The Assembly of First Nations chiefs, a national aboriginal body, has joined the Tsilhqot'in Nation in opposing Taseko Mine's revamped proposal to build the $1-billion Prosperity gold and copper mine in central B.C.
The chiefs made the decision at the three-day Assembly of First Nations' (AFN) Chiefs-in-Assembly in Moncton, N.B., which wrapped up this week.
The chiefs' resolution issues a caution to the federal and provincial governments that proceeding with a review of the revamped plan would demonstrate "utter disregard for the survival of First Nations as distinctive cultures within Canada and it would ignore the recent commitment to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples."
The Tsilhqot'in welcomed the support.
"The renewed support of the AFN gives us the confidence that we are on the right track," said chief Joe Alphonse, tribal chair of the Tsilhqot'in Nation.
"As indigenous peoples, it's not always about economics, but about the environment that we live with. We don't just look at things for the next 20 years, but for many generations into the future. The Prosperity deposit lies in a sacred and sensitive region where mining is not acceptable," said Alphonse.
The Tsilhqot'in Nation had strongly rejected Taseko's revised plan just days after the company filed the plan with the federal government in early June, which no longer called for the destruction of Fish Lake.
The details of the new plan won't be released until the federal government ensures the proposal is adequate, although the Tsilhqot'in received a copy the same day as it was filed with the federal government.
