LOWER BRULE SIOUX TRIBE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Marshall Matz, mmatz@ofwlaw.com
THE LOWER BRULE SIOUX TRIBE CONDEMNS
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH’S BIASED AND INACCURATE REPORT
Lower Brule, South Dakota
“The report of Human Rights Watch attacking the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe and its leaders is totally baseless and simply republishes misstatements of the past” said Lower Brule Sioux Tribal Chairman Mike Jandreau.
Human Rights Watch (HRW), an organization that claims to be “committed to maintaining high standards of accuracy and fairness” and maintaining high ethical standards, has released a remarkably inaccurate report that attacks Lower Brule Sioux .. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is constantly monitoring all Tribes under its trust responsibilities. In fact, Lower Brule has the lowest unemployment rate of any Tribe in South Dakota because of excellent and consistent Tribal management.
The Lower Brule Sioux Tribe condemns the biased, error-ridden, defamatory attack on the Lower Brule Sioux leadership, Lower Brule Sioux sovereignty, and the Lower Brule Sioux people.
Said Chairman Michael Jandreau: “This report is absolutely baseless. It’s shocking that any credible organization would put its name on it. It’s full of factual errors, misrepresentations, and outright falsehoods. We’re exploring our legal options.”
The factual errors run from the ignorant (“The Lower Brule Sioux Reservation . . . is among the smallest . . . in the United States.”) to irresponsible and reckless inaccuracies. The report infers falsely that the stability of the tribal government is due to corrupt elections even though the current tribal council has new members critical of the previous council. The report wrongly concludes that the development of private sector businesses for sustainable future income involves the use of tribal funds. The report denigrates the long-established independent tribal justice system without any evidence that the tribal government prohibits, inhibits or discriminates against critics from reasonable and equitable access. The Lower Brule Sioux Tribe has advocated and supported, through resolution, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The report relies heavily on the false statements from political dissenters within the Tribe and treats the sovereignty of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe as simply a “problematic” and inconvenient barrier to its preconceived conclusions.
The report claims that Lower Brule Sioux tribal members have no way to hold Lower Brule Sioux leaders accountable for their decisions as leaders. To these claims, Chairman Jandreau says: “The attack entirely ignores the fact that every two years the Lower Brule Sioux people decide through their votes in open elections who will serve as leaders of the Tribe. Our government is completely transparent and open to Members of the Tribe.”
The report ignores the fact that any Lower Brule Sioux tribal member could bring an action in Tribal Court if Lower Brule Sioux leaders did not provide information they are entitled to receive.
The inconsistent and contradictory Human Rights Watch report, on one hand, portrays an oppressive tribal government while acknowledging that the government holds fair and open elections at which critics of the incumbents are elected and seated. The report does not allege that freedom of speech is suppressed, or freedom of assembly, or that there is no recourse to tribal and federal courts, or that the tribal government uses physically oppressive tactics of any kind. In spite of its allegations, the report omits he illegal conduct of the three elected tribal council members upon whom the report relies for much of its information. These three individuals attempted to physically take over the tribal government on December 12, 2014. Their wholly illegal and outrageous actions were enjoined in tribal court. While these three dissident tribal council members failed, their actions succeeded in revealing their complete lack of commitment to the rule of law and the thinly veiled and inappropriate political agenda at the root of the Human Rights Watch report. The Human Rights Watch Report is political pamphleteering of the worst sort. ###
Turtle Talk 
This response to the Human Rights Watch report is a total and complete waste of cyberspace.. First of all, the Chairman, his Secretary/Treasurer, and one Councilman do not represent the tribe as a whole, and therefore should not have included other three seats of the tribal councils constituents in this response. They claim that the tribe condemns this report. I, my friends and family, hundreds of fellow tribal members, and my very own flesh and blood children have done no such thing. Quite the opposite in fact. Another thing is, I had challenged Mike Jandreau, Orville Langdeau, and John McCauley from even being eligible to run for office in the first place, citing numerous tribal constitution violations. First and foremost, I provided documentation in which Chairman Jandreau and his current, and former Councilmen lost 22.5 million out in a very shady endeavor out in New York City, and told us, we the people, nothing of it. Yet, in the NY State Supreme Court, they claimed tribal immunity due to sovereignty under Section 17. An argument which unknowingly cost my fellow tribesmen nearly $700,000 in lawyer fees, in a case which they lost. Which brings me to my next point. Tribal transparency is virtually nonexistent , and this is one case where we as tribal members had to find out through internet research. Another instance is the KXL Pipeline. Once again, Mike Jandreau and his colleagues met with the TransCanada Tribal Relations Department, and failed to bring this all important, and life threatening issue up with their own people. We discovered this fact, only after the other SD tribes began to ridicule us through various means, believing that we were a part of the decision making process. Mote recently, Chairman Jandreau has called a recess in the tribal council meetings, and has yet to answer for the New York fiasco, and the KXL issue, which he also failed to address as promised in his campaign letter. On that note, why should a tribal member have to go through the tribal court for any information to which they are entitled, when all he has to do is produce such documents, and answer any questions pertaining to these subjects in the first place? Also, he speaks of the low unemployment rate, yet has failed to mention that he has, in the past recent weeks, actually contributed to this problem by firing three key tribal members who are all living a drug and alcohol free lifestyle, and for doing what? Standing up for those who fear retaliation ie, losing their jobs! The only people who truly benefit from his decisions and policies are his own relatives and voters. The rest of us are struggling with simple choices such as, paying heat, electricity, buying food, or putting food on the table. Its not all three, but a matter of deciding which is more important at the time. NY children will never support his claims, so this report is backed with my fullest and out most support. I am not only a decorated Desert Storm Veteran and active LBST Color Guard member, but also an NREMTB, and Assistant Emergency Manager for the neighboring tribe of the Crow Creek Sioux. Mikes response is very foggy, and actually dies not address any of the New York, or LBCDEs actual activities either. This man is very keen on lying to his own people, and is currently trying to curry favor with the American public in general with this biased, and sickly response.
Mr. Matz, I believe it is you that are and have been “ill advised” in your reply. As Tribal members, who have lived there and have many family members there, WE KNOW how the entire process works from the elections, the judge and courts being a mechanism for certain council members to keep people in “their place”. You make it sound good on paper and they make it sound good because that’s what the constitution and by-laws say, but we all know that IS NOT REALITY. Cash bribes are given to some voters, promises of jobs, by a few politicians to retain their seat on the Tribal Council. And how do I know this? I know people who have traded their vote and dignity for those little crumbs. I truly hope that now they will see what their vote has done, with the financial dealings of the people that they put in power, the outrageous salaries and moneys that some of them have gotten. I have seen some of those same people that took the bribe begging for a few dollars for cigarettes, other necessities that came up. I do not like to see people beg. With the amounts of federal dollars that have come thru the Tribe over the years, we should have businesses set up to employ hundreds of Tribal members, on the reservation and not in the state of New York, Utah, or anywhere else. The “unemployment numbers are low”, really? Well, I guess they could be if you have six or seven janitors, or maintenance staff, for one building.
The “off-rez” voting rights were taken away in 1982 or 1984, so approximately only 15% (approximately 400 to 500 voters) of the total membership is making the decision for the ENTIRE membership. We have people that won’t even go to the polls because they are so sick of the entire process. With that minimal amount of voters, yes, it is very controllable and we know who will be elected time after time. I, for one, believe that we need to have the “off-rez” voting rights and the seated council member representing our votes back on the Tribal council. That is the only way that things are going to change. Anyone wanting to be on Council will have to prove that they can do the job and not just pay a $100 bill for each person that comes by at election time.
We have many “educated, qualified Tribally enrolled” members of our Nation and other Nations that are not given a chance at Administrative, Financial jobs, for what reason? All of the people in the “Tribal Manager” position since 1999 have been handpicked by the Chairman, and are not enrolled members of any Tribe. The position has not been advertised.
Enrolled members were never consulted in regard to the “Westrock” deal until it was finalized, and what a farce that was. It was just a mechanism set up to funnel money thru. Anyone could see that it was a failure for years prior to discussions with LB Council members. We did not have the experience or expertise to be involved in stocks or brokerages, especially on Wall Street or Park Avenue, in the state of New York.
When U.S. Senators, Representatives from Washington, South Dakota State delegations or any other visitor in regard to business come to Lower Brule, the meetings are not made public but are done as quietly as possible. There have been numerous “council meetings” held outside of the reservation boundaries over the past few years, of which documented minutes have not been divulged. Why would our Tribal council need to have several meetings in Sioux Falls? The meetings were never made public prior to them going there. We all know that Sioux Falls is no where near our Tribal land, being 170 miles away from our headquarters. They did not want interferance from Tribal members, asking questions, recording the activities. According to the Constitution and By-Laws the meetings are to be held in Lower Brule, otherwise they are considered illegal, null and void. Who should be held accountable for that? There are months where council meetings have not been held because one person wasn’t there then were held without public notification, many times with no minutes publicized until months later. That is business as usual. Where is the documentation that there were ANY referendum votes during elections that allows for changes to the Constitution and By-Laws since the early 1980’s? We have not been able to get copies when we question how certain actions were allowed, according to their reference to the Constitution and By-Laws. The position of “Secretary-Treasurer” requires that minutes and financial documents be presented at every meeting. Our Tribal members have not been afforded that for many years. Other Tribal Nations have had people removed from that position for simply not doing their job, or making false claims, according to their constitution and by-laws. Apparently, certain members of our Tribal council like to refer to them or abide by them, AT THEIR CONVENIENCE. In fact, we have an employee in Finance that has access to all of the accounting information and system, can process checks, sign checks and has actually signed their name on Financial documents in the place of the “Secretary/Treasurer”. But, the new Council members are not being allowed to sign documents, checks or have financial information that has been afforded to all new council members in all the years past. Who and how did that decision come about when we have one employee that has more power and authorization than Council members?
So, yes we want change and the council members to be held accountable. Over the years, there has been hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on a computer system that “was no better than putting together copper wire and a pringles can”, buying sub-standard outdated materials according to industry experts. When I brought this to the attention of administrators and a couple of Council members, nothing was done. Not to mention the amount of salary that person received and allowing people to use our computer system to download pornographic materials which would print out on our system at various locations. That person was never held accountable for those activities, as administrator of the Tribal computer system. If the Council members were truly “representatives of the enrolled members and people”, they would not have allowed such behavior to go unchecked and would not be offended at having accurate, up-to-date minutes and meetings held with video recordings for ALL enrolled members to see. We live in a day and age where it doesn’t cost lost of money to keep our membership informed via the computer and social networking. The changes would have required little capital cost and would be truly representative and accountable to ALL enrolled members. Not all of the council members have behaved in such an egregious manner, but a few that have behaved in those ways over the years have lost site of what those elected positions are for. The positions are to be “public/civil servants OF the people”, not rulers or dictatorial.
I know a former Council member who did not agree with the “status quo” had her vehicle windows shot out while parked at the Administration building, during the day. We know who did it but that person was not charged and wasn’t even terminated for bringing a firearm to work. The current Tribal Judge, Lori Miner, a non-Native, has refused to allow Tribal members their right to challenge Tribal Council actions in the Tribal courts regarding possible fraudulent activities, civil rights violations, requests for public and financial documents because there was no other recourse. Ms. Miner’s husband, Lee Brennan, a non-Native, is the “Tribal Manager” which is the Administrative Supervisor of the entire Tribal structure which oversees all of the Federal grants and funds. He was placed in the position without it being advertised. I personally know quite a few Native people that would qualify for the job. We all know that if certain decisions are made, they will both lose their high-paying jobs.
You made a comment that the BIA oversees all actions of the Tribal Council, which IS NOT true. Many times, the BIA has made suggestions regarding our land, leases, and other issues but those suggestions are not put in place because it would benefit the majority of us and NOT just a few relatives of certain Tribal council members. If the BIA or Superintendent were truly involved and actually did their jobs without fear of retaliation or loss of income, the three new Councilmembers may not have been removed from the Tribal Administration building with a restraining order placed on them by the Tribal judge. The superintendent and others in the BIA will be held accountable at some point.
The “Lower Brule Corporation” should NEVER have been allowed to obtain a “CDFI” (Community Development Financial Institution) from the Department of Treasury or the Small Business Administration. The membership WAS NOT, I repeat “WAS NOT”, aware of the few Council members actions regarding a “CDFI” status, the Westrock deal, their intention to obtain additional federal funds or loans to SUPPPOSEDLY start businesses on the Lower Brule reservation thru the CDFI process, FOR the benefit of the enrolled members. A “CDFI” status allows for loans to individuals to start small businesses, mostly within a defined area or location. How many CDFI loans have been made to Lower Brule Tribal members? How many are located on or close to the Lower Brule Reservation? Who has the documents showing these loans? Where is the actual “LBC” or “Lower Brule CDFI Office” located, physically? Or does it even exist at this point?
Lastly, the Tribal Manager and other supervisors terminated employees recently that had not done anything as serious or egregious as Council members who have taken hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonuses, unresolved travel advances, loans, payroll advances. Tribal council members are allowed $100/day for travel expenses thru the General Fund, which does not include lodging or mileage. Mileage and lodging are a separate amount. Although they usually go to the same location for meetings, they usually all go in their separate vehicles which does not save any money for the Tribe. Do you think that each elected Council member actually spends or needs $100/day for food or meals when the standard Federal rate is usually $30 to $40 depending on location. I used to think of how much groceries a two day trip, by our Tribal council members, would buy for a family. A five day trip for one council member ($500 for meals) would allow someone’s rent to be paid for an entire month, or it would buy groceries for an entire month for a family. Do you see anything wrong with this picture Mr. Matz? Would you allow such amounts to come out of your company or business’s coffers for such expenses, then allow them not to reimburse or pay back what wasn’t spent on actual travel? The council members are supposed to be representing Tribal members. I find it egregious when some of them think that they need to have $100/day for meals when many Tribal members per capita income averages between $10,000 to $13,000 annually.
Enrolled members of our Tribe and other Tribes that live at Lower Brule do not have recourse for justice if the “power that be” does not want you to have them. You have never lived there, you are not an enrolled member but a very well paid attorney with lobbyist activities from Washington DC, that has come to visit a couple times per year. You are a nice person Mr. Matz, but you are writing a statement based on comments from a very small group of people that have had hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars in benefits from the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe while the majority of the membership have received very little. You have not heard from the many Tribal people who were trying to hold the elected leadership accountable, respect their rights as U.S. and tribal citizens. The Tribal Council members and Tribal lawyer, Ms. Tara Adamski, have had ample time and opportunity to respond to the Tribal members and Mr. Ganeson. I find it ironic that now the results have been published, that they want to respond thru your office. Lobbyists usually have a “good spin” on political activities as we all know.
I have written these comments with trepidation, as I have relatives that I worry about back home at Lower Brule being relatiated against.
I am a proud member of the Lower Sioux Tribe, I don’t live on the rez but still have famiy members there. Our reservation is small and very poor. Just think how much 25 million could improve several lives in Brule and not just the chairman’s and a couple council members and their cronies. I hope there is a thorough investigation .done and we can get rid of the old stuff that has
been there too long. I admit I don’t know what goes on in the daily lives of the Brule, but I do care.
May be I should move back again! That’s a thought. God bless the people in Brule. Myrna Estes Henderson.
Any knowledge if this case is moving towards conviction? I thought I heard it was dismissed with prejudice. True? Did they settle out of court? Any info would be appreciated.
Seaport Loan Products v Lower Brule dismissed with prejudice?? Please advise.