed up for their resources. He spoke of the difficulties of defending those territories against development without benefits accruing to First Nations communities or the destruction of the environment.
A-in-chut was next to the podium, but he brought with him an influential friend and supporter. Former AFN national chief Ovide Mercredi stood to nominate Atleo. It was a strategic move to dispel at least one criticism that had been levied at A-in-chut during the campaign—that he had sidled up too closely to Canada’s governing Conservatives over the last three years.
“I would not support him if he was close to government,” Mercredi said. “He is not close to government.”
A second chief spoke in support of Atleo’s leadership. This time it was Rose Laboucan, Vice-Chief of Treaty 8 territory. She spoke to reject another criticism that was pushing against Atleo.
It was an old complaint left over from the first Atleo election in 2009 when some said a BC candidate couldn’t represent treaty interests effectively because there are few treaties in the province.
“As long as there are treaty people there will be a treaty,” said the chief of Drift Pile First Nation in Alberta. “I believe in Shawn and what he has done for treaty people. I have chosen to support him.”
Atleo then spoke about the work of the AFN chiefs of the past three years under his leadership. He said the plan going forward was comprehensive and clear: Act on treaties and inherent rights, build governments and economies while caring for the environment, deliver excellence in education and health, and support First Nations on creating safety, security and healing in their people.
His speech was fiery and energetic; his words chosen carefully.
The other candidates would have their turns. There was the self-described radical Terry Nelson from Roseau River in Manitoba, two lawyers from Ontario and Manitoba, Diane M. Kelly and Joan Jack respectively, and the serious and celebrated Ellen Gabriel, who shot into the national consciousness as the voice of the Mohawks during the Oka crisis.
Another candidate the Atleo team had an eye on as a possible supplanter was Bill Erasmus, the long-time AFN Vice Chief of the Northwest Territories. An interesting note about his candidacy was that he was nominated by Hupacasath’s Judith Sayers, who has been criticized by some at home in Nuu-chah-nulth territory for not standing behind Atleo. Erasmus is Sayers’ brother-in-law, married to sister Reanna.
But for those who might think that Sayers was out of step with the BC caucus, it is important to note that not all of BC had rallied around Atleo in the monolithic block that some would have you believe. There was some fracturing in that block heading into the first vote the next day.
When Palmater took the podium her message to the chiefs was that she represented a new direction and a fundamental change in the relationship they had with the treaty partner, Canada.
She said Canada is in “our house” and Canada should work with First Nations, not the other way around. Palmater said the AFN chiefs had become too comfortable, despite being in an abusive relationship with government.
Voting started on July 18 at 9 a.m. and the first ballot results were expected around noon. The Atleo team gathered in an upstairs room to drum and sing as the time ticked by. A prayer was said, and people who had passed on where remembered. Their family members acknowledged with ‘a cane to hold them up’ during their time of distress.
The team would head to the hall where they would hear the results in a silent procession, walking in a sacred manner, said Shawn Atleo’s father, Dr. Richard Umeek Atleo.
A-in-chut led that procession on the arms of his two ‘grannies’, great aunts Gertrude, Trudy, Frank and Flossie Atleo. He kept them at his side that day, just as he did his, now late, grandmother Elsie Robinson in 2009 when he first ran for the AFN’s top position.
When the results of the first ballot were read, Trudy and Flossie threw up their arms, cheered by the fact that their nephew was only about 40 votes from the 60 per cent support needed to be re-elected.
A-in-chut Atleo was well out in front of the pack with 284 votes out of 540. Erasmus had only 29, Ellen Gabriel had 33, Joan Jack had 20, Diane Kelly had 39, Terrance Nelson 35, and George Stanley had five. It seemed the Palmater message had resonated with some. She earned 95 votes in that opening round.
According to AFN election rules, any candidate not securing 15 votes would be dropped from the next ballot, as would the candidate with the fewest number of votes over 15. That meant Stanley and Jack were out of the running.
Jack threw her support behind Atleo, and the Atleo team was thrown into high gear to secure the campaign’s vote shortfall.
And they made some headway in vote two, with Atleo securing 318 of 535 votes on that second ballot, a disappointing three votes shy of the required 60 per cent.
Palmater had gained only 12 votes in round two, but insisted that she would go on to a third ballot.
Gabriel showed poorly in the second round, and blamed a rumor that was circulating that she was throwing her support Atleo for her losing ground. She garnered only 17 votes and was dropped from ballot three.
Nelson dropped out of the race, throwing his support to Palmater, so his name came off the ballot as well. Kelly had dropped to 35 from 39, but Erasmus was up by five to 34.
There was very little chance that any of the other candidates could pull enough votes to catch Atleo now, and there was some disgruntlement that they were forcing another ballot. But that was the reality, so the Atleo team went in search of three more votes, and they soon found them in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
When the smoke cleared on the third ballot, Atleo had secured two thirds of the voting delegates with 66 per cent support and a clear mandate from the chiefs going forward.
When he took to the stage to recite his oath of office with Elders Committee Co-chair Barney Williams at his side, he had been cloaked in his regalia by his grannies, Trudy and Flossie.
His Ahousaht family had joined him on stage, and sang a victory song, with the women dancing into the audience of the giant hall.
A long line formed of those wanting to shake the national chief’s hand and wish him luck heading into the next three-year term. It took more than hour and a half for Atleo to speak briefly to them all. Meanwhile, the party in the BC caucus room on the floor upstairs was filling up and performers Murray Porter and a women’s a cappella group called M’girls were putting on a show.
When Atleo entered the room he shook the hands of his supporters. Then his aunts from Ahousaht took to the microphone, each offering their congratulations and guidance, reminding him of the strong roots of his people.
“We just want to express how extremely proud we are of you and your accomplishments,” said Rebecca Atleo.
“Our nephew is such an amazing young man.”
July 18: 9 a.m. Toronto
It’s election day at the Assembly of First Nations Annual General Assembly. Incumbent Shawn Atleo is hoping the chiefs will grant him another three-year mandate to serve as national chief. He seems on solid ground with a diverse base of support of chiefs from across the country going into the first ballot.
That’s not to say that Atleo, hereditary chief of the Ahousaht First Nation, is a shoo in, and there’s a lot wooing left to be done on the campaign floor with many chiefs undecided even now heading to the ballot box. Results of that first round of voting are expected around 9 a.m. BC time (noon in Toronto).
Atleo is facing seven challengers, each qualified by the Chief Electoral Officer prior to yesterday’s All Candidates Forum.
See photos: http://www.hashilthsa.com/gallery/assembly-first-nations-aga-day-one
From about 1 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. yesterday afternoon, the candidates made their best pitches to the voting delegates and their advisors. First they were allowed 15 minutes each to present their positions on a wide variety of concerns, including resource sharing, education, the relationship they will have with Canada and the Prime Minister’s Office, and the direction of the organization.
Then there were questions from the floor about the concerns of regular chiefs or their proxies.
The B.C. caucus met for a lunch prior to the candidates forum, and the large room was packed with people, including a contingent of Nuu-chah-nulth , particularly Ahousaht, who made their way east to show Atleo their support.
They lined up behind their young chief, the men with their drums, and the women in their shawls, to sing their candidate into the forum hall, and it was a long and loud cultural procession.
The order of presentations was chosen at random and first up was candidate George Stanley, regional chief of the AFN for Alberta. He is a former RCMP member and former chief of Frog Lake First Nation, serving for six consecutive years.
He told the delegates that he understood the difficulties associated with leadership, having to be all things to all people, including negotiator with government and industry, and at times social worker for the members.
How many calls do chiefs receive on housing, water, black mold and health issues? How many funerals as a result of suicides, drug and alcohol violence or murdered women, he asked the chiefs.
He talked about the pressures the world is putting on First Nations as their territories are eyed up for their resources. He spoke of the difficulties of defending those territories against development without benefits accruing to First Nations communities or the destruction of the environment.
He said the AFN must assert a strong claim to resource sharing.
A-in-chut Shawn Atleo was next up, but he brought with him two influential people who were meant to dispel some of the criticisms leveled at him over the course of the campaign. Atleo has been accused of being too close to the governing Conservative party in Canada. Other candidates have said that he has no experience or understanding of the treaty relationship with Canada.
Former national chief Ovide Mercredi, current chief of Manitoba’s Misipawistik Cree Nation, stood centre stage to nominate Atleo.
“I would not support him if he was close to government,” Mercredi said. “He is not close to government.”
Then Rose Laboucan, grand chief of the Lesser Slave Lake Regional Council and vice chief of Treaty 8, spoke in support of Atleo.
“As long as there are treaty people there will be a treaty,” said the chief of Drift Pile First Nation in Alberta. “I believe in Shawn and what he has done for treaty people. I have chosen to support him.”
When Atleo took the podium he talked about the history of First Nations working together to fight for what they believed in, and he said those battles of principle continued today in communities across the country.
“We have arrived at an important moment,” he said. “This is a moment of reckoning. The choices we make will determine our legacy, our contribution to the struggle.”
He said the moment would demand the full attention of the chiefs and their full commitment to the work and the challenges ahead.
Atleo talked about the work of the AFN chiefs of the past three years under his leadership. He said the plan going forward is comprehensive and clear: Act on treaties and inherent rights, build governments and economies while caring for the environment, deliver excellence in education and health, and support First Nations on creating safety, security and healing in their people.
Candidate Terrence Nelson of Roseau River First Nation seemed content to stand on his record of direct action, stating that Canada fears him and the forces of protest he is capable of rallying.
“A lot of people believe that my middle name is Blockade,” he joked.
His nominator was not in attendance to speak on his behalf. He wondered if the 60 or so charges his nominator was facing as a result of direct action had resulted in his capture by police.
He said the current situation that First Nations find themselves in is not due to federal policies or the attitudes of the ruling Conservatives.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is not the problem, he said.
“We are the problem,” because First Nations don’t realize or use their own power and influence.
Nelson seeks international alliances with OPEC nations, specifically and controversially Iran, and the wealthiest people in the United States, to deal in the resources that First Nations own.
“You are the richest people in the world. You have to get yourself your share of the resources,” he said.Pam Palmater is a lawyer and has been the most outspoken opponent of Atleo during and before the campaign, saying his cozy relationship with government is leading to the assimilation of First Nations people.
She says the choice before the chiefs is about a fundamental change of direction for the organization and the relationship that the AFN has with the treaty partner, Canada.
She said Canada is the one choosing the next leader of the AFN if the chiefs do not embrace this shift in direction, because Canada is holding the purse strings and threatens to cut the organization’s funding whenever the AFN refuses to play by Canada’s rules or follow Canada’s agenda.
She said Canada is in “our house” and Canada should work with First Nations, not the other way around. Palmater said the AFN chiefs have become too comfortable, despite this abusive relationship with government, and in her teachings chiefs should “eat last.”
Joan Jack, also a lawyer, told the delegates that she believed in development, as did her ancestors, but there must be benefits and protections against environmental destruction.
“We must prosper today, while protecting tomorrow,” she said. “We are very much in favor of prosperity.
She said development of the land must be done through consultation with First Nation, and by sharing in the benefits of that development.
“Right now we are being thrown the scraps,” she said. The approach of the provincial and federal governments and the companies is to “give us bigger beads and trinkets.” It’s also about decision making, she said.
Jack said revitalizing language, however, is at the top of her priority list, saying she is not fluent in her language because of the residential school and day school legacies. Jack is working on a class action suit to get compensation extended to day school students.
“If Canada really cared about us, why are they cutting all the language programs? It’s wrong,” she said.
Candidate Ellen Gabriel is perhaps best known outside of Quebec for her leadership during the 1990 Oka crisis when she was 31 years old and chosen by her people to be spokesperson during that high profile event. Since that time she has worked in the area of human rights and, specifically, Indigenous rights.
She said the “tiny box” First Nations are put in is not working for us.
“We need to decolonize…. We need to restore the place of women in the community… we need men to stand up beside us,” standing with women as their brothers.
She said the violence around First Nations communities “is killing us.”
Gabriel believes that going to Canada’s courts to assert First Nations rights is an exercise in futility, and the international forum should be used as leverage because the treaties are international agreements.
She said children needed to be kept in the communities to receive traditional instruction and too often the authorities remove the children so that they aren’t seen again until they are 18.
Gabriel is against development that will poison lands and water.
“They have contaminated us enough,” she said.
Candidate Bill Erasmus seemed emotional as he addressed the delegates, taking a long, drawn-out pause after his initial statement.
“We all want to smile,” he began. Then after some time he talked about traveling across the country on the campaign trail where he witnessed a lot of anger in the nations.
“I was a teenager once. And I had that anger. I was a teenager and when I found out what they did to us I wanted to lash out, but that’s what they want,” presumably speaking about government.
Erasmus is from Yellowknife and in 1987 was elected national chief of the Dene Nation. He became regional chief of the AFN for the Northwest Territories at the time.
He told the delegates to think about what they owned, and the things that “someone” wants to take away from you.
“And they want to use every means possible… We are the land. They have nothing but what we give them. What are we afraid of? Let us get organized and work together,” he said.
Candidate Diane M. Kelly is the former Grand Chief of the Council of Treaty 3 in northwestern Ontario.
As a pipe carrier, she would like to see the return of First Nations traditional ways and the empowerment of the elders as a way forward to survive and protect families and children.
She believes the AFN needs a stronger treaty voice at its head.
In her first 150 days she would bring a strategy on four elements of change if elected: Resource sharing; strengthening customary laws and treaty and inherent rights, justice for First Nations in regard to Jordan’s Principle and forging alliances on the missing and murdered women issue, and a plan for the restructuring the AFN.
