Posted by [EMAIL PROTECTED] : From: "Bear Christensen" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> via Martha Court dates in Indian Tribal Fishing case delayed By Renee Ruble KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) _ A federal judge's decision to postpone a trial may increase the chances for an out-of-court settlement in a dispute over Indian fishing rights. Chief Judge Richard Enslen this week delayed the trial to August 2000, giving mediator John Bickerman more time to negotiate an agreement between the state and five Indian tribes involved in the case. Trial had been set for May. The tribes and state are trying to develop a replacement for a tribal fishing policy that has stood since 1985, when Enslen approved a consent decree that temporarily settled a lawsuit filed 12 years earlier. Bickerman was hired this fall to help reach an out-of-court settlement, which Enslen has said he would prefer. The five tribes involved in the case are: The Bay Mills Indian Community, the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. The state and the tribes must resolve issues ranging from the size of Indian fishing waters to how long the new agreement should last. One particularly contentious issue is the use of gill nets, which the tribes say is their right based upon an 1836 treaty with the federal government. Recreational fishermen say the nets harm their fisheries. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- © The Associated Press. All rights reserved ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- © The Associated Press. All rights reserved Clinton signs water compact for Rocky Boys Reservation ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- HELENA (AP) _ President Clinton on Friday signed into law a bill that settles water rights of the Chippewa Cree Tribe on the Rocky Boys Reservation and provides $43 million for water projects and economic development efforts. The agreement is the second such water compact among Montana, the federal government and an American Indian tribe. The Northern Cheyenne Tribe already has its agreement. The Legislature earlier this year endorsed a compact with the Crow Tribe that is awaiting federal approval. The signing completes eight years of negotiations that involved the U.S. Department of the Interior. "This settlement was reached in the true spirit of cooperation. It represents a strong partnership among Federal, State and Tribal parties," said Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt. "Through a great deal of hard work, we have forged a settlement that satisfies tribal rights and needs, while also recognizing the rights and needs of non-Indians in the region." The compact was signed by the north-central Montana tribe and state in April 1997. It allows the tribe to divert up to 10,000 acre-feet of water a year from rivers, lakes and aquifers and to use another 10,000 acre-feet annually from Tiber Reservoir, about 50 miles west of the 122,000-acre reservation. The legislation provides $25 million for four projects to develop water supplies on the reservation, $15 million for future importing of drinking water and $3 million for tribal economic development efforts. The tribe needs more water storage and public works improvements to support its agricultural operations and to meet drinking water needs of its growing population. Bruce Sunchild, chairman of the tribe's negotiating team, stressed the importance of the agreement. "This settlement signals a turning point in the Chippewa Cree's history by setting the foundation for the realization of the tribe's vision of Rocky Boys Reservation as a self-sustaining homeland for the Chippewa Cree people." Chris Tweeten, chairman of the Montana Reserved Water Rights Compact Commission, said the compact "brings certainty to an area in which water is the lifeblood of the economy." "The real heroes are the people of the Rocky Boys Reservation and their neighboring ranchers who set aside years of mistrust to reach this agreement, and in doing so, showed great courage, leadership and compassion," he said. All three members of Montana'a congressional delegation sponsored the bill signed by Clinton. Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., said everyone wins and no one loses under the agreement. "There are only healthier families, more opportunities for economic growth and increasing community stability," he said. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., stressed the compact ensures tribal access to safe drinking water. "The signing of this legislation also will stimulate economic development, create jobs and improve the quality of life for many people in the area," he said. Rep. Rick Hill, R-Mont., said the agreement will help tribal neighbors as well because it contains provisions for settlement of water rights between landowners and communities in the region. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- © The Associated Press. All rights reserved Bear Christensen, Esq. 1510 20th Street Apt#105 Boulder, Colorado 80302 http://homepages.msn.com/TwentiesCir/bearc/homepage.htm <<<<=-=-= =-=-=>>>> "We simply chose an Indian as the emblem. We could have just as easily chosen any uncivilized animal." Eighth Grade student writing about his school's mascot, 1997 <<<<=-= http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/racial/ =-=>>>> <<<<=-=-=FREE LEONARD PELTIER!!!=-=-=>>>>
