Shortly before the handover to Donald Trump, outgoing US President Joe Biden commutes the double life sentence of the most famous indigenous political prisoner to house arrest, allowing the almost 80-year-old, seriously ill Leonard Peltier to spend the last years of his life with his family on the Turtle Mountain Reservation in North Dakota. Listen to what Leonard has to say after the announcement of his commuted sentence.
The National Congress of American Indians celebrated the “historic” decision in a statement, saying the case has “long been a symbol of the systemic injustices faced by Indigenous peoples.”
It is not (yet) known what prompted Biden to grant Peltier's release literally at the very last minute. Perhaps it was the thousands of postcards, sent by Incomindios members amongst others, the almost 200 voices of well-known personalities and the almost 500 indigenous leaders in the USA that encouraged him to take action against the FBI.
Even if his guilt for shooting two FBI agents is upheld, Leonard Peltier's release from prison means the end of agonizing, torture-like treatment in various US maximum security prisons - “death by incarceration”, between hope and fear, isolation and a lack of medical care. He is due to be returned to his family by mid-February at the latest; some say he will be released in the next few days. It is to be hoped that he will finally receive the medical care he urgently needs. Incomindios, together with our partner organization, the European Alliance for the Self-Determination of Indigenous Peoples, will continue to campaign and exert pressure to ensure that Leonard Peltier will receive professional medical care and that his protection outside prison walls will be guaranteed.
“Leonard Peltier's freedom today is the result of 50 years of intergenerational resistance, organization and commitment,” said Nick Tilsen, founder and CEO of Indigenous organization NDN Collective. “Leonard's liberation is our liberation - it is a reminder that the entire so-called United States is built on the stolen lands of Indigenous peoples, and that Indigenous peoples have successfully resisted every attempt to oppress, silence and colonize them. The victory of Peltier's release is a symbol of our collective strength and resistance that will continue.”