Unfettered acknowledgment and respect of Aboriginal right and title to their territories needs to be the first step before the next steps of reunion and compromise can start, said shishalh Nation band councillors Garry Feschuk and Tom Paul.
Last week, the Sechelt Indian Band (SIB) put a statement in Coast Reporter concerning their rights to the shishalh territory. This week, Feschuk and Paul sat down to talk about what the recent court win of Tsilqot'in Nation establishing Aboriginal title and rights and the duty to accommodate means to B.C.'s First Nations communities and what it could mean to how future decisions are made on the Sunshine Coast.
"The Tsilqot'in win was a huge victory for First Nations across the country because it establishes what we have always maintained, that our title was never extinguished and is still alive," Feschuk said. Paul added that for too long, "people have denied that Aboriginal interests exist."
Since 1999 Feschuk said the SIB has been gathering historical information and oral history proving they have title to their territories. The councillors said the Tsilqot'in court case will significantly affect the SIB's ability to demonstrate their rights and have those rights recognized in a consequential manner. Feschuk said historically when First Nations came to the treaty table, the government was already sitting there with pre-determined outcomes. He added, if upheld on appeal, the Tsilqot'in court case now means First Nations would be sitting down at the treaty table under a different level of negotiation. In practicality, the court decision means where First Nations are able to prove title, the province will lose provincial jurisdiction over those lands, and consequently, so could local and municipal governments, Feschuk added.
Essentially, solidification of Aboriginal rights and title to territories will be the cornerstone of all other processes and of how those processes will unfold, be interpreted and will interface with other processes, government bodies and communities, Feschuk and Paul explained. Feschuk said the SIB has already done a Land Resource Management Plan (LRMP), but that is only one small step in the overall process. Now they are waiting for the provincial government to bring the business of LRMPs to cabinet so cabinet can develop terms of reference to determine the scope of what will be negotiated in regards to land use plans. Feschuk and Paul indicated some groups have expressed concern and displeasure over the fact they haven't been at the forefront of the SIB's land use planning process. However, the work the SIB has done has been about "creating a land use plan in our territory" and that traditionally, the SIB has not been invited to participate from the get-go with other governmental bodies and their planning processes.
"When the shoe's on the other foot, people don't like it," said Feschuk.
They said the provincial government as well as local governments and other community stakeholders first have to understand and recognize Aboriginal right and title to their territories.
"When there is recognition, than there can be reconciliation," Feschuk said. "This shifts the table a little bit."
Both men say they have seen an unfortunate "dragging of feet" when it comes to recognizing the SIB's right and title to their territories "because it's in [the stakeholders', governments'] best interest to develop a relationship with First Nations," said Feschuk. There are mutual interests, said Feschuk and Paul, and recognition will change the nature of the dialogue. In the end, they said, what is important will be reconciling the different interests because as communities, they have to work and live together and need each other.
"Our land use plan has been and is being developed to protect our interests in our territory, and that had to come first," Feschuk added. Although other First Nations communities have spent years, even decades on this process, Feschuk and Paul said the SIB is "looking for a significantly shorter time frame" for the completion of theirs. Right now, they said the SIB is working on policies and guidelines addressing the diverse issues specific to the different areas of SIB territories.
"Once we have terms of reference and we finalize them, there will be a process in there for how local governments will be involved as well as other stakeholders and resource companies," Feschuk said.
