Latest News

News Release
August 31, 2022

International Overdose Awareness Day: UBCIC Calls for Urgent Action by All Levels of Government

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – August 31, 2022) The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) observes International Overdose Awareness Day and mourns the over 10,000 lives lost to drug poisoning since April 2016.

PRESS RELEASE, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, August 30 2022

B.C. government misleading public about old growth

Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs and Stand.earth renew calls on the provincial government to immediately stop logging in the most at-risk old growth forests in light of latest investigation findings

səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), and Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) Territories (Vancouver, BC) — Stand.earth released an investigative report today that reveals the extent of the B.C. government’s inaction on old growth, which has allowed the ongoing destruction of some of the most ancient, rare old growth forests across the province – all in areas that it announced it intended to stop logging last November. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) and Stand.earth are renewing calls on the provincial government to act immediately to stop logging in the most at-risk old growth forests. 

Statement
August 26, 2022

UBCIC Mourns the Tragic Murder of Ojibway Father and Grandfather by the VPD; Demands Immediate Reform

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – August 26, 2022) On August 22^nd, 2022, Chris Amyotte, an Ojibway father and grandfather, was shot and killed with a “less than lethal” gun by the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) who responded to calls of “a man acting erratically”; however, witnesses report that Chris was in extreme distress, pleading for bystanders to call 9-1-1 for help after being sprayed with mace.

News Release

August 18, 2022

UBCIC Granted Standing in “Trucker Convoy” Public Order Emergency Commission

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – August 16, 2022) The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) is pleased to announce that we have been granted standing in the Public Order Emergency Commission (“the Commission”), a federally-established public inquiry. It was established to review the circumstances and decision by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to declare a Public Order Emergency from February 14-23, 2022 in the Ottawa area.

Statement
August 2, 2022

UBCIC Statement on Pope’s Apology for Residential Schools

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – August 2, 2022) The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) monitored Pope Francis’s long-awaited visit to Turtle Island last week to apologize for the Catholic Church’s role in Residential Schools. On a departing flight, the Pope spoke to a reporter and finally agreed that the abuses Indigenous peoples endured amounted to genocide; he failed to renounce the Doctrine of Discovery.

News Release
July 28, 2022

Crisis in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside; UBCIC Calls on City of Vancouver to Uphold Safety and Human Dignity

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – July 28, 2022) Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside (DTES) residents, including a disproportionately high number of Indigenous peoples, are facing mounting perils owing to a blatant lack of secure housing, unsafe shelter options during extreme heat events, and unrelenting gender-based violence.

News Release 
July 27, 2022

Riley Robert Saunders Sentenced to 5 Years for Defrauding Vulnerable, Primarily First Nations, Youth

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C.) The First Nations Leadership Council (FNLC) takes no comfort in the sentencing of former Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) employee Robert Riley Saunders who stole, lied, and manipulated high-risk First Nations children and youth out of their funds for survival while under his care.

News Release
July 19, 2022

Williams Lake First Nation and UBCIC Call for Public Inquiry into Role of RCMP in First Nation Father’s Death

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil Waututh)/ Vancouver, B.C. – July 19, 2022) On Sunday July 10th, 2022, a Williams Lake First Nation (WLFN) father of four died after a distress call was made by his family to the police. WLFN and the Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) are demanding an independent investigation and public inquiry into the handling of the RCMP response to the distress call that resulted in an Indigenous man’s death.