Latest News

Statement
September 16, 2021

Enforcement of Provincial Law and Stronger Preventative Measures Needed in Light of Coyote Cull at Stanley Park

((Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – September 16, 2021) The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) is greatly saddened and concerned by the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development’s (FLNRORD) announcement of a Stanley Park-wide coyote cull and its plans to trap and kill up to 35 coyotes within the next two weeks.

13 September 2021

Open Letter to All Candidates in the Federal Election

Implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples must be a priority for Canada’s next government

MEDIA ADVISORY OF PRESS OPPORTUNITY: Spirit Fast for the Fraser: Indigenous Ceremony Concludes with Feast and Shared Vision to Cancel Trans Mountain Expansion.

WHAT: Spirit Fast for the Fraser - a traditional four day Indigenous spiritual fast - concludes Friday at noon with fasters being welcomed back and a feast for supporters and witnesses. The fast offers up sacred prayers for the waters and all life, and is being held on the banks of the Fraser River in Coquitlam at the site where the TransMountain pipeline is proposed to be drilled under the most vital water way in B.C.

Press Release
September 8, 2021

Spirit Fast for the Fraser: Indigenous Ceremony calls on Canada to cancel Trans Mountain Expansion

Unceded kʷikʷəƛ̓əm Territory (Coquitlam, BC) — Yesterday at noon, two Indigenous women began a 4-day traditional ceremonial fast on the banks of the Fraser River. Kukpi7 Judy Wilson, Chief of Neskonlith and Secretary-Treasurer of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs, and Sara Cadeau, Anishinaabe Kwe, Community Organizer and Traditional Wellness Practitioner, are sitting at the site where Trans Mountain proposes to drill under the Fraser River, along with a sacred fire and a community of supporters.

September 2, 2021  

First Nations Leaders Outraged by Convicted Killer’s Appeal  on Sentence and Manslaughter Conviction for Death of Cindy Gladue  

(Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C.) The First Nations Leadership Council, Assembly of First Nations, and Alberta Assembly of First Nations are disgusted and outraged to learn of the appeal filed by convicted killer, Bradley Barton, who was found guilty of manslaughter in the 2011 violent death of Cindy Gladue, a Cree-Metis woman from Alberta. Barton filed an appeal on his conviction and sentence last week in Alberta after being sentenced to 12 ½ years for manslaughter following his second trial. The Crown has also filed an appeal on the grounds that Barton’s sentence was demonstrably unfit, having argued a sentence of 18-20 years would be more appropriate.  

Statement
August 31, 2021

International Overdose Awareness Day: B.C. Must Accelerate Action to End Deadly Opioid Overdose Crisis

((Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – August 31, 2021) The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) observes International Overdose Awareness Day with sadness and compassion, and we send our thoughts and prayers to all those impacted by the intensifying opioid public health emergency that is continuing to devastate and endanger the lives of Indigenous peoples across the province.

News Release
August 20, 2021

UBCIC Calls for End to Surveillance and Intimidation of Tiny House Warriors and Indigenous Land Defenders

((Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C. – August 20, 2021) The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) is deeply concerned for the safety and human rights of the Tiny House Warriors (THW) and Indigenous land defenders who are being subjected to an escalating regime of surveillance and intimidation for their opposition to the expansion of the Trans Mountain Pipeline (TMX) and the construction of associated work camps in unceded Secwepemc territory.

News Release 

August 17, 2021

FNLC Demands Immediate Climate Action Including End to Fossil Fuel Subsidies following UN “Code Red” Report

(Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C.) The First Nations Leadership Council (FNLC) calls upon the governments of Canada and British Columbia to take the escalating and deadly climate emergency seriously and act immediately and swiftly in response to the threat posed by human created climate change. The danger of the current path we are on is highlighted by the recent United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report Climate Change 2021: the Physical Science Basis (the IPCC Report) released last week.