I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
The Navajo Nation Supreme Court “changed the course of Navajo history forever, ” said the Navajo Times in describing a court decision last week that confirmed the restructuring of the government and, perhaps most importantly, upheld the use of Navajo Fundamental Law by judges in arriving at legal decisions.
The Fundamental Law codifies Navajo traditional, natural, common, and customary laws— that predate the western legal system—into Title 1 of the Navajo Nation Code. The attempt by the Navajo Nation Council to not allow its use by the courts was called a sign of disrespect by Chief Justice Herb Yazzie, said the Navajo Times.
According to the paper:
Chief Justice Herb Yazzie said he and other members of the court were “amazed” when the council passed this resolution last January saying the courts could not use Navajo Fundamental Law.
“This shows disrespect,” he said at Friday’s announcement.
The court declared the resolution that approved it invalid, taking the position that fundamental law has existed since the beginning of time and “cannot be changed by human beings.”
The court opinion was read in a dramatic fashion, outside at the Veterans Memorial Park in Window Rock, and broadcast live over the radio. The court affirmed the outcome of an election late last year that reduced the council in size from 88 to 24 members and gave the president line item veto power. The court also said the council doesn’t have the power to put the president on administrative leave, because the president is not an employee of the council.
The Navajo Nation is the largest tribe in the United States, with about 300,000 members. It occupies portions of New Mexico, Utah and Arizona. Its seat of government is in Window Rock, Arizona.
