Protest ends with agreement to talk

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This article was published 30/09/2022 (1127 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A memorial walk to the former Brandon residential school took a tense turn Friday as many participants staged a peaceful protest at a nearby campground after Sioux Valley Dakota Nation was allegedly denied access to the land to search for more unmarked graves earlier this week.

However, it resulted in Turtle Crossing Campground owner Mark Kovatch and Sioux Valley councillors agreeing to talk on Monday about access to the site and survey plans.

A group of around 100 people that included Sioux Valley Chief Jennifer Bone, band councillors, elders, members and supporters marched west along Grand Valley Road on Friday, past the residential school site to Turtle Crossing Campground.

Once there, they staged a peaceful protest at the entrance, demanding Kovatch allow land surveyors onto the site. They claimed he had previously granted access to the site so they could search the grounds for more unmarked graves. The site used to be the cemetery for the residential school, and 54 graves have been located there so far.

Bone addressed the protesters, calling Kovatch’s denial of access a “slap in the face” on the eve of Truth and Reconciliation Day, which is when the nation first learned of the change of plans.

“Sioux Valley has been patient with the landowner to do the [ground-penetrating radar] survey that needs to be done to identify the boundaries of the cemetery on his property,” Bone said. “We had a meeting with him on Sept. 23, with the team, the province and he agreed to allow Sioux Valley on his land starting Monday to ensure that the survey could be done.”

The team brought in a surveyor from Toronto and has all the equipment ready to go.

On Thursday afternoon, the nation had an emergency meeting with the province, who apparently told community leaders that the landowner — Kovatch — was denying them access.

Stressing Kovatch didn’t meet with them directly on this denial, Chief Bone said Kovatch sent a message that he was concerned if the survey team found more graves it would affect his plans for future land development.

Speaking to the Sun at the protest Friday, Kovatch described the situation as a massive miscommunication. He said he’s been waiting two years to get a memorial and fencing put on the property.

“I just literally had a delegation out here trying to solve this problem for me … there’s a small faction within Sioux Valley Dakota Nation that has basically said a bunch of lies about me that’s trying to cause a bunch of conflict on this day that’s supposed to be about peace and coming together,” he said.

Penetrating radar was conducted two years ago, he said, so they know exactly where the gravesite is. Since then he has been told to wait for Sioux Valley to make the decision to erect the fence and install the memorial.

“I was getting frustrated. I said, if SVDN doesn’t want to get a memorial up, I’m going to work with another band that does,” he said. “And the next day, this threat [the protest] appeared for my business. I don’t know what’s going on. I told the province I was going to talk to the federal government’s special interlocutor to see what’s going on. If the funds have been there for two years, why hasn’t it been done?”

He confirmed he has not reached out to the interlocutor, yet.

It all came to a head on Tuesday, Kovatch said, when he was told that Sioux Valley didn’t want to do anything about the fence, but they want to conduct more ground penetrating radar 50 metres away from the gravesite, which would mean having to shut down the campground.

When protesters arrived, Kovatch welcomed them, offering chairs and picnic tables, as well as inviting anyone who wanted to go to the gravesite for ceremonies to do so. However, when Bone and other protesters demanded to know why he was denying surveyors access, he insisted Sioux Valley hadn’t contacted him directly and for two years they haven’t returned his calls.

There were several back-and-forth accusations of lies Friday, until Kovatch said this had been a miscommunication and wanted it resolved, agreeing to talk to Sioux Valley Dakota Nation on Monday. He shook hands with band councillor Jon Bell as cheering protesters looked on, with a few shouting they were going to hold Kovatch to his word.

The City of Brandon has been involved with the situation at Turtle Crossing for a while, working with Sioux Valley and Kovatch, said city manager Ron Bowles.

“We were aware that SVDN and the owner were having some communications struggles. We did not realize that it was to the magnitude that it is,” said Bowles. “The City of Brandon understands the importance of doing the right thing by these children. And so, we’re committed to be at the table and work with all the parties to make sure that the right thing is done now that this situation is starting to progress. We’re very happy that it is, and we will definitely be there working with SVDN, in lockstep with them and the province as well. We just want to do right by the children that are there.”

However, due to national attention on residential school gravesites stemming from the 215 bodies found in Kamloops, B.C., the Manitoba and federal governments are getting more involved, and so the province has taken on a leadership role in the Turtle Crossing situation, Bowles said.

A statement from Manitoba Indigenous Reconciliation and Northern Relations said it continues to collaborate with Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, the City of Brandon and the federal government to work toward a resolution on the matter. Searches continue to be led by Indigenous stakeholders.

Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.

» kmckinley@brandonsun.com

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