Attawapiskat First Nation defends members from Ontario and mining corporations
From APTN
APTN National News
ATTAWAPISKAT--Backed by a number of community members, Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence on Saturday turned away a sheriff who arrived in the community to serve the remaining blockaders who have barricaded an ice road leading to a diamond mine for a week.
Spence handed a letter to the sheriff forbidding him from entering the community.
The sheriff arrived to deliver an injunction to the people still on the blockade which is on an ice road leading to De Beers' Victor diamond mine.
De Beers obtained the injunction from an Ontario judge on Friday.
After conferring with two OPP officers who awaited his arrival, the sheriff returned to his airplane and flew away.
Attawapiskat residents arrived in about a dozen vehicles to greet the sheriff.
The airport drama followed a tentative agreement that was reached between De Beers, the band council and the remaining blockaders who have rallied around Rebecca Iahtail, the last holdout following a community meeting on Friday.
The agreement would require De Beers to commit to dealing with a number of grievances, including the housing situation in Attawapiskat, Iahtail said.
The blockade is expected to end sometime Sunday after a senior De Beers official signs the agreement.