Creation of air weapons range broke treaties

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Ottawa breached its treaty and fiduciary obligations with a band in Alberta and Saskatchewsan forbidding each from hunting on their traditional lands, a federal commission ruled.

The federal government broke Treaty 6 with the Cold Lake First Nation in Alberta and Treaty 10 with the Canoe Lake First Nation in Saskatchewan commandeering the bands' traditional hunting grounds in the early 1950s to create the Primrose Air Weapons Range, Indian Claims Commissioner Jim Prentice said at an Aug. 17 news conference in Edmonton.

"It is clear, from the accounts of the First Nations people and the overall historical record, that when the First Nations signed the treaties, their primary concern was to protect and preserve their ability to make a living and to remain self-sufficient," he said. The creation of the air weapons range completely destroyed their independence."

Cold Lake and Canoe Lake band members trapped in the region, 300 km northeast of Edmonton, for centuries until the federal government moved in and abruptly appropriated 11,630 square km of land in 1954 for a bombing and artillery range, Prentice said.

The Cold Lake First Nation and its neighbor have been waiting for this day since the exclusion of the First Nations from their land, said Cold Lake Chief Mary Francois.

"The chief and council requested a fair settlement since the loss of their traditional livelihood," she said. "We sought to be dealt with fairly and in justice."

The commissioners were struck the totality of the destruction of these communities, Prentice said. After the First Nations were expelled from their traditional lands, their pride and independence were quickly displaced as they faced an inescapable cycle of poverty.

The Cold Lake and Canoe Lake bands submitted land claims to the federal government in 1975 and again in 1986. But both claims were rejected because Ottawa said there was no "outstanding lawful obligation," and that the treaty permitted the government to take up land for the purposes of settlement.

The bands made a joint submission to the Indian Claims Commission in 1992.

The commission held community sessions in Canoe Lake and Cold Lake in December 1992, and again in April 1993. The commission also heard testimony from Stan Knapp, the region's Indian agent during the 1950s.

Chief Francois would not comment on how she will progress with their land claim but said she planned to consult the band's Elders as soon as she returned to Cold Lake.

"I have to go back to the Cold Lake First Nation reserve and have meetings with my Elders and community members and go over what we plan," she said. "We will let our Elders plan our future."

The commission anticipates that Ottawa will now reconsider the bands' land claims, although there is no indication of how long it might take, Prentice said.

"'Outstanding Business,' which is the government's 1983 cornerstone policy document on specific First Nations claims, states that Ottawa will only honor a claim if

it proves there is an outstanding lawful obligation the federal government," Prentice said. "A breach of treaty or fiduciary duty are both considered outstanding lawful obligations."

The commission was established in the fall of 1991 following the Oka Crisis in Quebec to help settle specific land claim disputes between the First Nations and Ottawa.

The commission can rule on the validity of a rejected claim under Canada's Specific Claims Policy, make recommendations on compensation and act as an independent arbitrator between bands and the government.