"I know this is scary, but we can do it," were Melissa Quocksister's parting words to the gathered members of the K'贸moks First Nation at the initialling ceremony for the Nation's draft treaty with the Province of B.C. and Federal Goverment.
While not the final step in the process, Monday's ceremony marked a major milestone in the process towards ratifying a living treaty. The draft treaty's initialling essentially finalized the draft wording of the treaty, which will now be presented to members of the First Nation and taken to a ratification vote in the coming months. Federal Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Gary Anandasangaree, and provincial minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation Murray Rankin joined Elected Chief Ken Price in the signing ceremony.
"This is a very important day because it resets our relationship that was founded on deeply hurtful colonial practices, and reinforced by racist legislation like the Indian Act," said Anandasangaree. "It enables K'贸moks to essentially become a self-governing People with their own laws and ability to enforce them, and also the ability to determine and self-determine the future."
The treaty process has been going on for three decades, and has changed over time to be a modern treaty that will be a living document, as opposed to a static one.
"The thinking by Canada ... has evolved," Anandasangaree said. "Ten years ago, if you were entering into a treaty there would be issues of extinguishment of rights and finality of the agreement, releases. It's very different now, because we are in a modern era of treaty-making where we know we might not get everything right, right now. But we will have the space and opportunity to improve. As we improve our ideas and notions of what should be in treaties we will make that available to existing treaty holders as well."
"We no longer insist on what people used to call 'cede, release and surrender' of rights," added Rankin. "If new things come along, we'll be able to open it up and confirm those changes."
Anandasangaree explained to the gathered members and guests that modern treaties are not about taking rights away from anyone, rather "we are ensuring that you have the ability to maximize their fullest and truest potential, and it is not something where we're taking away from someone so you can enjoy what comes to you. We are reasserting your inherent rights here."
On Friday, the Chief of the Wei Wai Kum First Nation in Campbell River Chris Roberts put out a statement saying that Monday's ceremony should be postponed because of "serious unresolved issues including deep infringements of Wei Wai Kum and Lig虒wi艂dax虒w Aboriginal rights and title" and that "the Treaty, as written, would also extinguish rights and claims of the Walitsama, a tribe of the Lig虒wi艂dax虒w, many of whose descendants are currently members of the Wei Wai Kum and We Wai Kai First Nations."
鈥淲e generally support all First Nations in their quest to reclaim their lands and governance through Treaties鈥�, said Wei Wai Kum Elected Chief Councillor Chris Roberts. 鈥淗owever, K鈥檕虂moks has grossly over-stepped their territory and is trying to use the Treaty process to take away the lands, waters and rights that our ancestors fought and died for.鈥�
鈥淲ei Wai Kum are prepared to take any necessary steps to protect our rights and Territory鈥�, said Chief Roberts. 鈥淭his is not only our elected Chief and Council. Our Hereditary Chiefs have an important role in managing and protecting our Territory and some of our Chiefs hold seats and rights in the Salmon River watershed. We have engaged with our Hereditary Chiefs, and they are behind our statements and position and we will support our Hereditary Chiefs in doing what they need to do under our laws and culture."
Rankin said that he was aware of Roberts' statement, and that "we have been aware of the fact of overlap. It's a fact fact of life in modern, British Columbia. And so we're hopeful that we can find accommodations necessary to satisfy not just the Chief of the Wei Wai Kum, but We Wai Kai and other Nations that have an interest in what we call overlap. We have work to do, but we have plenty of time to get it right."
"There are challenges with territory and discussion with other Nations," said K'贸moks Chief Ken Price. "We work very well with We Wai Kai and Wei Wai Kum, but there are things that need to be discussed and they don't get settled over a couple of weekends. They take decades, they take hereditary leadership to sit down and talk, Chief and council to sit down and talk. It really takes B.C. and Canada to also work with us. We want to be there for those two Nations and help them right some of the wrongs that have happened with them over their history."
From here, the process will go back to the Nation for education, after which members will vote on the Nation's constitution, then on whether or not to ratify the treaty. Some possibilities under the new treaty include K'贸moks court and laws, peace officers, and the ability for self-governance.
