News from Around the Nations

CATHOLIC RESPONSES TO TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION CALL TO ACTION 48 AND QUESTIONS REGARDING THE “DOCTRINE OF DISCOVERY”

OTTAWA, March 29, 2016 /CNW/ - In response to Call to Action 48 by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and to questions on the legal concepts known as “Doctrine of Discovery” and terra nullius, Catholic leaders, representing Bishops, religious communities, Indigenous People and laity, have issued two documents. Both texts are signed by representatives of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Canadian Religious Conference, the Canadian Catholic Aboriginal Council, and the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace.

In the first of two texts, the Catholic signatories express support for the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People as “a way forward to reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Canada.”

The Catholic response to Call to Action 48 appeals “to all our Catholic brothers and sisters -- laity, members of institutes of consecrated life and of societies of apostolic life, deacons, priests, and Bishops” -- to make eight commitments to “continue to walk together with Indigenous Peoples in building a more just society where their gifts and those of all people are nurtured and honoured.” The commitments include

Working with Catholic educational institutions and formation programs in telling the history and experience of Indigenous Peoples

Working with seminaries and other formation centres to promote a “culture of encounter” by including the history the history of the Indian Residential Schools and of Canadian missionary work with its “weaknesses and strengths”

Encouraging partnerships between Indigenous groups and health care facilities

Encouraging a restorative justice model within the criminal justice system

Supporting the national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women

Deepening relationships, dialogue and collaboration with Indigenous People

Inviting Catholic parishes and institutions to become better acquainted with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

The second of the two Catholic documents “considers and repudiates illegitimate concepts and principles used by Europeans to justify the seizure of land previously held by Indigenous Peoples and often identified by the terms ‘Doctrine of Discovery’ and terra nullius.” The signatories say “now is an appropriate time to issue a public statement in response to the errors and falsehoods perpetuated, often by Christians, during and following the so-called Age of Discovery.” After outlining five principles which reject how these legal constructs have been used to disenfranchise Indigenous Peoples, the signatories again affirm the eight commitments made in their first document. An appendix provides an historical overview of the development of the two legal concepts vis-a-vis Catholic teaching and of their repudiation.

To read the full responses visit http://www.cccb.ca.

Source: Canadian Conference Of Catholic Bishops

INTERIOR DEPARTMENT CANCELS OIL AND GAS LEASE IN THE LEWIS AND CLARK NATIONAL FOREST

(March 17, 2016) WASHINGTON – Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced last week that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has cancelled an oil and gas lease in the Badger-Two Medicine area of the Lewis and Clark National Forest in northwest Montana. The lease, currently held by Solonex LLC, was issued by the BLM in 1982.

After careful review of the record and consultation with the U.S. Forest Service, Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, Blackfeet Tribe, leaseholder and others, the BLM concluded the Solonex lease was improperly issued in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act and the National Historical Preservation Act. Based on those findings and recommendations from the Forest Service and the Advisory Council, the Interior Department and the BLM decided that the pending application for permit to drill should be disapproved, the lease cancelled, and any applicable lease payments refunded.

The Badger-Two Medicine Area is a 130,000-acre area along the Rocky Mountain Front within the Lewis and Clark National Forest. Glacier National Park, the Bob Marshall Wilderness and the Blackfeet Indian Reservation surround the area, which is considered sacred by the Blackfeet Tribe and is part of a recognized Traditional Cultural District. These characteristics caused Congress to legislatively withdraw the area from mineral development in 2006.

All of the originally issued leases in the area, including the one being canceled today, have been the subject of a variety of administrative, legal and legislative actions since they were issued over thirty years ago because of the significance of the resources in the Badger-Two Medicine Area and concerns about the circumstances surrounding leasing issuance.

Operations on the Solonex lease have been suspended since 1985. Nearly two thirds of the original leaseholders took advantage of tax incentives established by Congress in exchange for the voluntary relinquishment of the leases in this area.