Attachment #46: THE EDMONTON JOURNAL, Monday, January 6, 1992 Letter to the Editor from Kevin Thomas, Friends of the Lubicon (Toronto) DAISHOWA EXECUTIVE SKIRTS MAIN ISSUE In his letter, Daishowa rebuts letter's claims (Dec. 18), Daishowa General Manager Tom Hamaoka skirts the central issue of whether clear-cutting unceded aboriginal lands is right or wrong, in favor of a misleading and essentially irrelevant tirade concerning Daishowa's original commitment not to log in unceded Lubicon territories. Whether or not Daishowa has already made and broken an agreement not to log in Lubicon territories -- something about which few who've followed this situation have any doubt -- Daishowa does plan to clear-cut unceded aboriginal territories, and thus is a direct threat to the Lubicon nation's survival. In this situation the only ethical position to take is to stay out of unceded territories until a land rights settlement is reached. Resource development cannot be pursued at the expense of an entire culture and the lands it occupies. Daishowa only delayed its plans to clear-cut these territories for this winter after it became clear that it would face a national boycott campaign should it proceed. The firm's single motivating factor was not "sensitivity to this issue", as Hamaoka contends, but the fear of negative publicity. In the face of that self-interest, it seems that only continuation and growth of the national boycott campaign will convince Daishowa to make the responsible decision not to cut, or buy wood cut, in unceded Lubicon territories until a land rights settlement is reached with both levels of government. * * * * * Attachment #47: WINDSPEAKER, December 20, 1991 DAISHOWA: THE WEST SIDE STORY By Cooper Langford Daishowa's massive pulp mill in northern Alberta sits on the west side of the Peace River. On the east are the Lubicon who don't want the company or its related businesses logging on their traditional land -- at least until the band's land claim is settled. Relations between the band and the corporation have never been easy. The Lubicon are using Daishowa as a pressure point to drive home their need for a claim. Daishowa says it tries to accommodate Lubicon concerns while living up to other obligations. Now the dispute is taking a new twist. Lubicon supporters have launched a national boycott of Daishowa products. Daishowa has returned fire with the public line that warns Albertans against Lubicon protests. The company says it sympathizes with the band, but too much protest could scare off future investment in northern Alberta and hurt a lot of people. Against this backdrop, Windspeaker met with Daishowa Canada's vice- president Tom Hamaoka to discuss the company's side of the story. WAS: This morning there were protestors outside your offices proclaiming a national boycott of Daishowa products. How's business? Hamaoka: Business is as usual. The boycott has had a negative affect on our employees. But it hasn't had a substantial negative effect on our operations economically. I think our concern is we're being painted as villains in a dispute we are powerless to resolve. WAS: Your critics are demanding you stay off Lubicon land. Are you or your sub-contractors logging Lubicon land? Hamaoka: We would like to know exactly what are Lubicon lands. It's in our best interest to have that particular area defined. Yes we are logging in the confines of the traditional areas. We are not logging in the reserve are which was negotiated between Bernard Ominayak and Premier Getty. That portion has been excluded from our forest management agreement. WAS: You have made a commitment not to log or buy wood from Lubicon land this winter. Would you explain that? Hamaoka: We asked the province for and were given a release from our obligations to purchase wood from area sawmill owners and independent loggers. WAS: You had to ask the province? Does that mean you can't refuse to buy wood or log the disputed land? Hamaoka: As Daishowa we cannot unilaterally give a definite commitment not to log without receiving approval form the province of Alberta...Under our current arrangement we are obligated to purchase incidental aspen from independent operators who work in the area. Their permits say they must harvest the aspen and leave it at roadside. We are obligated to purchase that timber. This year we received permission from the province releasing us from this obligation. WAS: Can you go back and renegotiate your obligations to buy wood from the disputed area again? Hamaoka: Daishowa would be prepared to seek an extension as long as it contributed to settling the Lubicon claim. But again, you know, approvals are required from the government. WAS: The Lubicons say you promised not to log in the unceded area in a meeting in March 1988. That was before your forestry agreement was signed. Can you explain what happened at the meeting? Hamaoka: That's not correct. Our undertaking was not to log on the reserve near Lubicon Lake and Little Buffalo. That was our undertaking. We have abided by that. WAS: But Lubicon records quote a Mr. Wakabayashi from Daishowa saying if the land is in dispute, then Daishowa "shouldn't pursue the area at all." Is this not a commitment? Hamaoka: First of all, Mr. Wakabayashi is not an employee of Daishowa Canada. He was speaking about building the mill. We asked Bernard Ominayak where the areas of concern were. They were on the east side of the Peace River. We asked that question because our pulp mill was being built on the west side of the river. The Lubicon said they were not concerned with the west side of the river. The comment was meant in that context. WAS: So there was no commitment not to cut on Lubicon land in 1988? Hamaoka: That's correct. WAS: Either way, you were aware of the Lubicon situation before you signed your forestry agreements? Hamaoka: Yes. WAS: In that case, why did you sign the agreement? Hamaoka: We negotiated in good faith with the Alberta government, who assured us the crown had the rights to the land and the timber. We signed the agreement on that basis. WAS: Didn't your meetings with the Lubicon cause you to doubt the province's assurances? Hamaoka: Our understanding at that time was the Lubicon and both levels of government were in process of negotiations. We were hopeful this land claim would be resolved...There were discussions throughout the winter of 1989 between the Lubicons and the governments. We signed our forest management agreement in September 1989. Negotiations were ongoing at that time. Negotiations stopped, is my understanding, after Christmas of 1989. (NOTE: Negotiations broke down in January of 1989 and have yet to resume.) WAS: Wasn't it clear at that time there were troubles with the Lubicon settlement over finances? Hamaoka: That is something we are powerless to resolve. That was an issue for the Lubicon and the federal government. We knew they were far apart. However, at the beginning they were even farther apart. They did bridge the gap somewhat during that time. WAS: Were you expecting Lubicon opposition would become as strong as it has? Hamaoka: I have to say honestly -- no. WAS: So a lot of what has happened over the last three years is a surprise to the company? Hamaoka: Yes, it is. WAS: Were you misled by the government in respect to the Lubicon situation? They did try to dissuade you from meeting with the band. Hamaoka: That was when negotiations were underway. I believe the province felt aboriginal land claims were the responsibility of the federal government. Clearly, they had jurisdiction provincially. They had lived up to their particular commitments and the rest was up to the federal government. WAS: Did the province indicate to you that the process might bog down? Hamaoka: No. They did not. WAS: Do you think they should have? Hamaoka: At that particular time I don't know if anyone would have expected the talks to break down. We're talking about hindsight. Everybody has 20-20 hindsight. You can go back and criticize. But at that time I think there was an honest feeling by all parties the matter could be resolved. WAS: Have you since considered renegotiating for forest agreements to avoid confrontation with Lubicon? Hamaoka: No...Once the land claim is resolved, I think there are going to be opportunities for the Lubicon to work within the framework of our agreement. We are currently working with other aboriginal groups in our logging sector, maintenance and training. WAS: So you have no interest in moving your timber leases away from the disputed areas? Hamaoka: I think the priority should be on settling. I don't think moving our agreement is going to have any impact on the settlement of this claim. The issue of the land has already been resolved in terms of the reserve. The current logging conflict has been diffused. The outstanding matter is compensation. Is it not? WAS: We're thinking about business. Surely what is happening can't be good for business? Hamaoka: There's no question. That's one of my greatest concerns. This particular boycott could be counter-productive to future investment in northern Alberta. The boycott is going to hurt future investments. That's going to hurt us all. WAS: Future investments by Daishowa? Hamaoka: Not only Daishowa. Investors, whether they're local or foreign, like to invest in a climate that's secure and stable. The boycott is counter-productive in this respect. WAS: Daishowa has indicated a strong interest in expanding into papermaking here. Are those plans endangered now? Hamaoka: Only to the extent that we are in an economic recession and the market for pulp and paper products worldwide is depressed. But I am optimistic for the long term. WAS: The politics don't interfere with other phases of your work? Hamaoka: I would hope that before we proceed this land claim is settled. WAS: Daishowa has said it's caught in the middle of a dispute between governments and Indians. Could you explain this position? Hamaoka: I feel we've really been sensitive to the Lubicon situation. As early as last year we modified our Brewster operations so as not to log in new land in the sensitive area. This year we also demonstrated sensitivity by persuading the province to release us from particular obligations. We are not logging or purchasing timber in the sensitive area. We urged both levels of government to step in and recommence the negotiations. I don't know what else Daishowa can do. WAS: You have weight with the government. Can't you go back and say this is not what we dealt for? Hamaoka: Daishowa is an honorable company. We signed an agreement in good faith. We have obligations. Not only to the Lubicon, but also to other aboriginal communities surrounding Peace River. We can't look at one group in isolation. I think you have to look at the total picture in trying to reach a decision of that serious nature. WAS: But you have the strength to play hard ball with the provincial government? Hamaoka: With respect to the provincial government, logging is not an issue. We are not logging there. However, the Lubicon are allowing other people to log within the sensitive area. So clearly, the issue is not land base related. The issue is compensation. And Daishowa is powerless to exert pressure or resolve compensation issues. WAS: But the province is interested in having you here and keeping you here. Doesn't that give you leverage? Hamaoka: We paid our own way. We did receive some infrastructure assistance, but that was general assistance to open up the north for development. There are no loan guarantees. There are no participating debentures. There are no low interest loans. I'm elated that we were one of the pioneers in northern Alberta. To be able to diversify the province of Alberta. I think that the economic benefits that we have given to northern Alberta really contribute to its development. WAS: Can we take that to mean you don't want to play the kind of hardball your critics would like to see you play? Hamaoka: My personal view and from an industry perspective is that private corporations have responsibilities. However I don't think those responsibilities extend to participating in negotiations to resolve aboriginal land claims. WAS: Then can Daishowa deal directly with the Lubicon on development issues? Hamaoka: We want to work with the Lubicon. I would like that clearly understood. We have had discussions in the early stages with Bernard Ominayak with respect to exploring economic opportunities within the Peace River project. We've been able to achieve this with other aboriginal groups within the framework of the existing agreement we have. I feel that we can work to establish closer ties with the Lubicon within the existing framework. But the claim issue I think should be resolved. WAS: We're all aware of the speculation that Daishowa is looking to sell the mill or seek new investment. You are facing a boycott. There is a lot of bad publicity. Is there a point where you are going to simply cut your losses? Hamaoka: You've asked three questions. Let me respond. First, at no time was the mill for sale. We were approached by a company we work within B.C. They had an interest in working together with us in Alberta. Those talks have now discontinued. It's business as usual for Daishowa. We are here for the long haul. We feel that our investment in northern Alberta, the pulp mill itself and the potential to further integrate forward into paper, has a bright long-term future. * * * * * Attachment #48: December 24, 1991, letter from Calgary Committee Against Racism to Vice-President of Daishowa Tom Hamaoka Mr. Hamaoka: This letter is to inform you that several groups in Calgary have joined forces to support the Lubicon Lake Indian Nation, and help protect the fragile northern eco-system. These groups are the Calgary Labour Council, the Calgary Rainforest Action Group, the Committee Against Racism, Northern Light, and the Plains Indian Cultural Survival School. We are both well aware that your refusal to honour your commitment of March 7, 1988, may result in a likely disastrous showdown with the Lubicon people. We are also both well aware that you are able to turn this situation around by honouring the commitment of March 7, 1988. And we are both well aware that if Daishowa does not honour its commitment of March 7, 1988, Daishowa will be an active participant in government- sponsored and government-encouraged genocide to once and for all get rid of the Lubicon Lake Indian society. We therefore ask you to make a clear, firm and public commitment to not cut and not to purchase any wood cut on unceded Lubicon territory until AFTER A SETTLEMENT of Lubicon land rights and negotiation of a harvesting agreement with the Lubicon people that takes into account Lubicon wildlife and environmental concerns. We are also calling on Daishowa to immediately cease all of its clearcutting and purchasing of trees from the Wood Buffalo National Park and to implement sustainable forestry practices in all of its FMA areas. Roland Leitner * * * * * Attachment #49: December 28, 1991, letter to Friends of the Lubicon from Romolo John Salvati, Ex-employee of Pizza Pizza Ltd. Dear Friends of the Lubicon, I am writing to re-affirm my unequivocal support for your organization's National Boycott of Daishowa Paper Products. Employed as a Switchboard operator by Pizza Pizza, I find our company's callous affirmation in maintaining continued relations with Daishowa Company to be downright insensitive toward the ongoing plight of the Lubicon Cree in Alberta. Approaching this particular matter within Manager Evelyn Page, my essential question posed to her was: why "really" is Pizza Pizza adamant in supporting Daishowa Products? She confessed in secret confidence: "We had gone to extreme length to negotiate a "very profitable" business deal with Daishowa Company, realistically speaking thence, it would be foolish to jeopardize this arrangement based on "flimsy" ideological protesting." Shocked and dismayed at this point in time, I had stated to Ms. Page that while her organization reaps the benefits based on one Company's (Daishowa) systematic attempt to obliterate a "true" and legitimate tribe, I find participation with that company to be unconscionable and quite pathetic to say the least. Therefore, in support of the Friends of the Lubicon Tribe, I had offered my immediate resignation. In retrospect, I feel this "act of protest" is minuscule in comparison to the time and energy your organization has devoted to the ongoing struggle to preserve the Inalienable Rights of a down-trodden people. Nevertheless, in so far as my sudden resignation had raised eyebrows and altered the awareness in the working environment to a "different" level, I feel my obligatory duty was just worthy. My wish is that more Canadians alike take on an aggressive and active stance against the blatant violations committed against our Native Peoples in Canada. Furthermore, I hope (and pray) that these "Precious People" do not inevitably become matters of "trivialization", nor mere footnotes glanced over by our future generations. * * * * * Attachment #50: December 29, 1991, News Release from Friends of the Lubicon (Toronto) WILL PIZZA PIZZA MAKE A NEW YEAR'S COMMITMENT TO SUPPORT THE LUBICON LAKE CREE NATION? Hoping for an answer in the affirmative, Lubicon supporters have resolved to flood Pizza Pizza's central phone lines (967-1111) on New Year's Eve (Dec. 31) with calls proffering New Year's greetings coupled with appeals in the spirit of the season to boycott Daishowa paper products. Yes, to this date, Pizza Pizza has remained stuck in the old pattern of using Daishowa paper bags despite the boycott called on these products by Friends of the Lubicon. We hope that Pizza Pizza will consider making a New Year's resolution which will make the next year a good one for the Lubicon Nation. The Lubicons want the transnational paper company Daishowa to make a commitment not to cut or buy wood cut on unceded Lubicon territories in northern Alberta until a land rights settlement is reached with both levels of government and a harvesting agreement negotiated with their Nation. A New Year's resolution on Pizza Pizza's part to boycott Daishowa products would bring good cheer to all Lubicons and their supporters, and would be in keeping with the traditional seasonal imperative to cast off old ways and make a fresh, better start. Once again, we are pleased to announce the intention of Lubicon supporters to partake in what promises to be a busy, festive evening of dialogue. Season's Greetings to all! For more information, contact Kevin Thomas at 972-6293. * * * * * Attachment #51: ALBERTA NATIVE NEWS, December, 1991 DAISHOWA BOYCOTT WORKING By Dale Stelter The Lubicon Lake Indian Nation of northern Alberta is waging a nation-wide boycott of products of Daishowa paper products, and Daishowa has publicly admitted that it is feeling the pressure. The boycott is in response to the refusal of Daishowa Canada to adhere to a March, 1988, agreement between the company and the Lubicon. Under that agreement, Daishowa is not to log on unceded Lubicon land until a settlement of the Lubicon's land rights dispute is obtained, and an agreement is reached regarding Lubicon environmental and wildlife concern.s Daishowa Canada, a subsidiary of the transnational Daishowa Paper Manufacturing Company of Japan, has only stated that it will not log on disputed land this winter. Last winter, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Daishowa Canada, as well as a subcontractor with Daishowa, began clear- cutting operations on traditional Lubicon land. The Lubicon have been involved in a 50-year-plus land rights dispute, and maintain that they have never ceded Aboriginal rights to their traditional territory. The Forest Management Agreement between Daishowa Canada -- which operates a huge bleached kraft pulp mill near the town of Peace River -- and the Alberta government encompasses all of the Lubicon's traditional lands, excluding a proposed reserve. The Daishowa boycott is supported by the Assembly of First Nations and the National Association of Japanese Canadians, and companies have been agreeing to stop buying Daishowa products. For example, a representative of Cultures Fresh Food Restaurants wrote to the Toronto-based Friends of the Lubicon -- which is organizing many boycott activities -- that "After careful research into the current situation in Alberta, Cultures Fresh Food Restaurants has decided to stop using Daishowa products". Cultures operates 61 soup and sandwich style restaurants in Canada. A buyer/merchandiser with Knechtel Wholesale Grocers wrote that "I have had time to read both sides of the problem and I have to side with The Friends of the Lubicon." Ho-Lee-Chow Restaurants, which is based in Toronto and has a chain of 23 restaurants, wrote that it has "already switched our business to a supplier which does not utilize Daishowa Products." The Y.W.C.A. in Toronto was in the process of tendering for paper contracts when contacted by the Friends of the Lubicon, and decided not to buy Daishowa's paper. If companies continue to use Daishowa products, Friends of the Lubicon maintain that they too will be boycotted. Lubicon Chief Bernard Ominayak agreed that many people are becoming aware of the Daishowa boycott and are supporting it. "Hopefully, more people will understand what is happening to the Lubicon people, and also question why governments are pouring money into these types of pulp mills, which are outdated and a hazard to all of society," he said. Ominayak added that "we certainly appreciate all of the work that the Friends of the Lubicon are doing." Meanwhile, international efforts in support of the Lubicon continue. A Germany-based group called Big Mountain Aktionsgruppe e.V. reported that a mailing action to European support groups was conducted as part of the STOP DAISHOWA CAMPAIGN, and that Friends of the Earth England and Wales have expressed their wish to join the campaign. In Australia, The Wilderness Society has called upon the Australian government to "exert international pressure on the environmental and social policies of Daishowa Seishi, whose forestry operations have prompted a worldwide plea for help from the Lubicon Indian Nation of Canada." * * * * * Attachment #52: NIKKEI VOICE, December 1991/January 1992 BOYCOTTING DAISHOWA OTTAWA: A national call for action to boycott Daishowa paper products was announced at a press conference organized by the Friends of the Lubicon, and the National Association of Japanese Canadians committed its support to the cause. Sachiko Okuda, Chair of the Human Rights Committee of NAJC stated that this position reflects the grave concern that the NAJC has over the environment consequences that clear cutting operations represent. But of even more importance, she said, is the long-term, destructive effects that such actions will have on the Lubicons themselves and their very existence as people. At the press conference the following businesses were identified as still using Daishowa paper products: Pizza Pizza, Mr. Submarine, Country Style Donuts, Zehrs and the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. YWCA in Toronto and The Body Shop, and Cultures Fresh Food Restaurants, Ho-Lee-Chow and Knetchel's Grocery Wholesalers will follow suit. It was pointed out that boycotts do work. The boycott of the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics and its art exhibit, "The Spirit Sings" by the Lubicon became a major public issue and resulted in worldwide support for the Lubicons and a major blow for the exhibition. * * * * * Attachment #53: NIKKEI VOICE, December 1991/January 1992, Letter to the Editor from Jesse Nishihata CROSSING THE LUBICON December 7, 1991, marks the fiftieth anniversary of Pearl Harbor. And we remember that racism, made legitimate by the political institutions, "scattered us far and wide", and that is is only now with the winning of redress that we are truly and finally "calling our people home". Is it too late? And then there is 1992. It will be the 500th anniversary of Columbus and his "discovery" of the New World. Thomas Berger, in A LONG AND TERRIBLE SHADOW, White Values, Native Rights in America, 1492-1992, writes: The history that we will celebrate in 1992 is the history of progress we have made. That progress has been made at the expense of the Indians; for them that history is one of suffering, of massacre, disease and devastation. Europe has cast a long and terrible shadow over the Native people of the New World. Today they are emerging from beneath that shadow, and they have a tale to tell not only of subjugation but also of survival, for they still live among us, and they have a claim on our consciences, a claim that we should honour the principles by which we profess to live. How to listen to that tale and to be with it. And when in Canada today that issue can be joined with the struggle of the Lubicon Indians of Alberta whose continued tragic story is now shadowed by the presence of Daishowa, a Japanese global conglomerate, on their lands. Can we not join? And when we join that struggle can we not honour those principles by which we profess to live and through which we fought and struggled to gain redress? Yes! So that finally with Miranda we can cry out: O wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, that has such people in't! And was that ever the promise of the Americas and of Canada! * * * * * Attachment #54: THE EDMONTON JOURNAL, Thursday, January 2, 1992 DAISHOWA BOYCOTT IN SUPPORT OF LUBICONS DEEMED MISDIRECTED DOESN'T HELP LAND-CLAIM ISSUE, MINISTER SAYS Joan Crockatt Journal Staff Writer Edmonton The boycott of Daishowa Inc. in support of the Lubicon Indians' land claim is "stupid" says Alberta Forestry Minister LeRoy Fjordbotten. The Lubicon have a claim on land currently under a provincial forestry lease to the pulp-and-paper giant. Fjordbotten said the boycott is misdirected. "I don't see any advantage to targeting Daishowa. The only reason it's being done is they (the protestors) think they're a big company they have a lot of political leverage and that might help their cause," Fjordbotten said. "I think that's a stupid way to go about things," he told Standard Broadcast News. "If someone comes to me and says you do this or else, I'll always take the or else. "I don't think you should be threatened. And I don't think we need to threaten each other in order to resolve issues." He said Daishowa can't resolve the issue. It's up to the federal government and the Lubicon, said Fjordbotten, pointing out that the company has already agreed not to log the territory in dispute. Daishowa general manager Tom Hamaoka, of Vancouver, in a Dec. 18 letter to THE JOURNAL confirmed Daishowa "gave assurances to refrain from logging in the reserve area negotiated between Premier Don Getty and (Lubicon) Chief Bernard Ominayak in late 1988 (the Grimshaw accord), and this reserve area was eventually excluded from Daishowa's forest-management agreement in 1989." "Notwithstanding the absence of a formal written or verbal agreement to restrict its activities, Daishowa had demonstrated its sensitivity to this issue by modifying its logging plans last winter and not logging in the area of concern to the Lubicons this winter," Hamaoka added. Nonetheless, on Nov. 28 Toronto-based Friends of the Lubicon launched a national boycott against Daishowa's products. Lubicon adviser Fred Lennarson said lobby efforts against Daishowa have been extended to Japan, Switzerland, Germany, France and Australia. The 500-member Lubicon Lake band has tried unsuccessfully to settle a land claim with the federal government for more than 50 years. The band was omitted from turn-of-the-century negotiations that settled other native land claims in northern Alberta. It accepted an offer of 246 square km for a reserve at Lubicon Lake, 350 km northwest of Edmonton, but rejected the federal government's January 1989 offer of $45 million in compensation. The band wants $170 million. Talks are scheduled for February. Lennarson has said he suspects Indian Affairs of conducting a propaganda campaign, trying to show sincerity while "hammering the Lubicons" into accepting the previous offer. But Alberta Indian Affairs Minister Dick Fowler maintains the Lubicon have been offered a more handsome settlement than any other Alberta band. * * * * * Attachment #55: THE EDMONTON JOURNAL, Friday, January 3, 1992 EDITORIAL A NOT-SO-STUPID BOYCOTT If Forestry Minister LeRoy Fjordbotten believes the boycott of Daishowa Inc. is merely stupid, he's one of a scant few. The company's executives don't think so, and neither do those Canadians who are upset enough at the failure of governments to resolve the Lubicon land claim that they refuse to buy the pulp and paper company's products. In fact, it can be argued that the boycott, launched six weeks ago by a Toronto-based environmental group, has played a large role in resparking negotiations to settle the long-standing land claim. Whether boycotts really dent a company's bottom line is debatable. But Daishowa Vice-President Tom Hamaoka says the protest has hurt sales enough that he has asked Ottawa to get involved in the talks, which it appears ready to do. The only thing stupid about that is that it didn't happen earlier. Still, Fjordbotten was quoted this week as saying the boycott is simple- minded because people don't respond well to threats. "The only reason it's being done is they (the protestors) think they're a big company, they have a lot of political leverage and that might help their cause," he said. "I think that's a stupid way to go about things. If someone comes to me and says you do this or else, I'll take the 'or else'." Obviously, Daishowa disagrees, because taking the "or else" would mean further negative publicity. Fjordbotten's remarks also insult consumers who have stopped buying Daishowa products in a good-faith effort to bring this long dispute to a close. In late 1988, Premier Don Getty and Lubicon Lake Chief Bernard Ominayak defied the odds and signed an agreement offering the band a 246 square- kilometre reserve. Rather than stoop to childish name-calling, Fjordbotten might try to conjure up some of that goodwill. He might even try to get some of it to rub off on the government's federal cousins, who have been so instrumental in stalling an honorable settlement with the Lubicons. It would be the smart thing to do. * * * * * Attachment #56: THE EDMONTON SUN, Tuesday, January 7, 1992, Letter to the Editor from Gray Jones, Western Canada Wilderness Committee RE: REBUTTAL to letter to the editor, EDMONTON SUN, Dec. 19, 1991 by James P. Morrison, G.M. Daishowa Canada Ltd. Wood Buffalo National Park is a place of international ecological significance, recognized by the UN as having the same World Heritage Site status as the Grand Canyon. As in the case of logging in traditional Lubicon territory, where Daishowa is hiding behind subcontractors like Brewster and Buchanan, Daishowa is operating through a front company called Canadian Forest Products Ltd. Also like Brewster and Buchanan in the Lubicon case, CanFor is taking most of the environmental and media backlash while Daishowa is getting the timber. The way Daishowa is avoiding responsibility for its actions this time is by purchasing CanFor's Alberta operations last spring on the condition that the CanFor name be retained on the existing timber lease. That way Daishowa was able to circumvent normally required renegotiation of the lucrative but environmentally destructive timber lease negotiated earlier by CanFor. CanFor is perceived as the villain, logging in a Canadian national park, while slick Daishowa pockets economic benefits from some of the last old-growth stands of white spruce in the province of Alberta and a winter-heat canopy for the wood buffalo herd living there. Gray Jones, Western Canada Wilderness Committee (Edmonton Sun Note: Daishowa does only what Albertans permit it to.) * * * * * Attachment #57: From Phantom X Press, January 7, 1992 IS IT CRUST OR CARDBOARD? Reliable sources have it that Daishowa pulp is a key ingredient in Pizza Pizza dough. Early last week, results from a double blind consumer survey prompted speculations leading to the startling revelation. In the taste test, a surprising number of the Pizza Pizza patrons could not tell the difference between the Pizza Pizza crust and the cardboard box. Daishowa President of Vice Tom NotmyOka denied the allegation: while Daishowa GM Fork Tongue Morrison refused to comment on the question but added that "our pulp passes the recently proposed Health and Welfare limits for dioxin levels in food." Pizza Pizza spokesman Forlorn Laustinspace related his own trap like grasp of the matter saying, "Uh, I don't understand what's the problem and I wish people would stop picking on us." Ironically, the Jan. 1, 1994 federal dioxin ban for the pulp and paper industry may make a pulp mill effluent less toxic than some of the food we eat. Can you see it now? Grocery store queues clamouring for Daishowa water Dioxin-free. Imagine any cocktail party without the great white water of the north 'Eau de Abitibi', Faux-pas incroyable! Yikes! * * * * * Attachment #58: January 8, 1992, letter from NOW Magazine to Daishowa Forest Products Dear Mr. Kitagawa: NOW recently purchased Daishowa's brown paper shopping bags for our Christmas promotional campaign. We have since been distressed to learn that Daishowa is permitting and profiting from lumbering operations on land claimed by the Lubicon Nation of Alberta, despite Lubicon opposition. This is unacceptable to us and millions of other Canadians who take native rights very seriously. Accordingly, NOW magazine will not buy any more Daishowa products until the Lubicon claim is resolved. I trust you will advise your head office of the serious damage done to your reputation in Canada by operations prejudicial to the vital interests of native people. Regards, Alice Klein, Executive Editor, NOW magazine * * * * * Attachment #59: THE EDMONTON SUN, Thursday, January 9, 1992 FOREST FIGHTS THREATEN JOBS SOLUTIONS NEEDED, DAISHOWA WARNS Stories by Allan Bolstad Staff Writer Hundreds of forestry workers will be tossed out of work unless quick solutions are found to logging disputes in northern Alberta, says Daishowa Canada's general manager. Tom Hamaoka told THE EDMONTON SUN's editorial board yesterday that 200 jobs at its subsidiary Brewster Construction Ltd. will be lost if it is unable to replace wood supplies claimed by the Lubicon Indian Band in the Peace River area. And in High Level, the jobs of 250 lumber plant workers and 450 woodland employees are in jeopardy if Daishowa's subsidiary Canadian Forest Products Ltd. is forced to quit logging in Wood Buffalo National Park. At Peace River, Hamaoka said his company has agreed not to touch a 243-sq.- km area identified as "traditional" by the Lubicons during this year's logging season, which is expected to conclude at the end of February. "But I don't know how long we can continue to do this. "What are we supposed to do if there are no supplies?" Although Daishowa has been awarded logging rights in the area under dispute, Hamaoka said his firm has tried to stay out of the fray, believing it was a matter between the band and the Alberta and Canadian governments. But some bad press and a recent boycott of some of its products have forced Daishowa to come forward, he explained. "The boycott had been negative on our employees (and has affected) our credibility internationally." Hamaoka said he was also concerned about the impact it could have on investment in Alberta. But he was optimistic a solution could be reached at talks the Lubicons have scheduled with Ottawa in February. "It's going to involve compromise...by the provincial government, by the federal government, by the Lubicons and to some extent, it might affect Daishowa." At High Level, Hamaoka said his firm wanted help retooling its lumber plant so that it could handle trees smaller than the large white spruce it was taking in Wood Buffalo. He said Ottawa has yet to make an offer. Daishowa is also losing money at its $575-million Peace River mill, he said. But recent hikes in the price of pulp, coupled with low interest rates, have prompted the firm to drop all plans of selling any portion of the plant, he said. * * * * * Attachment #60: THE EDMONTON JOURNAL, Thursday, January 9, 1992 DAISHOWA EXPANSION STALLS LUBICON CLAIM AND PULP GLUT CITED AMONG REASONS Duncan Thorne Journal Staff Writer Edmonton Daishowa Canada won't meet a 1993 construction deadline for doubling its Peace River pulp mill, citing the stalled Lubicon land claim as one main reason. But Daishowa's Japanese parent company has decided to retain full ownership of the $600-million mill, closing the doors to a possible joint-venture deal with a Japanese controlled trading company, says Canadian general manager Tom Hamaoka. Meanwhile, an international boycott of Daishowa products, in support of the Lubicon, is wrongly tarnishing the company's name, Hamaoka told THE JOURNAL's editorial board Wednesday. He said the expansion is on hold partly because of the Lubicon dispute and because of a global pulp glut and uncertain public support. "My first priority is to really have this Lubicon matter resolved before we consider any future investments in North America," he said. He said the company can delay and still live with the terms of its provincial forest management agreement, which calls for construction to start next year. The agreement deadline is subject to economic, social and environmental considerations, Hamaoka said. If not for the Lubicon issue, the recession and other concerns, "we'd be working towards the feasibility study right now." Doubling the capacity will probably cost at least $700 million because of inflation, he said. The company also has longer-range plans for a $350- million paper mill. Henry Wakabayashi, a senior management consultant for Daishowa, said Daishowa is still developing international markets for its relatively new hardwood pulp and will see the Alberta-Pacific project competing for the same buyers. "The market has to be there before anybody will spend $700-$800 million," Wakabayashi said. Hamaoka wouldn't say if the expansion will go ahead by the mid-1990s. He said changes in government approval systems add to uncertainty on timing. It's no longer good enough to have government support, he added. "The public has to also want it." Hamaoka sought the meeting with THE JOURNAL to give Daishowa's side on the boycott, breaking with its 20-year history in Canada of remaining what he termed "low-profile." "We can't sit by and see our name being tarnished when in fact it shouldn't be," he told the board. Toronto-based Friends of the Lubicon launched the boycott in November to support the band's bid for a claim settlement with Ottawa. The group said Daishowa has failed to commit itself not to log Lubicon lands. Hamaoka said he wonders if the national organizers are more interested in shutting down the mill than in helping the Lubicon. He said he and band Chief Bernard Ominayak agreed in 1988 on acceptable logging territory. He also got Ominayak's approval before removing logs, cut by independent firms, from disputed land. Daishowa can't give a commitment never to log Lubicon lands because the size of the land remains unclear, he said. He said the main issue is federal cash compensation, not logging, as other loggers and oil and natural gas firms continue to operate within the "sensitive" areas. * * * * * Attachment #61: January 09, 1992, letter from Chief Bernard Ominayak to the Editor of THE EDMONTON JOURNAL Dear Sir/Madam: It was fascinating to read the January 9th article on the meeting between Daishowa Vice President Tom Hamaoka and the Editorial Board of the Edmonton Journal. One never knows what new twists and turns Mr. Hamaoka's going to come up with in his efforts to rationalize his company's obviously continuing intention to clear-cut unceded Lubicon lands. Mr. Hamaoka claimed that he asked for the meeting with the Editorial Board because Daishowa "can't sit by and see our name being tarnished" by the Lubicon boycott of Daishowa paper products. It's a little late for Mr. Hamaoka to start worrying about Daishowa's good name. Long before Daishowa threatened to clear-cut unceded Lubicon territory, or in fact proceeded to clear-cut Wood Buffalo National Park, it had one of the worst international reputations of any of the huge Japanese forestry companies. Mr. Hamaoka suggested that the organizers of the Lubicon boycott are more interested in shutting down Daishowa's bleached kraft Peace River Pulp Mill than helping the Lubicons. We don't consider these objectives to be mutually exclusive. While shutting down the Peace River mill isn't our priority -- our priority is to block the clear-cutting of our unceded traditional territory -- we acknowledge that many of the people supporting our boycott are justifiably concerned about the environmental damage caused by the bleached kraft pulp-making process. We share those concerns. Mr. Hamaoka said that "he and I agreed in 1988 on acceptable logging territory". That's true only by implication. What we agreed in 1988 was that Daishowa would stay out of the unceded Lubicon territory until there was first a settlement of Lubicon land rights negotiated between the Lubicons and the Government of Canada and then a harvesting agreement negotiated between Daishowa and the Lubicons respecting Lubicon wildlife and environmental concerns. In this context Mr. Hamaoka could legitimately argue that we effectively agreed Daishowa could log elsewhere, but it is certainly not true, as he implies, that we ever agreed Daishowa could log anywhere within our unceded traditional territory. Mr. Hamaoka said that he obtained our "approval" before removing logs cut by independent loggers from our unceded traditional territory. That's true but again only in a certain context. These so-called "independent loggers" started clear-cutting our trees for Daishowa's Peace River Mill last fall, contrary to our 1988 agreement with Daishowa. One night last November their logging camp was torched and they hastily vacated the area, leaving behind the timber which they'd already cut and stacked in piles. Last summer they asked for our permission to remove that already cut and stacked timber, which we granted on the understanding that no more timber would be cut. Mr. Hamaoka said that Daishowa can't make a commitment to stay out of our unceded traditional territory "because the size of the land remains unclear". That's not true and Mr. Hamaoka knows it. As part of our 1988 agreement Daishowa requested and received a map outlining the area of concern. The boundaries of that area were reconfirmed last fall during discussions involving independent loggers who'd been falsely told by Daishowa -- for reasons known only to Daishowa -- that the Lubicons are asserting jurisdiction over an area much larger than the actual area. Lastly Mr. Hamaoka said that "the main issue is federal cash compensation, not logging, as other loggers and oil and natural gas firms continue to operate" in our area. That's not true either. Gas and oil companies operating in our unceded traditional territory without our authorization are subject at any time to exactly the same proscriptions as Daishowa, and there are no other logging companies known to be logging in our area -- only in the much larger area which Daishowa for some reason insists on claiming on our behalf. * * * * * Attachment #62: THE GLOBE AND MAIL, Friday, January 10, 1992 DEADLINE MISSED Daishowa Canada won't meet a 1993 construction deadline for doubling its Peace River pulp mill, citing stalled land-claim negotiations with the Lubicon Indians as a key factor. But Daishowa's Japanese parent company has decided to retain full ownership of the $600-million mill, closing the doors to a possible joint-venture with a Japanese-controlled trading company, said Canadian general manager Tom Hamaoka. He said the expansion is on hold, partly because of the Lubicon dispute and because of a global pulp glut and uncertain public support. "My first priority is to really have this Lubicon matter resolved before we consider any future investments in North America." * * * * * Attachment #63: (Direct Translation from German) BIG MOUNTAIN ACTION GROUP PRESS RELEASE January 13, 1992 We demand the resumption of negotiations between the Canadian government and the Lubicon Cree on the next possible date and without Federal Government preconditions. We demand the temporary annulment of the timber leases to Daishowa illegally issued by the Provincial Government and simultaneously a public declaration of abstention by the Daishowa company to clear-cut the Lubicon territory. To give some emphasis to our demands the European support organizations will join the boycott efforts of our Canadian partners. We appeal to the German, Belgian, Dutch and other European customers of Daishowa and its subsidiaries like the Canfor Corporation to re-evaluate their supply policies and act accordingly. We appeal especially to Feldmuhle AG located here in Dusseldorf to end the cooperation with partners whose giant projects would not only have the consequence of Human Rights violations towards Canadian natives but also the destruction of environment in dimensions only comparable to the neighbouring Province of British Columbia or the South American rainforest. Further information on this issue available at: Big Mountain Aktionsgruppe e.V. Klenzestr. 5 8000 Munchen 5 Tel.: 089/2913027 Fax : 089/2913039