Volume 12, Issue 6

After School Childcare Service Kicks Off

Busy working parents who can’t always pick up their children after school will soon be able to take advantage of a new After School Day Care Program. The Cree School Board (CSB) held a ceremonial signing in Mistissini January 19 to launch the service with the Cree Regional Authority (CRA) and ... read more ››

Caisse Desjardins Banks on Closer Ties with Crees

The Federation des Caisses Desjardins pledges increased service for the Cree throughout Eeyou Istchee. Through increased consultation with band councils, the federation wants to create programs and services that will contribute to the economic development of the Cree Nation, said Caisse spokesman Yves Poirier. “I am ready to listen to the ... read more ››

Chisasibi Woman Takes Own Life

A 21-year-old Chisasibi woman attending Eastmain’s Childcare Educator Course has committed suicide. Bernadette House was found in the basement of an Eastmain home by the woman she was staying with, according to Eastmain Senior Officer Oliver Moses. He is the police officer who responded to the call. A nurse arrived at the ... read more ››

Editorial Sovereignty

Guy Caballero, the fictional president of the SCTV television network, once said that the business of a TV news team wasn’t to give people what they needed but to convince them that what they wanted was what you were giving them. At the time I thought it was a pretty ... read more ››

Get on the Bus, Gus

Before Eeyouch could afford even a grungy Suburban, public bus transportation was the only way for people in those communities connected by road. Experiences that reflect that era come to mind as I ready myself for the chiropractically challenging and gruelling haul from Montreal to Val d’Or on the red-eye ... read more ››

Hunting Regulations in Eeyou Istchee: What do you think?

The question we pose for this issue concerns gun regulations or hunting restrictions. Some of the regulations from section 57 of the Conservation Act state that no one is to leave a cartridge in the chamber or charger. No one is to shoot a firearm from a vehicle, including a ... read more ››

Mistissini Resident Sentenced In Sexual Assault

After pleading guilty June 17 to one count of sexual assault, 37-year-old Mistissini resident Daniel Beauclaire has been sentenced to 10 months for sexual offences against a minor. The incident took place April 29 at Kilometre 391 on Route 167 Nord near the Metawashish River. He was originally charged with two counts, ... read more ››

Murder Trial of Minor Postponed

A 17-year-old Cree is being held in a Val d’Or youth detention centre after an incident that ended in murder New Year’s Day. Crown Prosecutor Marie Claude Belanger was tight-lipped. “I can’t say anything about the case except that it’s a youth who is being held in Val d’Or after being ... read more ››

Ouje-Bougoumou’s Political Rules Challenged – Conflicts Between Traditional Law and Election Codes Leave OJ Resident Fuming

Anthony Hughboy has a valid point, the Cree-Naskapi Commission has ruled, when he says Ouje-Bougoumou’s election and membership laws are applied inconsistently. However, in a report issued November 23, the Commission says only the courts can settle the issue. The problem lies in the fact that Hughboy, who only became a ... read more ››

Possible Delays on the James Bay Highway

The Society for the Development of James Bay (SDBJ), who administers the James Bay highway, is warning highway users that the transportation of over-size steel armouring parts could slow down traffic in places until March 7 between kilometre 0 and 274. The transportation of the first shipment was sucessfully completed ... read more ››

The Last Line

I was already at work, in search of material, a subject, some serious insider info and in need of a cool, cheap drink when I bumped into a Cree politician at a Native bar late at night in downtown Montreal. It’s the kind of bar where the two-piece band will ... read more ››

Waswanipi Group Calls for Early Election

A group of 10 angry Waswanipi residents have signed a petition calling for early band council elections. The petition was presented to the Waswanipi Returning Officer January 14. According to John Jolly, the Assistant Returning Officer, 10 is enough. “It states in Waswanipi’s bylaw that the number of signatures needed in ... read more ››

Weathering the Storm

A winter storm, or Kashtin in Cree, is blowing through town and snow is continually falling and covering up the already frozen landscape in a layer of fresh white powder. Gusts of wind flare up every now and again. These powerful bursts flow around the houses and obstacles in our ... read more ››