Land claims hinge Upon settlement — TERRACE — It’s a situation as _ confusing and complicated as any that faces the United Nations when countries have border dis- putes. ‘The ‘‘it?? is the Jand claims overlap situation in B.C. . One federal land claims official calls the situation a ‘*mess’” and a look at a map outlining land claims areas confirms his descrip- lion. There ate only a few areas lo which only one native group has slaked out ownership. Most of the overlaps are in northwestern B.C. The Gitksan-Wet’suwet’en claim, for example, swallows all of the territory. claimed by the Gitanyow (formerly Kitwancool) and takes in territory claimed by the Nisga’a of the Nass Valley. Nearly 80 per ‘cent of the Gitanyow otal ‘is’ within the Nisga’a one." There are, two Tsimshian claims with the larger one taking in the area of: the smaller one. Both of those ‘also take-in a bit of the area claimed by the Nisga’a. -Native leaders are reluctant (0 | talk openly of the situation and are even more reluclant to use the word overlap. They say that’s @ while word used by white governments to first define a‘situation that can be then setiled to the satisfaction of white laws. Instead, native leaders say that while there are areas owned by specific native groups, there are fringe areas in which there is shared jurisdiction. “I's being blown out of pro- portion as a means to divide and conquer,’’ Nisga’a Tribal Council executive director Rod Robitison said at a fall 1990 meeting of northwest tribal groups. “Governments like dealing in maps and boundaries. But we had no borders. Every nation has their own laws and tribal laws are con- sistent with cach olher,’’ he said. But there is growing pressure to seitle (or to use the word natives prefer — resolve) the overlap is- sue. The pressure is increasing the closer governments come to negotiating land claims treaties in BC, That's because the benefits of the treaties will be enormous. They will recognize and assign native tile, rights and résponsibilities to latge areas of land, Compensation in the form of many millions of dollars is also expected. Native governments will have the right of taxafion of ‘resource companies. They’ll be making the kinds of financial and resource use decisions .now exclusively within the jurisdiction of the fed- eral and provincial governments. So far the federal and provincial governments have agreed to slay ~ gut of the overlap situation. A recommendation in a 1991 task force on how to negotiate Jand claims in B.C. states over- laps should be dealt with by na- tive groups, Yet the federal government did settle an overlap in the Northwest Terrilories as part ofa settlement trealy. It listened to both sides and then drew a line down through a map to mark out the boundary. it’s Gitanyow versus the Nisga’a TERRACE — The most crucial overlap in northwestern B.C. is the one ‘between the Nisga’a of the. Nass Valley and the Gitanyow.: °°. At 9,600 square miles in size, the Nisga’a land claim takes in nearly 80 per cent of the area also claimed by. the, Gitanyow - formerly Kitwancool). It-isthe most crucial because the Nisga’a are now negotiating a settlement wilh the. federal and provincial governments. "Without, first teaching agree-. ' ” ment with the Gitanyow it will be difficult for the .Nisga’a to reach even an interim deal with the governments. . The Gilanyow take the position that:.the ‘Nisga’a_ can’t negotiate with. the ~ federal: and provincial governments . .as long as. there is disagreement over land owner- ship. - Tlie ‘history of contact between “the Nisga’a ‘and the Gitanyow is _ tied to the Nass River fishery. “The Nisga’a claim is centered on:the; entire Nass River and Its watershed while. the Gitanyow claim takes inthe upper Nass. "°Qne of-the most prized of all fish . ds the oolichan, a small species that provides valuable _ protein. and oil for burning in lamps: 3 “The best ' oolichan grounds on the Nass‘ are ‘localed in Nisga’a _ Aereitory . and.it: became an ac- _ cepted ‘practice. for the Nisga’a lo >. allow: the Gilanyow to share in the harvest. - : ; _ Marriages: took place between the: Neer a and the Gitanyow resulting in an intermingling of the two groups, °° That complicated matters for il also meant that names moved from one place to another. The most important names in. northwest native culture represent certain territories. ‘When one. chief who has an important name dies, the name and the territory is handed to the next in line. Each chief who has a name and thus a territory is responsible for the activities on it. It’s that re- sponsibility’ in northwest native culture that ties the people to the land and resources. Such transfers of names take place under the ayzuks or laws of the native groups. It’s done by tepeating stories in the feast halls as proof of ownership and juris- diction. The attempt to deal with the overlap between the Nisga’a and the Gitanyow accelerated’ when the Nisga’a moved to have their land claim recognized and then. negotiated. The two groups signed an agreement three years ago setting up a means to determine bound- aries. It involved naming a Nisga’a person and one from Gitanyow to act as overscers. The agrecment Stipulated that only those people whose territory was in the overlap would take part, Those people were to give their origin stories or adawaaks as proof of ownership. Several. meclings were held in 1990 and into 1991 at which rep- resentatives of the affected house The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, March 31, 1993 - Page AS OVERLAP OVERLOAD PS A qari Kitwanga ee ‘, Ao! ag qe: mu fn ge —— \ ‘ . an 9 he Hazelton a q col , i : he fi Susy] : hk yy ON Smithers .q MOST CONTENTIOUS of the northwest overlaps i is the one between the Nisga’ a of the Nass Valley and the Gitanyow north of Gitwangak. The large shaded gray area is the 9,600 square mile Nisga’a claim while the Gitanyow claim is contained within the broken line. The darker shade gray area is the overlap. Both sides have been trying for years to come to a resolution of the issue. The Gitanyow are the most vacal and at various times they are prepared to go to war or to court to prove their case. ily-ties-at heart of dis} territories told their stories. Last year the Gitanyow Office o£ Hereditary Chiefs with Glen Williams as president began pur- suing a different method of prov- ingownership. Williams pointed io the Calder case that the Nisga’a took to the Supreme Court of Canada in the Rod Robinson “We take things in stride. We have more important things to do.”’ ~ Jate 1960s. ; The high court split on the issue of whether aboriginal title existed and that decision spurred the fed- eral government to begin negotia- ting outstanding native land claims across the country. — When the Nisga’a launched that court case, Williams notes, they did not include the disputed terri- tory within ihe Gitanyow claim. He argues that means’ thc Nisga’a didn’t have confidence in their ownership of the land back then. The Nisga’a, however, left the land out because they didn’t want the main issue of tille to the land clouded by a dispute with their neighbours. Williams also began. talking more openly about the situation between the Nisga’a and the Gitanyow and that didn’t make the Nisga’a very happy. He became more vocal late last year when the Nisga’a signed a deal giving them a say in resource use decisions while their land claim is being negotiated. The interim protection measures agreement took in TFL. 51, territory claimed by both. Al- though TFL 51 has since dis- appeared, the wood supply in the area is up for grabs. ‘'By signing (the agreement) to include our lands, you have effec- tively damaged 10 years of dis- cussions and progress in resolv- ing this issue,’’ a letter from the Gitanyow chiefs to the Nisga’a stated in December 1992. Gitanyow president Williams also pointed out that death was the ultimate penalty for trespass according to halive law. And, in a December 1992 story ute : my et “hn in the Prince Rupert Daily News, he said there was a possibility of war between the two. “There will be no mercy shown to the Nisga’a Tribal Council. We have a history of war on the Meziadin and we sec the (Nisga’a) Tribal Council as the invaders again,’ said Williams. Nisga’a spokesmen responded by saying they were simply fol- lowing the agreement signed be- tween the two groups. And they reacted again carly February when Williams, at the last minute, cancelled a trip the Nisga’a had planned to Gitanyow to give theirstories. Nisga’a Tribal Council cxecu- tive director Rod Robinson wondered what was going on be- cause while Williams cancelled the trip, it was the Gitanyow hereditary chiefs who issued the invitation. Williams’ next move was ta threaten court action {o block the Nisga’a talks. ‘He's trying to make himself a martyr,’’ said Nisga’a ‘Tribal! Council exccullve director Rod Robinson of Williams. ‘‘He has an ego io Satisfy.’’. “For. your information, we went to court on our own cxpense to prove aboriginal title,” he said of the Calder case. , Despite all of what has gone on, Robinson:said the Nisga’a won't be, diverted from their negatia- tions by the Gitanyow actions. “We take things in stride, We have more. important things to do,’’ he said. ar res cont rl Tk "TO THETERAACE STANDARD Hunting change a worry _| Dear Sir: This lcller is in direct response lo the sweeping inter- im measures that are being proposed by the Fish and Wildlife Branch. : . I am truly apprehensive over [ the direction of these changes. We all know that conservalion is a necessary tool to bring game limits back (to. their. respecied. levels, where all British Columbians. can enjoy a bountiful harvest, = But how can this be if the aboriginal people in. this. pro- vince are not required: lo: abe serve these measures. What we have now is a dual sysicm. of standards that are dircetly responsible: for’ thése new proposed: changes." In other words, a. slop gap measure is being prepared. If the government follows its usual policy of “‘hands off’? to the aboriginals then: ihe non- aboriginals arc ° going. to ‘be asked to pick up the slack. ‘This probably will manifest ilsell in a shorter hunting season and in some areas, total closure to non-aboriginals. Not only does the policy of ‘hands — off’’ discriminate against non-aboriginal persons, it is also. responsible. for promoting a reseniment toward aboriginal people. We may yet in the long run deplete our wild game stock and our fish stocks may trickle to a mere nothing. Bul we as |. people musi. co-habilale. in these small communities and the quicker we address this ap- palling behaviour... by... our government the better il.will be for all concerned. Gary Drake, ° Terrace, B.C, ‘Wor't* rest Dear Sir: As residents of Terrace, we arc saddened to learn (hat we all have the NIMBY ‘(Nol In My Backyard) Syndrome: as diagnosed by Dan Wong of Dairyworld Foods. Could it be that he is suffer- ing from the same syndrome as he scems lo recognize the problem. As if: this isn’t bad -. enough, we have mass. hysteria as suggested by Terty Roberis of the waste managemen branchin Smithers. We have been informed that Dairyland has put their ap- plication on hold. Why on hold? Why was this applica- tion not withdrawn in the face of overwhelming public oppo- sition, ag stated by Dan Wong. We are skeptical of their in- fentions and will not be satisfied until the issue has been tolally resolved by the ap- i plication being wilhdrawn. We would like to. thank all the many ‘supporters who phoned, wrote. letters, went i door-to-door, ‘boycotled, gave , Supplies and precious.time, : ‘Terrace Toxic Trash Rejeciers, — Terrace, B.C, More on Page A7 | The Start is for peo ople tearing how. to read... _ Paper man This is Devon Kuiper, He has his own newspa- per. It is called OPOV. That stands for Our Point of —-Miew. Devon's . newspaper a for’ college students, It. “does to college students throughout the northwest. ; The newspaper contains news. ‘about the college in. the northwest. It also has other kinds of news. Devon began his news- paper career in high school. He first worked for a Caledonia Secondary School newspaper. Then he started his own. It was also called OPOV. Devon spends a lot. of time on his newspaper. Watch out this Easter long weekend. The RCMP will be out looking for speeders. They say loo many people speed while driv- ing. And speed causes lots of accidents. Nearly one-third of ac- cidents here in 1991 were caused — when. ~ people drove too fast.