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Algonquin Unsurrendered Territory/Ottawa - The Confederacy of Nations has given a ringing endorsement to a national and international campaign against Ottawa's treatment of the Algonquins of Barriere Lake. In a resolution passed at the Confederacy of Nations assembly in Ottawa, First Nations' representatives from across Canada condemned Ottawa's decision to walk away from the Trilateral Agreement ­ a pioneering land management plan for the territory of the Algonquins of Barriere Lake.

Chief Harry Wawatie of Barriere Lake brought forth the resolution, which reads, in part:

"The Trilateral Agreement has been recognized as an important model for reconciling conflicting resource (uses) by the Royal Commission of Aboriginal Peoples and is strongly supported the forestry industry and the environmental community in Canada and internationally."

The resolution condemns the fact that Indian Affairs Minister Robert Nault "unilaterally decided to stop funding the Trilateral Agreement just when it was on the verge of completing the Integrated Resource Management Plan" for the Algonquin territory.

Nault's decision has plunged the region into an economic crisis. Without a process in place to harmonize forestry with traditional activities, logging operations have been suspended. Over 1,000 logging jobs are on the verge of being lost in the La Verendrye Park region of Quebec.

Nault's attempt to walk away from this signed agreement with the Algonquins of Barriere Lake comes at a time when the Minister is desperately trying to gain credibility and trust with other First Nations for his new governance and accountability process. The Barriere Lake issue, however, continues to dog Nault's attempt to portray himself as a man that can be trusted in negotiations.

And with the help of the Assembly of First Nations, the Barriere Lake issue will continue to haunt Nault until the Federal government agrees to live up to its fiduciary responsibility and complete the land management process.

The resolution states, "The National Office shall provide support to the Algonquins of Barriere Lake in a national and international campaign to bring attention to the high-handed and dishonourable conduct of the federal crown."