Aboriginal jurisdiction in spotlight

Tla’amin (Sliammon) Nation representatives were on hand to hear how the Sechelt (Shíshálh) First Nation plans to take control of territorial resource development.

Clint Williams, Tla’amin chief, was invited to the Sechelt community forum recently, along with representatives of the Squamish First Nation and elected local government officials from the lower Sunshine Coast.

Williams said he thinks people are now trying to gauge how to digest the Sechelt First Nation message and gain a better sense of what the plan is.

“Many of the reps were generally supportive of acknowledging the first nation time immemorial presence on the land so it wasn’t closed ears,” Williams said. “They talked about working together so it was quite productive.”

He said he thinks that part of the reason why his first nation’s representation was requested at the meeting was because of its relationship with the Powell River Regional District and the City of Powell River.

“It’s pretty hard to make any progress or do anything productive or positive when you are fighting,” Williams said. “Once the lines of communications are open for respectful, two-way communication, it sure helps things along and makes for a more productive relationship.”

Williams said Tla’amin representatives have been meeting with local city and regional officials over development and treaty issues. He said the Sechelt First Nation is somewhat different than Tla’amin in that while they are self-governing, they are not a treaty band, so the recent Chilcotin Supreme Court case on aboriginal title will affect treaty and non-treaty bands in different ways.

In terms of the intricacy of Tla’amin’s own proximity to other first nations lands, Williams said the Sechelt First Nation overlaps in the south, some of the Qualicum First Nation lands overlap on Texada Island, and there are the K’ómoks, Homalco and Klahoose first nation territorial overlaps.

“We’re all in tight quarters here,” he said.

Williams added that the Tla’amin is supportive of whatever the Sechelt First Nation pursues and that “we have a good, respectful relationship with them as well.”

Sechelt First Nation put senior levels of government on notice that it is assuming control over resource development within its territory, Chief Calvin Craigan said during the gathering at the first nation’s longhouse attended by Williams.

Craigan said the Sechelt First Nation is not going to wait for a court to acknowledge the band’s jurisdiction over its land and resources.

“We will assert our right to overcome the provincial jurisdiction,” Craigan said. “The province will have no more say in how they run our land, how they manage our resources. They will have no more say in the foreshore, they will have no more say in the water rights, they will have no more say in how forest tenures are handed out. We have put them on notice.

“We are telling them that we are taking control, we are taking our rightful place to govern the resources within our territory.”

While the band’s position follows the Supreme Court of Canada’s landmark Tsilhqot’in (Chilcotin) decision on aboriginal title in late June, Craigan said Sechelt had given the province “the right to come to our territory to negotiate new ways, new relationships, yet we’ve been denied.”

Craigan hailed the Tsilhqot’in decision, which affirmed aboriginal title to traditional territory that has not been ceded.

With files from the Coast Reporter