Treaty 6 chiefs win support from House of Lords

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A trip to London, England by a group of Treaty Six chiefs to lobby support from the British government proved more successful than expected.

The delegation of 25 chiefs from Western Canada won the support of 10 British MPs and lords in their fight with Ottawa over treaty recognition, Beaver Lake Chief Alphonse Lameman said.

The House of Lords agreed to form an all-party committee on Aboriginal peoples and advance a motion in parliament calling upon the British and Canadian governments to endorse a conference on Indian treaties.

"I was really delighted that we achieved this much because we are usually hitting ourselves against a brick wall so many years now," Lameman said.

"This time around I think we made some headway."

The group also spoke to several university gatherings during their eight-day trip through central England. The treaty chiefs spoke to students from the universities of Oxford, Leeds and Manchester before meeting with parliamentarians Nov. 25.

The diplomatic delegation, which included representation from the Samson,

Louis Bull and the Paul Bands in Alberta, met the following day with officials from the Commonwealth Secretariat to see up a framework for future developments.

This is not the first time the chiefs have lobbied the British governments to force Ottawa to recognize Native Treaty Rights, said Saddle Lake Elder Eugene Steinhauer. A delegation travelled to Britain during the repatriation talks in 1982 in a "battle to reject the Constitution."

Such direct negotiations with Great Britain have had an impact on the confederacy, he said.

"It has changed the course of our history over the last 10 or 12 years. Our relationship with Great Britain is still there. And they'll have to ensure that Canada fulfills its treaty obligations."

Unlike many other nations in Canada, including the Assembly of First Nations, the Treaty Six Confederacy has never consented to the Constitution, Steinhauer said.

"It's unfortunate to say that these people have gone down the river to assimilation...It's been the intent of the Canadian government for over a century to assimilate the Indians under its colonization policy."

Self-government legislation is based on the extinguishment of land and treaty rights, he said. Nothing will change for the better until the First Nations adopt the "healing process" that Treaty Six is undertaking with Britain.

The confederacy plans to set up a meeting with Indian Affairs Minister Ron Irwin as soon as possible. They also want to meet with newly elected Prime Minister Jean Chretien sometime in the new year.