Siksika Nation chief and council have banished three non-Nation members from their reserve in southern Alberta. Officials on council say the trio are known to be involved in possessing and trafficking drugs.
“We couldn’t hold off any longer. We usually wait for bylaws and RCMP to charge the people, but we decided, ‘You know what? Let’s just do it,'” Siksika Councillor Buck Breaker said.
Meth, heroine and fentanyl are taking lives on the reserve and the leadership didn’t want their people exposed to any more risks. The majority of the community members supported the move.
“There is going to be some backlash because some of them have family ties here, however we’re looking out for 7,800 people who live here and the safety of our people,” Breaker said.
Siksika Nation members hope it sends a strong message to dealers who move in to their community uninvited.
“It’s going to scare them. They know there are repercussions in what they’re doing and hopefully it will stick in they will be banished,” 22-year-old Quincey Bull Bear said.
“It’s a crisis. Drugs are what’s destroying our nation and our people.”
“It just got so out of control and a strong statement had to be made,” Siksika Nation member Norm Running Rabbit said. “Extreme problems call for extreme solutions.”
Siksika Councillor Butch Wolfleg felt enough was enough.
“I’ve had to deal with these people coming to my door and I will call authorities,” Wolfleg said. “These dealers are recruiting kids at the school–and my grandchildren go there–and I’m dealing with it on a personal issue.”
If any of these three people return to the reserve, they could face trespassing charges.
Siksika chief and council have the full support of the nearby Gleichen RCMP, who told Global News they commend the leadership’s efforts.
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