1139 Lonsdale Avenue
North Vancouver, B.C.

PETER SPECK
Publisher
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~. Managing Editor’. -
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-” Distribution Managet «Production Manager
90-1337 (iam) eae-2int (tz

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@ Dein Office Fax

North Skore Mewa, founded in 1969 as an
independent suburban newsprper and qualified
‘under Schedule 111, Paragraph 111 of the
Excise Tax Act, is published each Wednerday,
Friday and Sunday by North Shore Free Press
Led, and dtistributed to every door on the Noch
: Shore, Canada Post Canadian Publications Mail
Sales Product Agreement No. 0087238,
Mailing rates available on request.

Entire contents
~ © 1996 North Shore
Free Press Ltd.
All rights reserved,

jews wiew port

nie aed eth

jasty bits

“ANY POLITICAL pundits have

been quick to teil us British

Columbians that we are weather-
ing the fiscal storms rather well here in the
western coastal hinterland.

It’s the other provinces, our poor cousins
the traditional have-not previnces and those
provinces whose economies have been rav-
aged by fitful industrial. circumstance and
poor political management, that are really
in the soup.

‘But bad news on two fronts should tem-
per any smug chest-thumping the NDP gov-
ernment will doubtless try to inflict upun us
as the election season begins in earnest.

The first nasty bit came from the pen of
George Morfitt, B.C.’s auditor-general.

Despite the press garnered last year by

‘the NDP’s announcement of a new hard-line

deal for cheating and out-of-province in-

migrating welfare recipients, the spending
on income assistance has jumped by. 103%
over the past five years, from $888 million in
1990 to $1.8 billion last year.

While B.C.’s population’ grew by. 12%
over the same period, 73% of the increase in
the province’s income assistance bili is due
to more welfare recipients in B.C.

Meanwhile the number of unemployment ~

insurance claimants in B.C. rose for a fifth
consecutive month. October’s rise. in
claimants was 2.6%, for a benefits payout to
84,600 British Columbians. |

But Morfitt says there are even more B.C.

residents on welfare. From ‘the perspective
of at least one North Shore private investi-
gator, the estimated welfare fraud rate
locally may De as high as 40%.

All is not well in La- La;Land and don’t
let the spin doctors tell you otherwise.

t

Indian land ci

WHATEVER HAPPENED
to Indian land claims? In the
media, Quebec and economic
woes temporarily drowned
them out for 11 weeks, that’s
all.

Audiences can stand only so
much drama, especially over
Christmas.

But rest assured, the whole
Indian mess is still there, and with a
few new twists for you to ponder.
The first being a growing demand
by municipalities to be heard when
land claims are being discussed.
The B.C. government is sympathet-

Noel

" ic, but basically the Indians don't

Larry Gitlanders who says B.C. no
longer owes its natives a single cent
in either land or cash. He maintains
that the Terms of Union bringing
B.C. into Confederation in 1871
transferred ali further obligations
regarding native land claims from
the province to the federal govern-
ment. That means Ottawa should
pay B.C. for any land it hands over
to settle a land claim.

So certain is Gillanders of his
argument that he's filed a writ
against both governments in the
B.C. Supreme Court, seeking a
court declaration that B.C. has
already satisfied all its constitution-
al responsibilities for native rights.

and yon

en neiteren att enn Hell bent aioe seunetaan anges Rate er rmaetarieste |

want city fathers (or mothers) any-
where near the negotiating table.
Pressed by Victoria, however,

Indian negotiators have now agreed -

to let municipalities join the talks—

. provided they are gagged with

signed promises not to reveal most
of what they learn there.

if land and rights giveaways go
as expected, municipalities may
often be the jurisdictions most
directly affected. But how — given
the enforced secrecy — can they
possibly serve the interests of their

citizens if they can’t tell the latter
what's happening in the talks?

So three cheers for West Van
Mayor Mark Sager, who has the
2,550-member Squamish Band, the
region’s biggest, in his backyard.
Heading the protest against this
“marginalizing” of local govern-
ment, he has threatened to lead a
municipal boycott of treaty negotia-
tions —- which would doubtless
delight the Indians but badly
embarrass Victoria.

Then there’s Social Credit leader

*

Meanwhile, Liberal leader
Gordon Campbell and Reform
leader Jack Weisgerber both insist
they will radically revise the entire
treaty negotiation process if they
defeat the NDP in the looming
election.

To the horror of the 48 aborigi-
nal groups already in negotiation
Campbell promises public hearings
on pending agreements and free
votes in the legislature before they
are implemented.

Finally, a grim prophecy from

ie EIA Ba ND

Outraged
by YOA |
legislation |

Dear Editor:

What do we have to do as
citizens’ to change the Young
Offenders Act? The Brent
Swatridge story, and others like
it, absolutely outrage me. To
begin with, it’s unfortunate that
I must use the victim's name to | j
identify the story because guilty
“youths” cannot be named.
(And I can’t tell you how sick I
am_of the phrase “cannot be».
identified as stipulated in the
Young Offenders Act.”) a

' How abuut an act of some
sort for the victims? Shouldn't
we know who might potentially ~
bludgeon us? I digress. :. 7

[ cannot begin to understand «
the mentality of these cowardly *

; wimps who outnumber. and...
“outweapon” _-_ individuals -
because of, say, an errant
glance or a nasty ‘name ‘or,
worse still, being told what to
do.

Hey, 15- -year-old youth who
‘cannot be identified. because
you beat Brent Swatridge over.
the head with a solid metal bar,
you are a cowardly wimp’ and
so are the “gentleman escorts
who backed you" up ‘wielding

» Machetes and knives. You’ all:

crime.my name. would be be
lished and I could be! sentenced:

we don’t want to upset our little’
darlings with ans wal terms

urge anyone with child:
young or teens, to. write, to
someone, anyone, who can.
and change the i Insanity.

David Bryant |= 90:
North Vancouver :

“Fraser Institute policy analyst: ‘
Owen Lippert: the treaty process”
will neither succeed nor fail:
because no party can take the P
ical risk of either stopping the: °4
negotiations or actually concludin
all possible.treaties. Meaning’ the ;
process can drag on forever, with
everyone increasingly miserable o or,
outraged.

His solution: distribute all ;
Crown land in equal fee-simple ©: |
shares to every British Columbian,
native and non-native. Then let |
them work out who gets how much
by buying, trading, selling — or °
even private gifts. That alone, ;
Lippert says, can stop native Jand.
politicking. -

Never say the Indian land claims ee
issue is dull! .

eee
ENJOY stars Candus Churchil
Lovie Eli, Leora Cashe; Tom’
Pickett and Jaye Krebs in a 7:30
Evening of Gospel Song Sunda
Jan. 21 at West Van United ©
Church, 21st and Esquimalt — .~ |
tickets ($12) 926-3690, 921-6005." |
WRIGHT OR WRONG: Don’ t
entertain an idea; put it to work, a