United States — Navajo (Native American) Relations — Opposition to Congressional Bill Based on Human & Environmental Rights
This message is sent on behalf of traditional Navajo (Dineh) residents of Black
Mesa, Arizona regarding a current bill before the US Congress regarding forced
relocation: Senate Bill 1003 Navajo Hopi Land Settlement Act Amendments of 2005.
There are provisions of Senate Bill 1003 that would require notification of
traditional Navajo that the US Federal government is demanding their relocation and
that would authorize involuntary relocatio if necessary. This has been official US
Congressional law since 1974 which has led to the relocation of 15,000 Navajo. This
action has been condemned by the European Parliament and the subject of an
investigative report by the UN Special Rapporteur for Religious Intolerance in the
first such investigation of the US. Read more
An Article on Senate Bill 1003, the Relocation Legislation, Bahe Y. Katenay of Big Mountain
U.S. Senate Bill S.1003 may become an amendment to the 1974 Federal Law, so-called,
“Navajo-Hopi Land Settlement Act.” This new bill calls for relocation of all Dineh
residents of, mostly, the Big Mountain and Black Mesa areas by September 2008. It
also calls for: the federal commission responsible for pre/post-relocation to close
its program, and the BIA of the U.S. Department of the Interior to start
management-control of all tribal royalities earned from the Black Mesa coal mines. Read more
Navajo-Hopi Land Dispute Legislation Passes the Senate
Navajo Nation Opposes the Bill
For immediate release: Contact: Roman Bitsuie, Executive Director,
Navajo Hopi Land Commission Office
928-871-6441
Window Rock, AZ, Navajo Nation///May 3, 2006/// On May 2, 2006, the Senate passed the Navajo-Hopi Land Settlement Amendments of 2005 (S. 1003), legislation sponsored by Senator John McCain that would bring about the closure of the Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR) by September 30, 2008. Navajo Nation officials testified regarding the original version of this legislation at a hearing before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on July 21, 2005, expressing grave concern over the abrupt termination of ONHIR, the failure of the legislation to address the negative consequences of the relocation law by not providing for a study linked directly to a program of rehabilitation, and the failure of the legislation to address the effects of the construction freeze in the Bennett Freeze area. S. 1003 will now be referred to the House of Representatives for consideration. Read more
