AFNQL calls for Quebec to drop proposed logging law Bill 97

The head of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec–Labrador (AFNQL) is calling on the Quebec government to drop its controversial Bill 97, an act proposing sweeping changes to Quebec’s forestry system. “With the Chiefs Committee of the Assembly of the First Nations of Quebec–Labrador (AFNQL), we decided to ask for the total withdrawal of Bill 97,” Francis Verreault-Paul told APTN News. “I think it’s a unique opportunity for the government of Quebec to withdraw the bill and to sit down together to bring back a new draft of another bill, which would concern the reform of the Forestry Regime.” Verreault-Paul cited the incredible uncertainty of the present political situation in Quebec, as Premier François Legault’s ruling Coalition Avenir Québec has slumped dramatically in the polls. “There is political instability,” Verreault-Paul said. “Tomorrow there will be a cabinet shuffle. We still don’t know. Will Minister Blanchette-Vézina continue her mandate at the [head] of the Ministry of Natural Resources? Will it be a new minister?” Another concern is Legault’s stated intention to prorogue Quebec’s National Assembly until the end of September, which Verreault-Paul noted, would lead to a re-drafting of existing bills in the fall. “There is a lot of uncertainty,” he said. “So for these main reasons, for the moment, we will not sit down at the table. We are asking for the withdrawal of the bill, precisely because it requires major changes.” Bill 97 has been a flashpoint for protests since it was tabled in April. It proposes a new system of forestry in Quebec that splits public lands into three equally sized zones; one protected area, one area for industry to develop, and one area mixing public lands with lands for development. Read more: Opposition grows to proposed forestry bill in Quebec Bill 97: As tension rises, Quebec ministers return to the table with First Nations leaders Indigenous leaders (Indigenous leaders or just First Nation leaders?) —including Verreault-Paul and the AFNQL—have flatly rejected the proposed law saying it’s a threat to Indigenous title rights and sovereignty. Members of MAMO First Nations, a group uniting hereditary leaders of Atikamekw, Innu, and Abenaki Nations, have been staging blockades across Quebec’s forestry regions since the spring. In July, the AFNQL walked away from negotiations with the Quebec government over the Bill, though less than a month later they called the government back to the table in the wake of tense standoffs between MAMO First Nations protestors and loggers. In a news release last month, the AFNQL urged the Quebec government “to take responsibility” for the deteriorating situation. However, Bill 97 remains so contentious that AFNQL leaders, along with their counterparts in MAMO First Nations, have indicated it would be impossible for them to support the bill in its current form. “We have reiterated it since the beginning,” Verreault-Paul said. “This is an opportunity for the Government of Quebec to possibly return with a new draft, if that is the desire, and to [work] with us upstream, before even filing a bill.” Continue Reading