And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: >From BIGMTLIST The following are portions of a long message just received. From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Mon, 21 Jun 1999 02:17:07 EDT Subject: Big Mountain Concerns and Update To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <snip> I am Carlos Begay, spokesperson from the Cactus Valley Community. <snip> We need to fight with legal tools and with the help of supporters and Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs). The Navajo and Hopi tribes and the US government do not help us and when we look around, what we see of the educated Dineh is that most of them have relocated and the elders are left resisting alone, illiterate, unable to understand the numerous laws that are passed that threaten their ability to survive. The reason we traveled to New York to the United Nations a couple of times is to obtain the support of NGOs who we rely upon. We went to Geneva and throughout Germany because we did it together with the help of Marsha Monestersky, our Consultant who wrote grants to the World Council of Churches and United Methodist Church and due to the kindness of Gary Knack, a supporter from Maui Hawaii. Marsha spends endless hours helping us for free. She does legal research so we can use the government's laws and words against them, including the Federal Regulations that allows us to get many animals out of the BIA impoundment yard, including 3 cows and 3 calves belonging to my mother Glenna Begay. She studies the Hopi Tribal Grazing Ordinance and the BIA Grazing Management Study so we can clearly expose blatent discrimination by the Hopi tribe against the Dineh in the allocation of sheep units on HPL. This research helps us a lot because when we approach lawyers to help us they just have their hand out for money that we do not have. My people need help because we are suffering gross violations of our Constitutional rights and human rights and we are facing a forced relocation deadline of February 1, 2000. What we really need is for supporters to help us obtain legal help so we can stop the abuses by the US government perpetuated against my people. What we need is help with funds to pay for lawyers so we can file injunctions in federal court and stop the confiscations and obtain repeal of the Relocation Acts. We have to depend upon support people who work for free, devoting endless hours and their expertise. We are thankful to them for this. People like Mauro Oliveria and others from SOL Communications who spend countless hours organizing food runs and for his work on a documentary that we support. People like Bill and Rita Sebastian who continue to devote endless hours helping us without ever asking for repayment of their debts. People like Eagle from Unity of Nations and Jennifer and Kim from ARC. And people like Julia who just left today, Sunday, June 20 to return home to LA. Julia drove here Friday night, June 18, with her friend Muriel, from LA to escort an animals rights activist to the Winslow Tract on Saturday, June 19, meeting up with Anna Begay, an elder from Coal Mine Mesa and Marsha Monestersky. The purpose, to investigate the abuse of relocated cows belonging to Dineh resisters, animals brought there just to avoid confiscation by the BIA. These exiled cows on the Winslow Tract face an uncertain future, they are denied water, forage, and any chance to return home. Anna Begay who was there, together with Mae Tso and Mazzie Begay all said they were missing cows and calves that they fear are dead, describing in painful detail how their animals are starving and dying there on lands they do not know. This land was leased by the Navajo tribe and is under the responsibility of the US Department of Agriculture. It is my hope that the animal rights activist can help stop this abuse against our animals. This is a recent issue we have begun to work on and this like all the other issues requires that we fight the governmental agencies with papers and with long hours of hard work and dedication. I also wonder how the BIA can justify continuing to confiscate our livestock as a method of dealing with range management when the US Department of Agriculture is aware of the drought and its preferred method of dealing with this problem is to help the Navajo tribe complete an application that will provide funds to the tribe for HPL residents to receive hay, feed and water for their animals. Whose jurisdiction are we under? The Navajo tribe uses the excuse that we are under the Hopi tribe and the Hopi tribe just denies us everything. And in the meantime the US government continues to steal our animals and profit from their sale at public auction. Please contact Roman Bitsuie, Executive Director, Navajo Hopi Land Commission, P.O. Box 2549, Window Rock, AZ 86515. Phone: (520) 871-6277. Demand that he help the HPL residents. Ask him how he can allow his own people to starve when the US Department of Agriculture is willing to help. Make sure he does whatever is necessary to make sure that the US Department of Agriculture provides emergency relief to HPL residents. <snip> To all the supporters, please know that I appreciate your support. Yours sincerely, Carlos Beg CONDITIONS ON THE WINSLOW TRACT This portion is posted by Marsha Monestersky, Consultant The condition of the Winslow tract that Carlos Begay describes is devastated. This leased land is under the jurisdiction of the US Department of Agriculture and is not land turned over to the Navajo tribe as trust lands. Anna Begay says, "My calf was missing last time and this time. Last time my cows udder was full and her calf was missing. This time her udder is smaller and her calf is still missing. I am afraid that she is dead. A lot of people are complaining about this place and many of us are missing our cows and calves." Mazzie Begay says, "I am missing a cow last time I came here and this time. This place is short of water and there is not enough water in the earth dam." Mae Tso says, "The animals are not used to the land here. They are skinny. They even make us look for our own cows. They are supposed to be paid to do this." When Donna Carstens, the US Department of Agriculture officer was asked who had jurisdiction over this land, she answered that she does, but her first priority is ownership of the animals, then inspection of these animals for hauling permits, not the condition of the animals. When she was asked about the poor condition of the range, she said that this land is so poor because it has suffered from years of drought. So why was this tract of land chosen for the Dineh people's exiled animals? Anna Begay's step son, Andrew Yazzie Sr., looking at the sick and starving cows said, "I think they just brought these animals here to die." HOW YOU CAN HELP Please contact: Donna Carstens, Badge 75, US Department of Agriculture, Animals Services Division, Livestock Department, 1688 W. Adams, Phoenix, AZ 85007. Phone: (1-800-294-0305). Tell her that the conditions of the range is causing abuse to the animals. The US Department must either shut down the Winslow tract or supplement the lack of forage and water by providing hay and feed and water troughs for the animals. Please contact: Wilbert Goy, Navajo Hopi Land Commission, Box 2549, Window Rock, AZ 86515. Phone: (520) 871-6441 and (520) 853-1147. When elders approached him, asking where their missing cows were, he said he didn't know. When asked his name, he refused to provide the people with this information. Ask him how this land devoid of vegetation was the site chosen for exiled cows and how basic services like outhouses could not even be provided for use by the Dineh that come to brand or visit their animals, forced to visit only once a month, the gate locked at all other times. Time is of the essence as cows are sick and dying, their calves missing and presumed dead. The Winslow tract should be shut down because this land is unfit for animals. The forage conditions on Black Mesa, green to the eye, certainly call into question the real motive behind livestock reduction and relocation of these cows to the tract by the BIA and the Hopi tribe. For how much longer can the Navajo tribe knowingly assist in perpetuating abuse against animals and the Dineh resisters? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For Big Mountain and other activist internet resources, visit "The Activist Page" at http://www.theofficenet.com/~redorman/welcome.html This message was sent to you by Name: BIGMTLIST Email Address: [EMAIL PROTECTED] IP Address: office69.theofficenet.com ------------------------------------------ Reprinted under the fair use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html doctrine of international copyright law. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) Unenh onhwa' Awayaton http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
