HALIFAX– The Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’ kmaw Chiefs states it has actually denied a deal from the government Fisheries Department concerning the facility of source of income fisheries.
The 13 principals released a declaration today claiming the most up to date deal was a “rebranding” of formerly denied propositions.
The principals claim Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier provided the deal in December to 36 First Nations throughout Mi’kmaq regions in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and eastern Quebec.
They claim the deal stands for a risk to the integral treaty civil liberties of Mi’ kmaq First Nations, primarily due to the fact that the priest has actually suggested a minimal fishery that neglects their right to gain a modest source of income from angling.
The declaration from the principals states that as opposed to establishing a rights-based fishery, the priest intends to press Mi’ kmaq farmers right into the licence-based system made use of by non-indigenous business fishers.
Chief Wilbert Marshall of the Potlotek First Nation states the proposition “raises serious alarms.”
Marshall, co-lead of the assembly’s fisheries portfolio, said Lebouthillier’s plan reminded him of proposals submitted more than 20 years ago.
“(Those propositions) stopped working to regard and support our integral civil liberties,” he said in a statement. “Our treaty right to fish is not an industrial fishery.”
Chief Gerald Toney of the Annapolis Valley First Nation said the Mi’kmaq First Nations have already built a better way forward by developing community-based harvest plans. Those plans, he said, ” would certainly be endangered if we also delighted these brand-new arrangements with (the Fisheries Department) under this proposition.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 24, 2025.
The Canadian Press
