first nation

Splatsin First Nation launches lawsuit against B.C. government

ENDERBY - A local First Nation has filed a lawsuit against the B.C. government accusing it of ignoring the band's jurisdiction over the welfare of its children.  The Splatsin First Nation in Enderby served the province a notice of claim during a rally outside Premier Christy Clark’s constituency office in Kelowna Tuesday, Oct. 13. The...

New local charity steps up to send Westbank fashion designer to L.A.

WEST KELOWNA - A First Nations clothing designer from Westbank who was invited to take part in Style Fashion Week in Los Angeles this week thought she had missed her opportunity, but a last minute sponsorship from a new Kelowna charity has her packing her bags. “I leave tomorrow afternoon,” Jill Setah says. “I am...

First Nation groups officially file title claim against portion of Ajax Mine site

KAMLOOPS - About a week after mining company KGHM submitted its provincial environmental application for the proposed Ajax Mine project, two bands have officially filed land title papers with the B.C. Supreme Court. Paperwork was filed with the courts by Stk’emlupsemc of the Secwepemc Nation, a group that represents the Skeetchestn First Nation and Tk’emlúps...

Local First Nations fashion designer aims for Los Angeles stage

WEST KELOWNA - A First Nations clothing designer living in Westbank has been invited to take part in Style Fashion Week in Los Angeles this fall. Jill Setah, a member of the Chilcotin First Nation, has lived in Kelowna for the past ten years. From a young age she had an interest in clothing design...

First Nation welcome signs cut down near Kamloops on eve of Aboriginal Day

SAVONA - Investigators with Kamloops Rural RCMP are appealing to the public for information after two signs welcoming people to the Skeetchestn First Nation were cut down the night before National Aboriginal Day on Sunday. The signs, which stood next to the Trans-Canada Highway in the Savona area, were discovered sawed down Sunday morning, June...

First Nation protests as highway widening moves forward

CHASE - Despite support from First Nation leadership, not all band members are in favour of the second phase of construction the widening of the Trans-Canada Highway near Chase. Robin Billy, chief of the Adams Lake First Nation in Chase, says he’s not aware of how many people are standing in protest of the provincial...

Secwepemc elder preserving language as university ‘lleqméltn’

KAMLOOPS - Learning to speak our first language is a process we likely take for granted. Our families spoke it from the day we were born, we absorbed what they said and learned to speak, read and write it, and then our schools expanded on that knowledge as we got older. For Mona Jules learning...

Splatsin First Nation acquires portion of rail corridor

ENDERBY - There’s been a significant advancement on the discontinued rail corridor between Armstrong and Sicamous. Following lengthy negotiations with Canadian Pacific Rail and the federal government, the Splatsin First Nation has acquired 29.25 acres of land along the old rail corridor, which was shut down in 2009. Splatsin Chief Wayne ‘Wunuxtin’ Christian says the...

Splatsin First Nation plots dramatic return of traditional stories

ENDERBY - After years of safekeeping in archives and in the minds of elders, stories of the Splatsin First Nation are being told the way they should be; with music, actors, costumes and an audience. Tuwitames, a community play presented by Runaway Moon Theatre and the Splatsin Language Program, runs August 6-10 at the Splatsin...