Membership should exercise power
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Editor,
I’ve never read the CS&KT water compact of a thousand pages, and as many opinions. Three components, treaty rights law of the land, and all Indian tribes are wards under the legal guardianship of the federal government. The there’s a thousand pages of words that have different concepts that change the total context. All the emotion, everyday and exhausting resources, from whom?
In 1968 congress passed the Indian Bill of Rights, which guarantees the protection of civil right and liberties to individual tribal members under tribal government, and our tribal constitution. Even now tribal members can see that the ball was dropped a long time ago. Our tribal constitution pages are still intact. Under article IX referendum, it gives the membership the supreme power. In order to activate that right, one-third of the eligible voters need to use that power by petition.
Most tribal members know we are not being treated as members but as greedy complaining cast offs, in health care, housing, land leases, social services, courts and all grants that are procured on our behalf. Confidentiality and equality are unheard of. It only takes seven out of 10 council members to make decisions we all have to live with, to change those decisions, it requires united families equaling one-third of the eligible voters to sign petitions working together as members of the CS&KT. The Salazar and Cobell disbursement and buy back, mirror the original complaints — same unequal mishandling of funds. Salazar, we get the energy keepers given our money and sole authority over future per capita income. Also remember to register to vote in November for who or what will help us as tribal members under state, federal, and tribal jurisdiction.
Sybil Butler
Dixon
