Off-Reserve Members Hope for Delay in Attawapiskat Elections

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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As preparations almost complete for the upcoming band council elections for the Attawapiskat First Nation on Tuesday, several off-reserve members are hoping that the chief and council will announce to postpone the vote in order to attend widespread concerns regarding the band’s electoral process being unfair.

The current band council and Chief Theresa Spence, who acquired national attention for fasting on Victoria Island during peak time of the Idle No More protests, have made it compulsory for ballots to be casted in person on the reserve on Tuesday, which in return makes it very difficult for band members living outside the remote northern Cree community to contribute in the significant decision of choosing Attawapiskat’s leadership. The statistics revealed by the Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada in July 2013 pointed out that out of the First Nation’s total 3,351 members, only 1,862 are currently living on the reserve.

A member currently living in Ottawa with her daughter, Jocelyn Iahtail, alleged that “I can’t afford to go all the way there.” She explained her decision to leave reserve was for her son who required constant medical care in light of a traumatic brain injury suffered during surgery. Iahtail stated that “they, of all people, should understand poverty and make it possible for off-reserve members to have a voice.” Another such member, Koostachin, revealed that even though he cannot afford tickets to return for voting, he’ll be making the trek to cast his ballot in person. He stated that “transparency in Attawapiskat is at zero per cent,” and so “in my opinion, incompetent people are running our government system, and the same people are running for council again.”