Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Healing: Past-Present-Future


Crushed bones of ancestors finally laid to rest

CREDIT: Bruce Stotesbury
Many turned out for the reburial of natives who were moved from the area where the Poets Cove Resort and Spa on Pender Island was constructed. Ruby Peter (Red Hat) with Eydie Pelkey a spiritual person from the Cowichan Tribes speaks during the burial ceremony. In the background with the blanket is public speaker Irvin Jimmy from the Tsawout First Nation.

SOUTH PENDER ISLAND. The ancient remains of 45 First Nations people were finally laid to rest in a traditional reburial ceremony at Poets Cove Resort and Spa Tuesday morning.

As the box containing the crumbled bones of their ancestors was covered with the red-brown soil of Pender Island, overlaid with sword ferns, members of Saanich First Nations and supporters from other southern Vancouver Island bands prayed that laying the spirits to rest will mean a better future for their communities and for Poets Cove.

"The dead have been uneasy and not at rest. This is one of the reasons things have been happening," said Tsawout band councillor Toby Joseph.

"We have had a lot of deaths in the community."

It is the end of a saga of pain, frustration and legal action which started when developers of the luxury resort unearthed human remains and archaeological artifacts in 2003.

Although developers knew there was an ancient village and midden in the area - believed to date back between 2,000 and 4,000 years - they went ahead with the excavation and First Nations observers were horrified to find construction workers using ancient bones in road surfacing.

"The suffering they went through when their bones were being disturbed made me cry, but now they are happy we are burying them properly," said Ruby Peter, an elder from the Cowichan Tribes.

"I appreciate seeing everyone here showing respect for our people. Terrible things have happened in our own ground and I am happy this is being done here today."

Last year, the company, Bedwell Harbour Hotel Ltd., was fined $50,000 after pleading guilty to violating the B.C. Heritage Conservation Act by disturbing a site inhabited prior to 1846.

Many of the remains were unearthed from the site where a swimming pool has been built and others from what is now the front courtyard of the resort, so they could not be reburied in the same spot.

The site where they were finally laid to rest, surrounded by rock outcroppings and overlooked by gnarled arbutus trees, was chosen because it is close to the water - the source of food and life for the ancient villagers, said Gwen Underwood, a former Tsawout councillor, who has worked on the case since the remains were discovered.

The attitude towards First Nations changed when Peter Parmar arrived as general manager of the resort, said several people at the ceremony.

Parmar, speaking to the 150 First Nations, archaeologists and curious onlookers, who braved the chilly wind blowing off the ocean to attend the gravesite ceremony, apologized for the length of time it has taken to rebury the remains.

"And, I want to offer my sincere condolences on what took place. We want to develop a new relationship. . . We want your blessing for this area so we can all be in peace together," he said.

After a Shaker ceremony at the gravesite, with candles and bells, guests were ushered into the resort and offered a traditional lunch of bannock and salmon on cedar planks.

jlavoie@tc.canwest.com

.............................................................................................................................................................

'Now there is going to be peace here'

Dancers in fern headdresses play their part in a moving traditional ceremony yesterday on South Pender Island at which the ancient remains of 45 First Nations people, disturbed during the construction of Poets Cove resort, were reburied.



SOUTH PENDER ISLAND -- Leather-threaded strings of clacking deer hoofs rattled round the ankles of dancers wearing headdresses made of ferns, as First Nations laid the bones and spirits of their ancestors to rest at Poets Cove Resort yesterday morning.

As spectators cleared a path to a hillside grave and the barefooted dancers pounded in loose earth beside it, members of the Saanich Indian Shaker Church lit candles, prayed and rang bells.

Burial of the ancient remains was the final part of a ceremony that started in 2004 when members of Saanich First Nations held a burning ceremony on Tsawout and Tseycum land, adjacent to the luxury resort. At that time, traditional food was presented and burned.

It's a matter of respect, said Jim Fisher Sr., a Tsartlip gravedigger. "We are dedicated to maintaining the integrity of traditional beliefs about the sacred nature of our people's graves. The age of a burial is of no consequence. There is no difference between a site that is four days old, 400 years old or 4,000 years old."

As a chilly wind blew off the ocean and elders huddled in blankets, men shovelled dirt on the gravesite, surrounded by stone.

Shovelling the dirt is a way of saying goodbye, like a final handshake, but is restricted to the men. Traditionally, the task of women is to clean tears from the faces of mourners so no tears are taken outside the burial ground, said MaryAnn Sam.

"The final cry is always in the cemetery."

It has been emotionally hard as First Nations have struggled for justice for their ancestors, said Tsartlip traditional gravedigger Simon Smith.

One of the toughest times was when the remains of a mother and child were found in front of the main resort building, he said. "We had to tell the crew to take a walk. That hit everyone the hardest."

The final burial will make a difference to the atmosphere and operation of Poets Cove, Smith said. "Now there is going to be peace here."

Tseycum Chief Vern Jacks is hoping the Poets Cove story reverberates among other developers. "We need developers to understand our values and respect our beliefs," he said. "Rest In Peace. What does it mean to developers?"

Peter Parmar, Poets Cove general manager, also hopes developers have got the message about respecting First Nations history and culture.

"I feel very proud that today we have been able to close this and embark on a new beginning. ... Respect for ancestors is very important for us, as well," said Parmar, who provided the 150 guests with a traditional lunch of bannock and salmon on a cedar plank. It was served on tables decorated with cedar boughs.

"I think this will bring peace and blessings to this region."

The gravesite, with a spectacular view over the Gulf Islands, will be marked with a plaque to tell visitors about the village which existed there 4,000 years before anyone dreamed of a resort and spa.

© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2008