Armed group not ready to end wildlife refuge occupation

“‘Look at us, look at what we’re doing.’ I don’t give much credence to their cause”.

Members of the Burns Paiute tribe watch a press conference held by their leaders in response to the armed occupation of the nearby Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Burns, Ore., Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016.

Bundy is the son of a Nevada rancher who, along with a large group of armed men, stared down federal agents in 2014 when they tried to seize his cattle over unpaid grazing fees. Although the Paiute have their own disputes over land and water with US government agencies, they prefer a less adversarial approach. The leader of an American Indian tribe that regards an OR nature pre…

“Before this thing turns into something negative, which would ruin all of that, I think we need to find a peaceful resolution to help you guys get out of here”, Ward said.

The tribe’s approach has typically been less provocative than the protesters who brought guns to further their anti-government cause.

Inside the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters, Kennedy said there are important official papers that document his tribe’s history and his ancestors’ existence on the land. “They should leave – leave peacefully – but they should be charged for the illegal action they have undertaken, trespassing, breaking and entering and the like”. “We’re getting ignored again”.

“They just need to get the hell out of here, I’m sorry”.

“They’re scaring our people”, Kennedy said.

“That’s really the point of militias: it’s community involvement”, Rapolla said.

As the anti-government extremists dug in for their fifth day at the wildlife refuge, insisting that they would leave only once the land had been “returned to its rightful owners”, the Burns Paiute council convened at their tribal offices 30 minutes away.

Tribal officials said the government has become increasingly bureaucratic about allowing the tribe to catch trout, bass and perch in the rivers lacing the mountains and to hunt elk and deer in the woods.

BURNS, Ore. – The leader of an armed group occupying a national wildlife refuge to protest federal land management policies said he and his followers are not ready to leave even though the sheriff and many locals say the group has overstayed its welcome.

Many residents of Burns see the occupation as the work of outsiders, and the Hammonds’ lawyers have sought to dissociate themselves from the protesters. That compared with just 4 percent in the rest of the country, not including Alaska.

When Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward, who ran the meeting, got up to speak, the crowd erupted into cheers.

Bundy came to Burns to rally support for two local ranchers who were sentenced to prison on arson charges.

It was not clear how many protesters were involved in the occupation.

Bundy’s protest at the refuge is a continuation of long-running arguments that federal policies for management of public lands in the West are harming ranchers and other locals. “They’re like ‘Let’s grab some guns.’ We have a different approach”. “They protect our cultural rights there”, said tribal council Chairwoman Charlotte Rodrique. Members of the tribe are descendants of the Wadatika band of northern Paiutes.

“There is a lot of activity down there as far as the tribe is concerned, and we’d like to keep it that way”, she said.

“It is frustrating when I hear the demand that we return the land to the people, because it is in the people’s hand – the people own it”, Eardley said.