<
https://hakaimagazine.com/news/in-coastal-british-columbia-the-haida-get-their-land-back/>
"Twenty years ago, Geoff Plant, the then attorney general of British Columbia,
made an offer to the Haida Nation. Many West Coast First Nations, including the
Haida, had never signed treaties with the Canadian government ceding their
traditional lands or resources, and Plant was trying to revive the faltering
process of treaty making. He wanted to smooth over relations with Indigenous
peoples, but he also wanted to help the province extract more resources from
Indigenous lands. To entice the Haida—a nation known throughout Canada for its
political savviness and resolve—he had what he thought was a bold bargaining
chip.
Like many other officials, Plant viewed the BC government as the clear landlord
of provincial lands, including those of the Haida Gwaii archipelago—10,000
square kilometers of forested islands located roughly 650 kilometers northwest
of Vancouver, British Columbia, and the Haida’s home for at least the past
13,000 years.
So here was Plant’s pitch: the BC government would give the Haida control of 20
percent of their lands, but that would require the nation dropping a title case
it had recently filed with the BC Supreme Court. Title refers to the inherent
right to own and manage Indigenous territories based on traditional use and
occupation. The Haida maintained that their territory included all of the land
area in the archipelago, as well as the surrounding airspace, seabed, and
marine waters.
The Haida saw Plant’s offer to the door.
“Why would we give up 80 percent of our land to get 20?” said Gidansda
(Guujaaw), the then president of the Council of the Haida Nation, to media at
the time. “This case is about respect for the Earth and each other. It is about
culture, and it is about life.”
The Haida’s steadfastness paid off. Although Haida leaders have kept a
potential court case in their back pocket all these years for leverage, they
ultimately haven’t needed it. In April 2024, the Haida Nation and the province
of British Columbia announced the Gaayhllxid/Gíihlagalgang “Rising Tide” Haida
Title Lands Agreement. In it, the BC government formally recognizes Haida
ownership of all the lands of Haida Gwaii. This is the first time in Canadian
history that the colonial government has recognized Indigenous title across an
entire terrestrial territory, and it’s the first time this kind of recognition
has occurred outside of the courts. Experts say it marks a new path toward
Indigenous reconciliation."
Via
Fix the News:
<
https://fixthenews.com/good-news-on-immunisation-conservation-in-mongolia-and-clean-energy-in-china/>
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
