And now:[EMAIL PROTECTED] (S.I.S.I.S.) writes: HAIDA TIRED OF SLOW TREATY TALKS, GOING TO COURT TO CLAIM ISLANDS The Globe and Mail, January 23, 1999, Page A5 by Paul Willcocks [S.I.S.I.S. note: The following mainstream news article may contain biased or distorted information and may be missing pertinent facts and/or context. It is provided for reference only.] The Aboriginal people of the Queen Charlotte Islands say they're fed up with the way they're being treated by both Ottawa and Victoria, and are taking their claim to the resource-rich coastal islands to court. Their decision to turn to the courts could become a trend in the wake of the Delgamuukw decision, which confirmed native bands' title to their traditional lands and said the courts would resolve disputes if negotiation didn't work. Ron Brown, president of the Council of the Haida Nation, said yesterday he expects to tell lawyers to begin preparing a land-title lawsuit next week. "Our people have already given us the mandate to get our title. We're going ahead with a full title case." The 6,000 Haida are breaking away from the BC Treaty Commission process, which is supervising 42 sets of negotiations between bands and the federal and provincial governments. [S.I.S.I.S. note: former President of the Council of the Haida Nation, Miles Richardson is now Chief Commissioner of the BC Treaty Commission.] The BC and federal governments have been trying to get all outstanding land claims settled through deals such as the Nisga'a treaty, but opposition to that agreement has come from both aboriginal and non-aboriginal people. Mr. Brown said the Haida were alarmed by the Nisga'a treaty, which left the Nisga'a with 5 per cent of the land they had claimed. Peter Smith of the Aboriginal Affairs Ministry said the Haida decision is disappointing. "Obviously, we want to pursue negotiations with the Haida," he said yesterday. But it's not a shock that a people have turned to the courts, he said. "I don't think that's a surprise to anyone following the Delgamuukw decision." Mr. Brown said the Haida won't withdraw from the treaty process. However, Joseph Whiteside, senior consultation adviser with the federal treaty office, said its policy is to end negotiations when sued. The Haida claim includes all the Queen Charlotte Islands, off the northwestern BC coast, two Alaskan islands and most of the sea floor in the area. The Queen Charlotte Islands stretch about 200 kilometres, and the total area claimed is about 6,000 square kilometres. It includes offshore oil and gas reserves that the Geological Survey of Canada has said may be 10 times those of Newfoundland's offshore Hibernia field. Mr. Brown said a provincial proposal to open Graham Island to land-based oil and gas exploration was one of the factors triggering the move to the courts. "We've got nothing against progress, we just want to be part of it," he said. :-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-: "The purpose of the BC Treaty Process is to legitimize the theft of our lands." Haida Elder Lavina White SOVEREIGNTY IS THE ANSWER - CANADA IS THE PROBLEM Letters to the Globe and Mail - mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only.
