It could kick-start treaty negotiations in B.C.
Canada, B.C. and First Nations Summit officials have together hammered out a new 91裸聊视频渞ights-based91裸聊视频� for treaty negotiations in B.C. to replace the previous one-size-fits-all approach.
The 91裸聊视频楻ecognition and Reconciliation of Rights Policy for Treaty Negotiations in British Columbia91裸聊视频� policy will usher in a new way of dealing with treaties.
91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 a substantive transformation,91裸聊视频� said Carolyn Bennett, federal minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations in a phone interview. 91裸聊视频淚t felt historic because it means no longer do people have to surrender their rights in order to get out from under the Indian Act.91裸聊视频�
Terry Horne, chief of Yakweakioose First Nation near Chilliwack, said his community is part of the six- member St贸:l艒 Xwexwilmexw Treaty Association, which is at Stage 5 in the treaty process.
91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 all good stuff, and it91裸聊视频檚 what we had during our negotiations,91裸聊视频� said Chief Horne about the rights-based approach. 91裸聊视频淭he big change is not having to extinguish rights and title to enter the process got put back on the table.91裸聊视频�
Although the SXTA expects to sign a final agreement within the next five years, and this new policy could help other Indigenous groups.
91裸聊视频淚t does set some standards,91裸聊视频� said Horne. 91裸聊视频淲hen we were in negotiations, we were pushing these same boundaries, which were groundbreaking, and were the first.91裸聊视频�
The new policy was co-developed by treaty principals 91裸聊视频� Canada, the First Nations Summit and British Columbia 91裸聊视频� to offer guidance on how treaties, agreements and other arrangements are to be negotiated, consistent with the constitution, and commitments to implement the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in B.C., as well as international law, Indigenous laws and legal orders.
With the federal budget of 2019 containing provisions for forgiving treaty loans, the new policy could also be incentive for those who left the treaty process or never entered to begin with, Minister Bennett said.
The new policy 91裸聊视频渃lears the way91裸聊视频� for recognition of Indigenous rights and title, including self-determination, and could lead to restoring trust in the process, said Robert Phillips, a member of the First Nations Summit political executive.
91裸聊视频淚 think this will be very significant in making progress in treaty negotiations,91裸聊视频� Phillips said, calling it 91裸聊视频渁 breakthrough, and a step toward reconciliation.91裸聊视频�
There might be some naysayers but he urges them to look closely at what91裸聊视频檚 in the policy.
The central feature is basing negotiations on the recognition and continuation of rights without those rights being modified, surrendered or extinguished when a treaty is signed.
91裸聊视频淔rom this recognition, and more importantly the implementation of this new approach, it will foster more of a relationship between First Nations and the Crown. Parties would enter negotiations in the past and it was like a divorce. This is more of a relationship,91裸聊视频� said Phillips.
It could help address longstanding issues that became obstacles as the treaty policy stalled over the years.
91裸聊视频淲e look forward to the breakthroughs that should result from these long-awaited innovations,91裸聊视频� he added.
It also includes commitments to address shared or overlapping territories, and to respect the rights of Indigenous groups not participating in the B.C. treaty process.
A made-in-B.C. treaty negotiations process was created in 1992. Since then, 11 First Nations in B.C. have reached modern treaties with self-government and 28 First Nations groups are now in the advanced stages of negotiation.
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