In an abbreviated annual general meeting, residents of Ahousaht told their leadership that they are concerned about addictions in the community and the detrimental effect it is having on the young.
Ahousaht elected chief and council called the meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 1. Shortened from three days to one evening, the AGM started with a community meal catered by the senior girls’ basketball team.
Elected Chief Greg Louie said his administration would deliver a brief presentation about the nation’s finances followed by a quick overview of the projects Ahousaht Administration is working on. There was a change in format as Louie explained that he wanted to hear what the people had to say. “We’re taking away the tables so we can sit with the people as we ask them to offer solutions,” said Louie. In fact, the theme of the AGM was ‘move forward with solutions,’ and speakers were invited to present their problem and challenged to offer a solution.
“We are approachable and we want to hear from you,” Louie told the crowd of nearly 100.
After delivering a quick overview of the audit and various projects Louie reminded the people that while his council was not perfect, they are doing their best to make positive changes for the community. “We will listen to you and do our best to get answers to you,” he promised them.
The new Ahousaht First Nation website has been revamped and is continually updated with a variety of information. At www.Ahousaht.ca you will find financial information that is updated and posted each month. In addition, there is a listing of projects in various stages of completion.
The skate park, a teacherage and a six-plex are examples of projects that are at or near completion. A $12-million waste water treatment plant is in the design phase as well as a $1.6 million water line project. More housing is being planned in the form of multi-plex units. Chief Louie encouraged people to get training in the construction trades and apply for the upcoming jobs.
The topic of Ahousaht’s website brought up the issue of slow and limited access to the Internet in Ahousaht due to the lack of modern infrastructure. Louie was pleased to announce that Telus employees have been working in the community since August 2017 upgrading equipment. If all goes well, each business and every home in Ahousaht should be wired for high speed Internet. People wanting high speed Internet access would pay a monthly fee for the services.
There is a plan to have all of Ahousaht’s roads paved in the coming months. According to Louie, the oldest section of Ahousaht requires infrastructure upgrades like new water or sewer pipes, so the paving will begin in Ahousaht’s newer subdivisions where the roads won’t need to be dug up.
Ahousaht has set aside an area for a new cemetery but is hitting roadblocks with the federal government that prevents the nation from using the space. “The government says we can’t own a cemetery and we must work with the regional district to have a new cemetery,” said Louie. He went to say that Ahousaht council and the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District have to be creative in order to overcome these government glitches.
A group of Ahousaht people have been assigned to carry out a Comprehensive Community Plan. Part of their work involves engaging the community to hear what they envision as Ahousaht’s future. Louie invited the people to attend upcoming meetings to add their vision.
Ahousaht is involved in a Specific Claims Tribunal in an effort to get compensation for land and resources alienated from people through improper appropriation of Ahousaht land. They are currently presenting arguments about Lot#363, a parcel of land on southeast Flores Island. The land was taken by the United Church to be used as the site for Ahousaht Residential School and was later sold to a forestry company.
The land has since been acquired by Ahousaht but the nation has never been compensated for damages. “We’re telling the feds that the land has always been ours; we’re saying compensate Ahousaht for what you took from us,” Louie said. He went on say that Aauuknuk (at Lot#363) was once a salmon-bearing stream but it’s gone and there’s nothing left but a pond next to the Aauuknuk Lodge. The waterways were filled with dirt in an attempt to farm the land.
The Specific Claims Tribunal is an ongoing process, still in the courts.
Julia Atleo and Deborah Schwartz have been working together on a comprehensive Ahousaht Health Plan. They are in the process of developing plans for First Responder Training, traditional healers and nursing. Ahousaht is an isolated community that depends on community volunteer first responders to tend to patient emergencies.
One parent asked if the Ahousaht Health Plan had a prevention component. She pointed to the alcohol and drug addictions in the community that are claiming the lives of people of all ages. Another person shared that when they asked a clergyman what percentage of the funerals conducted over the past few years could be attributed to alcohol, the quick answer he heard was 95 percent.
The people shared stories and ideas of how to combat the addictions problem. While most people in the village don’t abuse alcohol, there is concern for the ones that do and the effects it has on the children.
Fitzgerald Frank suggested that all resources from RCMP to Wit wok (cultural enforcers) band together to combat the problem and the people should be included. “We are our own best resource,” he said, suggesting that people reach out and help one another and be the change they want to see.
In other Ahousaht news:
Maaqtusiis school teacher Terri Robinson is pleased to announce that the Ahousaht Education Authority is launching a new Language Immersion Program.
Beginning in mid-November residents over the age of 13 may go to the high school three times a week for evening Ahousaht language immersion classes.
The program, which runs from November to May 2018, is funded through the First People’s Cultural Council’s Language Heroes Program. According to Robinson, three fluent Ahousaht elders will be contracted to teach the classes.
Rebecca Atleo, Ahousaht’s Director of Education, told Ha-Shilth-Sa in an email that the Ahousaht Education Authority applied for funding for language revitalization in 2016. “Our language is in dire need of revitalizing because we are losing our fluent speakers and our current ones don’t have opportunity to speak it often,” Atleo said.
