Northern Communities Considering Lawsuit

Northern Communities Considering Lawsuit

Tuesday, November 30, 2004 at 15:03

A couple of northern Metis communities that have been trying to secure compensation from Ottawa are seriously considering filing a lawsuit.

The communities of Cole Bay and Jans Bay have sought out legal counsel in the matter concerning the creation of the Primrose Lake Air Weapons Range.

Those communities, as well as Beauval and Ile-a-la-Crosse, have been negotiating for years to get some form of compensation from the federal government for forcibly removing local trappers from what’s now the weapons range back in the 1950s.

One of the negotiators for the communities, Alex Maurice, says despite some encouraging developments, Cole Bay and Jans Bay appear ready to take this dispute to the next level.

Maurice says both the provincial and federal governments recently supported the idea of an economic development fund for the affected communities — the first time that’s happened.

He says a federal proposal to that effect is now in the hands of officials in Regina.