Alberta's Oil Sands: Rich in Controversy

                The tar sands of Alberta are well-known as a contentious environmental issue, but Arij Riahi and Tim McSorley, in an article published on The Dominion's website, point out the impact the oil country has had on the Indigenous residents near Fort McMurray, including the Fort McMurray First Nation and the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. Loss of their land, which they may use to hunt and fish, is a major issue, but it isn't the only one. The industrial project also represents violation of treaty rights when spills are covered up, such as in late June when Crystal Lameman could not get information on the extent of the spill on Beaver Lake Cree Nation territory without journalistic pressure. Many Indigenous communities also suffer poor health due to severe pollution, such as abnormally high cancer rates.

                

               The Healing Walk, which took place on July 5 this year and consists of a walk around the tar sands, aims to show activists and other residents from the Fort McMurray area and across Canada the impact the tar sands are having not only on the environment but the health of the people who live in oil country. Events such as this and people such as Lameman and Chief Allan Adam are fighting for cultural survival against the tar sands, an issue not only affecting Aboriginal populations but disproportionately impacting the lives of Indigenous Canadian peoples.

The UN Human Rights Council and Canada Disagree (Again)

               An article published in the Huffington Post last week highlighted Canada’s rejection of a UN call for a review of violence against Aboriginal women. Mike Blanchfield of the Canadian Press lists countries such as Cuba, New Zealand, and Iran who disparaged Canada’s human rights record, particularly in the face of the so-called Stolen Sisters, the disproportionate number of Aboriginal women who have gone missing in Canada in the past few decades. Canada rejected the call in Geneva during the United Nations Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review of their rights record, with Justice Minister Peter MacKay’s office stating that Canada is focused on action rather than reviews.

                While many are shocked or at least concerned by Canada’s stance on the subject, the ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Elissa Golberg, insisted that Canada is proud of its human rights record and violence against Aboriginal women is better dealt with at the provincial or local level, and the Harper government is skeptical of the review as it allows other countries with poor human rights records such as Iran to criticize Canada. One might wonder why Canada allows the UN to conduct such a review at all, as Blanchfield states that Canada chose to reject 162 recommendations from other countries given as part of this review.