B.C.'s First Nations struggling with a "silent killer" of on-reserve communities

B.C.’s First Nations are struggling with an innocuous-sounding accounting issue that is described as an “elephant in the room” and a “silent killer” of on-reserve communities, according to reports and interviews with Aboriginal leaders. It’s the inability and sometimes outright refusal of community members, including a number of chiefs and councillors, to pay rent while living in band-owned housing. And while many don’t pay simply because they can’t afford it due to inadequate federal housing allowances, others – including salary-collecting band chiefs and councilors – are refusing to pay because they claim incorrectly that free housing is an Aboriginal right, according to reports and interviews.

http://www.vancouversun.com/life/first+nations+struggling+with+silent+killer+reserve+communities/11675489/story.html