The Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council is requesting the provincial government support its communities after a case of COVID-19 was reported Wednesday on the Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation, in the Gold River area.
The Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation has been told by Island Health that one of its members has been diagnosed with COVID-19. Island Health has identified close contacts and said it is working with Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council (NTC) nurses to ensure they are notified, assessed for symptoms and isolated.
Island Health said the person who was diagnosed stayed home while sick and got tested. The health authority is encouraging everyone on the First Nation to follow all of the province’s recommended COVID-19 precautions.
“Having a damaging case of COVID on reserve is what we have been working against for some months now. This is a critical situation,” NTC President Judith Sayers said in a statement.
“When the province opened to Stage 3 without our consent, the numbers of new COVID cases have tripled and even quadrupled daily and we knew it was a matter of time before one of our on-reserve members contracted the virus.”
In a release on Thursday, the NTC stated that on June 9, they had issued four requirements they wanted in place before the province opened up to Stage 3.
“It was not until the Heiltsuk, Tsilhqot’in and Nuu-chah-nulth issued a collective statement on June 28th that the province started paying attention to those requirements,” the NTC said.
“It was not until mid-July that a table with B.C. and the three Nations was established, where they could talk about these four requirements: rapid testing, screening of people before coming into the territory, training and implementation of culturally safe contact tracing, and a communications protocol that would ensure Nuu-chah-nulth Nations know the location of a COVID-19 case that is close to their communities, so they could be properly prepared.”
Sayers said Premier John Horgan and Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation Scott Fraser must mandate “the tables we have set up so we can find immediate solutions to protect our members.”
“We must not wait any longer and certainly do not want an outbreak in our communities before the province reacts,” Sayers said.
NTC vice president Mariah Charleson said B.C. has not met the NTC’s basic health requirements.
“We call on the government of B.C. and all its health authorities to work closely with NTC and our Nations to support our communities with what we need to prevent the spreading of this devastating virus to our members. This is a great opportunity for Premier Horgan and B.C. to step up to the challenge and practice true reconciliation; we demand action,” Charleson said in a statement.
In a statement, the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation said in part
“A new rapid-testing machine has been placed in Tofino to prioritize testing in the Nuu-chah-nulth territory, with turn-around times of 24 hours or less for results. The Province is also supporting training for Nation members to carry out culturally appropriate contact tracing. These are unprecedented times and we remain committed to keep working through these issues and challenges together with the Nuu-chah-nulth Nations, with respect and recognition of rights.”
NTC is a not-for-profit society that provides services and supports to fourteen Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations with approximately 10,000 members.
The 14 Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations are divided into three regions:
- Southern Region: Ditidaht, Huu-ay-aht, Hupacasath, Tse-shaht, and Uchucklesaht
- Central Region: Ahousaht, Hesquiaht, Tla-o-qui-aht, Toquaht, and Yuu-cluth-aht
- Northern Region: Ehattesaht, Kyuquot/Cheklesaht, Mowachaht/Muchalaht, and Nuchatlaht
CHEK News
