The armed group occupying the Malheur Wildlife Refuge will leave “when the community can stand on its own”, Ammon Bundy, the group leader, said during a press conference on Friday morning.
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The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is about 30 miles from the small town of Burns, Oregon.
Hovered by an odd gathering of sheriffs from neighboring areas and writers outfitted with cameras, Harney County Sheriff David Ward and Ammon Bundy, one of the occupation pioneers, visited quickly and considerately at a convergence near Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, which the activists seized Saturday.
Authorities haven’t removed the group of roughly two dozen people, some from as far away as Arizona and MI.
Columnist Timothy Egan spent years covering the American West for The New York Times. “However, the sheriff is keeping all options open”, the Harney County Sheriff’s Office said on its Facebook page. Oregon Live reported that despite Ammon Bundy’s previous plea for snacks and other supplies, the group plans to remain on refuge land and will not be surrendering on Friday.
The protesters have repeatedly said they want two local ranchers, Dwight and Steven Hammond, freed from prison. The protesters are demanding a plan to turn over federal lands to locals.
“This is meant to be a peaceful occupation”, Fincum said.
“They just keep an eye on everything that is going on to make sure nothing stupid happens”, Bundy told The Oregonian on Friday afternoon outside refuge headquarters. “I’m here to talk to give you guys the opportunity to leave the county peacefully and get back to your families”, Ward said, after acknowledging that he understands the group’s desire to be heard.
Harney County Sheriff David Ward said via Twitter that he asked Ammon Bundy to respect the wishes of residents.
“I can only say to him, we will take that offer, but not yet”, said Bundy, the son of Cliven Bundy, a Nevada rancher who in 2014 was at the center of a tense standoff with federal officials over grazing rights. Three Oregon sheriffs met with leaders of the armed group to try to persuade them to end their occupation of athe federal wildlife refuge after many local residents made it plain that’s what they want.
(AP Photo/Manuel Valdes). 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.
The Hammonds are long-time local residents who have distanced themselves from the group Bundy’s group. The two men were found guilty of arson when they started a fire to clear their property that spread to federal lands.
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The Hammonds were convicted of arson three years ago and served no more than a year. However, federal prosecutors appealed their sentences and requested that they receive the minimum of five years.
