In April 2013, Helen Darrigan and Pauline Tessier co-founded the Facebook group Friends of Qalipu Applicants (FOQA). The primary purpose of the group was to provide an independent forum for applicants and members of the Qalipu First Nation and to bring greater public awareness to an enrolment process that was headed for trouble. In July of 2013 the Supplemental Agreement was announced which we believed altered the Agreement in Principle of 2008 by putting in a point system designed to deliberately reduce numbers and disenfranchise people.

In January 2017, John Bouzanne joined our group. We soon discovered a common interest in seeking fairness and justice for all applicants and members, resulting in a partnership aimed at doing what we felt was the right thing to do; challenge those responsible for putting people in this situation. We spent the entire year of 2017 interviewing law firms across the country to look at our grievances and seek remedy through the courts since we believed that was the only place they would be resolved.

During the last six years, FOQA has continuously advocated for members and applicants, reported and shed light on all new developments, and helped people to navigate the many intricate and convoluted processes. The culmination has led to the denial of nearly all of the Stage Two applicants (post September 22, 2011), and have eliminated 10,000+ band members who had the right to appeal but failed the test under the Supplemental Agreement and Points System.

It is our wish that efforts to fight what we see as injustice and the division of families and communities, will lead to fair and equal treatment of members and applicants in accordance with the original Agreement in Principle. The original Agreement was signed in good faith and people applied in good faith, and we feel it should be honoured. We have taken our fight to the Supreme Court of Newfoundland & Labrador. We thank you for your faith in us and for your support, and we wish other individuals and groups making claims the very best of success as well.

We can be reached by email at:  friendsofqalipu@gmail.com

To stay informed of INAC/Qalipu Questions & Answers as well as timelines please visit this link which is continuously updated:

http://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1319805325971/1319805372507

DISCLAIMER:
In April 2020, we underwent a name change to “Friends of Qalipu Advocacy Association” as a registered non-profit corporation.