Column 378

(Spiked by Saskatoon Star-Phoenix editors.)

DOUG CUTHAND

Many times I watch the events on the world stage from a First Nations perspective. The ongoing conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis is a case in point. What we have here is a complicated land claim without any claims commission to work things out. 

The problem revolves around the fact that the state of Israel was created on land formerly known as Palestine and the original inhabitants were removed from the land. After 2,000 years of inhabiting the area you’d think the Palestinians had a pretty good claim to the land. I know it would hold up if it was reviewed by the Canadian Indian Claims Commission. 

Over the years I have maintained a sympathetic point of view toward the Palestinians. I see them as the Indians of the Middle East. 

The history is hauntingly familiar. The Palestinians lost their land. They were placed in camps similar to reservations and they have been colonized and controlled by an outside force. As a First Nations person in Canada I see in them an enormous parallel. 

In Canada we have had decades of treaty entitlements and land claims and if we have learned anything it’s that these issues don’t go away. If one generation can’t negotiate a settlement than the next will be better educated and take the issue to court. The claim grows in size and cost with each generation. It won’t go away. If anything it gains moral and political strength and hardens the resolve of our people. 

This is also the case for the Palestinian people. The dream of their own state has remained unchanged for the past 50 years and no amount of oppression will take it away. With any colonized people the flame of independence only burns brighter with the passage of time. 

In our case the difference is that Canada has recognized aboriginal rights in the Constitution and the Charter of rights and Freedoms. Mechanisms have been developed, like the Indian Claims Commission, to work out solutions. In Saskatchewan we have the office of the Treaty Commissioner that negotiated the Treaty Land Entitlement Agreement. 

The Israelis also built their nation on other people’s land but they regard any sign of dissent as terrorism. This is common practice. The demonization of a people and their leadership is a blunt instrument used to get the public on side. As First Nations people we have witnessed attacks on our leadership by groups such as the Taxpayers Federation and the Canadian Alliance.  

We in Canada are not well informed. The media picks up the news from the extremes such as the settlers and real terrorist organizations like Hamas. The majority of Palestinians and Israelis who simply want to live in peace are silent in the media. 

Over the years the United States has supported the State of Israel alienating it from the larger Middle Eastern community. American and Canadian media carry a definite bias toward Israel and at times it can be racist in its condemnation of the Palestinians.  

In this climate there is no negotiating to recognize land claims or self government. The settlers continue to move into the West Bank, land that doesn’t technically belong to them. Overcrowding continues in the Palestinian camps and people live in poverty with no hope for the future. The very use of the word “settlers” indicates a Wild West mentality and strengthens the parallel between our two groups. 

Because the issue remains unresolved and continues to fester the cause has been picked up by radical groups in the region. Muslim fundamentalists have picked it up as their cause in spite of the fact that many Palestinians are Christian.  

Unresolved issues become radicalized as options run out. Here in Canada we see that the First Nations political leadership in British Columbia are more outspoken because of their frustration over the Treaty negotiation process and now a province wide referendum. Their lack of a settlement and government intransigence is evident in the frustration of the leadership.  

I’ll probably be accused of being anti-Semitic and that’s not the case. I am against any group of people pushing another nation off their traditional land. It’s a story my people have lived for seven generations. It’s a story that has no easy solution but both sides must work together in an atmosphere of respect or this story will never end.