TREVOR JANG JULY/AUGUST 2017 BCBUSINESS 61
ing itself from July 2014 through late
2015 for meeting with Kinder Morgan.
Charging that it has refused to provide
accounting documents related to these
funds, he's suing the council over the
disbursement of the $30,000 cheques,
which he claims it had no permission
from the community to give out.
All of this looks like an internal squab-
ble for the Peters Band, but Genaille
believes Kinder Morgan is accountable,
too. "They think that as long as they have
the documents, they can just go ahead,"
he says. "The problem with that think-
ing is the fact that…at a certain point, the
membership can actually get the deci-
sions of the council overturned."
How so? "There is a possibility that
a judge can go, 'Yeah, you broke your
'duciary duty. You pro'ted from this.
I'm overturning the decision,'" Genaille
says. "That would actually stop the pipe-
line from going through the Peters First
Nation. And that would be a problem for
Kinder Morgan."
Chief Webb didn't respond to ques-
tions or provide an interview, but she
stated in an email that "there was
extensive consultation with the Peters
First Nation membership" leading up
to the deal. Trans Mountain, the Kinder
Morgan Canada subsidiary building the
pipeline expansion, didn't reply to sev-
eral requests for comment.
Cynthia Callison, an indigenous law-
yer with expertise in land rights, doesn't
think a case like Genaille's has a strong
chance of stopping the pipeline expan-
sion. "Even if there was found to be some
wrongdoing [by the Peters Band Council],
I'm not sure that that would impact the
project," Vancouver-based Callison says.
"You'd have to really be able to attack the
band council resolution that approved
the agreement. It's a long, hard road."
W
PROTESTS MOVE TO THE LAND
In Secwépemc territory, Kanahus
Manuel isn't waiting for a court decision.
The 40-year-old mother stands on the
industrial outskirts of Kamloops beside
the North Thompson River, beneath
which Kinder Morgan Canada plans to
drill as part of its pipeline expansion.
Manuel, a full-time indigenous rights
activist, is leading a group of Secwépemc
A RIVER RUNS
THROUGH IT
Activist Kanahus
Manuel stands with
her daughter on the
banks of the North
Thompson, under
which Kinder Morgan
plans to drill
"It's really undermining our authority as the
grassroots people, as the collective title holders. Not
one band or one person can sign away any of our
land. And by challenging that, that's rocking that boat
and creating uncertainty with investors"
— Kanahus Manuel, indigenous rights activist
