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Edmonton Journal
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Edmonton Journal
Onion Lake Cree Nation to proceed with its legal challenge of Alberta sovereignty act
"I stand here today to remind the premier and her government that we do not stand by and allow our treaty to be violated, disregarded and pushed aside while the talk of separation continues" Published May 16, 2025 • 3 minute read Onion Lake Cree Nation Okimaw (Chief) Henry Lewis makes an official statement on the Nation's litigation with the province of Alberta regarding the Alberta Sovereignty Act on Thursday, May 15, 2025 in Edmonton. Photo by Greg Southam / Postmedia EDMONTON — Alberta's bill lowering the bar for a separation referendum has spurred a First Nation to push ahead with a legal challenge against the premier's flagship sovereignty act. Danielle Smith has said her Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act is needed to push back on what the province believes is unconstitutional federal encroachment into provincial jurisdiction. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 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Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors But Onion Lake Cree Nation Chief Henry Lewis said that law has always been about undermining federal authority and asserting provincial control, which goes against his community's Treaty 6 relationship with the Crown. 'I want to respectfully remind the premier that this land that we stand on today is treaty land and is not yours to take or make sweeping decisions about,' he said at a news conference in Edmonton on Thursday. He announced the legal challenge is moving forward a day after Smith's government passed a bill significantly lowering the threshold for citizens to prompt a referendum, including one on seceding from Canada. The First Nation, which straddles the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary, filed a statement of claim in 2022, but lawyer Robert Hladun said the community put it on pause, hoping for a resolution with the government. Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'We waited for consultation, waited for some participation. We waited for some respect. None of that happened,' he said. Another lawyer representing the community, Michael Marchen, said the sovereignty act is an effective derogation of Onion Lake Cree Nation's sovereignty and jurisdiction, and they are asking for the court to declare it have no legal force. 'It was enacted wholly without input, consultation or consideration of the plaintiff's concerns, which is contrary to the spirit of (the) treaty and in derogation of the honour of the Crown,' he said. Smith has said she wants Alberta to stay in Canada, but Lewis says the referendum legislation signals that the province is pushing a separatist agenda. 'I stand here today to remind the premier and her government that we do not stand by and allow our treaty to be violated, disregarded and pushed aside while the talk of separation continues,' said Lewis. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Smith's United Conservative government has faced backlash from Indigenous leaders since the referendum bill's introduction in the house more than two weeks ago. On Thursday, hundreds of protesters rallied in front of the legislature to condemn it and demand it be repealed. Smith has repeatedly said that any referendum question must not violate the constitutional rights of First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples, and must uphold and honour the treaties. Smith has said she's working to gain respect for Alberta within a united Canada, and she doesn't want to see the Alberta separatist movement grow into a large, mainstream political party. She's also said the latest bill is about giving Albertans a say on whatever issue is important to them through direct democracy. Justice Minister Mickey Amery, offering an amendment to the referendum bill late Wednesday evening, said the government has been listening to Indigenous concerns. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. It now includes a clause stating that nothing in a referendum is to deviate from existing treaty rights. In a Thursday statement, he said the government will be filing a statement of defence in response to Onion Lake Cree Nation's lawsuit 'in due course.' 'Alberta's government is deeply committed to honouring and respecting all treaty rights enshrined in the Constitution — that will not change,' Amery said. Lewis said of the government's assertion that it respects treaty rights: 'It's nothing.' Greg Desjarlais, grand chief of the Confederacy of Treaty 6 First Nations, told reporters outside the legislature that by passing Amery's referendum bill, Smith's government is sowing division among Albertans and dishonouring all treaty people. Desjarlais said the amendment isn't strong enough, and that he wasn't consulted until the bill was already tabled in the legislature. 'They have to repeal the bill,' he said. Echoing Lewis, he said there is no treaty with the province, only the Crown. He said the rally at the legislature Thursday shows 'we're tired of being pushed around.' Desjarlais said First Nations leaders will be seeking an audience with King Charles to reaffirm the treaty. They are also planning a trip to Ottawa, but not at the invitation of Smith. 'Not with her,' he said. 'On our own.' Politics News Local News Edmonton Oilers Crime
Globe and Mail
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Globe and Mail
Alberta Insider: First Nation taking province to court over sovereignty act
Good morning, everyone. Alberta has a deadline: June 6. That's the date by which the Onion Lake Cree Nation expects the province to have produced a statement of defence in a lawsuit the First Nation has filed against the government over its sovereignty act. Initially filed in December, 2022, the First Nation claims Premier Danielle Smith's Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act violates the constitutionally recognized treaty rights of its members and has asked the court to strike it down. At a news conference Thursday, Onion Lake's lawyer, Robert Hladun, said the suit had been put on pause in the hopes the government would address the community's concerns. But Onion Lake Chief Henry Lewis said they are now advancing the case. 'Premier Smith's sovereignty act, combined with many of the significant changes with two other laws, sends a clear signal that her government is willing to manipulate laws, intimidate First Nations and control public opinion to push the separatist agenda,' Lewis said at the news conference. Last month, the government introduced Bill 54, which, among other reforms to electoral processes, would make it easier to hold citizen-led referendums – a plan seized on by groups in favour of Alberta separating from Canada. Onion Lake's suit is another step by First Nations across Canada to stifle growing calls for a referendum on Alberta's separation. Indigenous groups argue their rights, enshrined in treaties, predate the formation of Alberta and Saskatchewan. The Alberta government did make last-minute changes to the proposed legislation Wednesday, saying a referendum question could not threaten First Nations' treaty rights. Justice Minister Mickey Amery said his government had heard concerns from First Nations, which prompted the change. 'We are listening,' he said. Several Alberta First Nations groups and opponents of Smith's seemingly cavalier approach to sovereignty rallied in protest at the Alberta Legislature Thursday. Talk of separation has been brewing in the province for months, with momentum apparently growing in some corners. Smith has done little to quash it, saying only that she will respect the decision of the people of Alberta. But as The Globe and Mail's Robyn Urback said in her column this week, the Premier 'keeps legitimizing its discussion, creating a platform for its serious consideration, and facilitating the conditions for a referendum vote.' Former premier Jason Kenney said this week that talk of separation is 'playing with fire.' 'People who follow Alberta closely in investment circles are paying attention,' he said, and what they are seeing is 'a blinking light of uncertainty, which they hate.' 'This is playing with fire. And if Albertans doubt that, look at a real historical example of what happened in Quebec's economy as a result of merely the election of a PQ government,' he said, including the billions of investment dollars that fled the province in the face of instability. If there is one thing that may make Albertans stand up and take notice, it's talk of the economic turmoil that could come with separation. 'There's no happy ending to that for Alberta's economy,' Kenney said of a potential referendum vote. This is the weekly Alberta newsletter written by Alberta bureau chief Mark Iype. If you're reading this on the web, or it was forwarded to you from someone else, you can sign up for it and all Globe newsletters here.
CBC
15-05-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Alberta separatism threats spur First Nation to revive lawsuit against Sovereignty Act
A First Nation whose land spans the Alberta-Saskatchewan border says Alberta's "growing separatist agenda" has spurred them to revive a more than two year-old lawsuit against the province. The lawsuit was originally filed with the Court of King's Bench less than two weeks after the Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act was passed in December 2022, but was on hold until Wednesday, say Onion Lake Cree Nation lawyers. "Our decision to advance our litigation on the Alberta Sovereignty Act is in direct response to the ongoing separatist talks happening," said Onion Lake Cree Nation Chief Henry Lewis at a news conference in Edmonton Thursday. "Our message to Premier Smith is that these are treaty lands. They are not yours to take, and we're prepared to go to court to defend our constitutionally protected rights under treaty." The lawsuit claims the Sovereignty Act undermines and infringes upon Onion Lake Cree Nation's constitutional treaty rights, and seeks temporary and permanent injunctions that the act can not be held against the First Nation or its people. The First Nation said the law and several bills currently in the legislature fuel Alberta separatism, among them Bill 54 which would make it easier for citizens to initiate referendums on issues including separation from Canada. "Premier Smith's Sovereignty Act combined with many of the significant changes with two other laws sends a clear signal that her government is willing to manipulate laws, intimidate First Nations and control public opinion to push the separatist agenda," said Lewis. "The Sovereignty Act has always been about undermining federal authority and asserting provincial control. This goes against our treaty relationship with the Crown." The Alberta premier's office did not respond to a request for comment by time of publishing. Bill 54, the Election Statutes Amendment Act, has sparked resistance from many Indigenous leaders in the province since it was tabled two weeks ago. The bill would reduce the number of signatures required to trigger a referendum and extend the signature collection period to 90 days from 60. On Wednesday, the province made changes to Bill 54, adding a clause that no separation referendum question could threaten the existing treaty rights of Indigenous people in Alberta. Lewis said it's something he's heard before during his years of negotiating agreements with governments. "That clause is always entered, but guess what? They don't honour it," Lewis said. "Pure and simple, it's nothing…. It doesn't mean nothing to me." Lawyers for Onion Lake Cree Nation said the province has until June 6 to file a statement of defence against their lawsuit. The First Nation launched a similar lawsuit against Saskatchewan in April 2023, arguing the province's Saskatchewan First Act also violates treaty rights.
Times
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
The Comedy About Spies review — just the type of inventive humour we need
For years, I wondered why that whodunnit spoof The Play That Goes Wrong had managed to pull in audiences around the world. Had I suffered a sense of humour failure? What a pleasure, then, to discover that the Mischief team's latest masterclass in mayhem is funnier, faster and even more absurd. The Sixties espionage farce that the co-writers Henry Lewis and Henry Shields have brought to the Noël Coward rampages through a potpourri of Cold War plots and sub-plots while adding an affectionate nod towards the James Bond series. Matt DiCarlo's intricately calibrated production is a miracle of comic timing and ensemble acting. There's a particularly hilarious sequence in the first act when the action ricochets around four hotel rooms, generating waves of chaos reminiscent
Daily Mail
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
PATRICK MARMION reviews The Comedy About Spies at the Noel Coward Theatre: A head-spinning winner, spy spoof hits comedy gold
The Comedy About Spies Mischief Theatre, the team behind The Play That Goes Wrong, did it again last night with yet another hit for theatreland. They strike comedy gold in their latest caper: a Sixties spy spoof that is like Johnny English meets Basil Fawlty in a Piccadilly hotel. It's bigger, better and more brilliantly bungling than ever. Written by and starring Mischief's two Henrys – Lewis and Shields – it left me in awe at how it's possible to devise something so complicated... and actually pull it off on stage. The idea itself is simple: Russian agents in London are about to get hold of a weapon 'so powerful it could take down the USA'. But a ruthless CIA agent, aided by his Brooklyn mom, has been tipped off and means to stop them. What nobody has counted on is Bernard (Henry Shields), a baker from Tadworth, aiming to propose to his uncertain girlfriend Rosemary (Adele James). Or failing thesp Douglas Woodbead (an orotund Henry Lewis), in town to audition for a new Bond film – despite being best known as the face of haemorrhoid cream on TV. An undercover French farce running through four bugged bedrooms, a lobby, roof gardens, a lift shaft and a laundromat, it's more complex than prime number theory. The idea itself is simple: Russian agents in London are about to get hold of a weapon 'so powerful it could take down the USA' Yet director Matt DiCarlo's at one point literally 'floorless' production is slick as an oil spill on an ice rink. Chris Leask amuses as Russian spy Sergei; while Dave Hearn, as his US counterpart, lays on abseiling and pratfalls. But it's the two Henrys who steal the show. Shields, as the baker whose proudest moment was standing up to the KGB (Kent Guild of Breadmakers). And Lewis, as the constantly defeated yet invincibly resolute actor who identifies Bond in his audition as 'ooh-seven'. Running at 120 minutes, I started counting to see if it really was a laugh a minute. Actually, it's more like three – making it a 360, all-round, head-spinning winner. The Comedy About Spies runs at London's Noel Coward Theatre until September 5.
