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Fire Thunder said the idea never was to open a clinic that performs abortions, but rather to open a women's health facility that would provide family planning information and emergency and traditional contraceptives.
''If that's the way it was presented to people in the first place, I think she would have been OK,'' said Will Peters, a tribal council representative from the Pine Ridge District.
''Her stand, by what we read and what we hear from all accounts, was to support abortion. I've never seen such a turnaround.''
Peters made a motion at Tuesday's council meeting to suspend Fire Thunder indefinitely. When that failed, the council voted to suspend her for 20 days until an impeachment hearing could take place.
After Gov. Mike Rounds signed a bill that would ban most abortions in South Dakota, Fire Thunder said she would work to open a Planned Parenthood clinic on the reservation, beyond the reach of state law. Many believe abortion to be against Lakota values.
Planned Parenthood issued a press release thanking Fire Thunder, but said it had no plans to open a clinic in Pine Ridge or anywhere else in South Dakota.
Fire Thunder, who was out of state Tuesday, said the people who brought the complaint were the same people who have been opposing her presidency since she was elected in November 2004.
A group of women has agreed to form a board of directors for the proposed women's clinic, which would be called Sacred Choices.
Betty Bull Bear, one of the board members, said it would be a wellness center, and the board would wait to see what happens with a statewide abortion ban referendum and any subsequent legal challenges before deciding whether to attempt to provide any abortion services.
