-Nisga’a citizenship settled

TT COULD go down as one of
the longest and most intensive

’ searches to date in B.C.

ee ae Te eT a Ea le kh ee Me Oe ae ee A a a en a ee Te 8 a

On the wanted list are all people
who qualify for Nisga’a
citizenship based on qualifica-
tions agreed to last week by the
Nisga'a Tribal Council and the
federal and provincial govern-
ments, ;

AS many as 6,000 people could
qualify, estimates Ed Wright,
secretary-treasurer of the Nisga'a

. Tribal Council.

Nailing down a number is im-
portant, said Wright, as it'll form
the basis for cash and resources
involved in a final land claims
settlement.

“The per capita basis has been
done pretty well in other areas,”
Wright noted.

Approximately one-third of
those people live in the Nisga’a
home land of the Nass Valley,
with Prince Rupert, Port Edward,
Terrace and Vancouver conlain-

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ing the majority of the remainder,
said Ed Wright.

Under the agreement, a person
is entitled to be enrolled if that
person:

* is of Nisga’a ancestry and his
or her mother was born into one
of the four Nisga’a tribes;

* is descended from a person as
described above;

* is an adopted child of a per-
son described above, im accor
dance with Nisga’a custom or
recognized laws in Canada;

* is an aboriginal person who is
married to someone described
above and has been adopted by
one of the four Nisga’a tribes un-
der Nisga’a traditional law.

Wright said the Nisga'a Tribal
Council realizes not all Nisga’a
will be found and enrolled.

“Some people were adopted
out when they were children to
other places,”’ he said.

A fair amount of Nisga’a now
live in the United States and some

> Mantiques

have been found in Europe,
Wright added.

That’s one of the reasons the
three partics negotiating the claim
have set a two-year initial enrol-
ment periad. ,

And, said Wright, the enrolment
list will never be cut off.

Wright said the Nisga’a have
already done their own census be-
cause they need to establish very
soon who can vote on a land
claims settlement and who can’t,

‘‘What we’re doing is deciding
who can qualify, What they
qualify for has yét to be
determined,'” he said.

Wright added that Nisga’a
citizenship will be different than
the band lists now being kept by
the federal government.

**There are people on those lists
who are non-Indian band mem-
bers. We're already said to the
two governments that they are not
going to be given Nisga’a
citizenship. That doesn’t mean

Wiis i ae
—

We
AY

\

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May 7
1:00 p.m.

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SHEE MCMIMCI a

we're saying they won’t be slatus
Indians. The federal government
has a general list and could put
them on there,’’ he said.

Wright added that enrolment
and eligibility qualifications
might also clarify the land claim
overlap between the Nisga’a and
the Gitanyow (formerly Kitwan-
cool) to territory in the Meziadin
area.

*‘A lot of people from Kitwan-
cool have lived in the valley for
generations and fit the qualifica-
tions,’’ said Wright.

“Clearly there have been mixed
marriages with people from
Gilanyow. They've come to our
territory and lived in our valley
according to our laws,” he said. .

The two-year initial enrolment
period will be financed by. the
provincial and federal govem-
ments and then become the re-
sponsibility of the Nisga’a.

Chief provincial negotiator Jack

The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, April 20, 1994 - AS

NEW IN TOWN?
LET US PUT

OUT THE MAT
FOR YOU!

be sure to call

Ed Wright ean aon

Ebbels said a budget for the two Phone Elaine 625-3018
b blished

years has yet to be establishe Phone Diana 638-8576

and there isn’t yet an official start
date for the enrolment.

. Phone Gillian 635-3044 ]

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