B.C. Treaty Commission sets sights on having 14 treaties signed in 2 years

VANCOUVER — The British Columbia Treaty Commission says the political climate provincially and federally is ripe for pushing ahead stalled First Nation treaty negotiations.

The commission released its annual report Wednesday saying 14 negotiations involving 32 First Nations are in the advanced stages, and chief commissioner Celeste Haldane said the goal is to see those treaties signed in the next two years.

“The process has momentum now,” she said. “Communities are . . . able to break the shackles of the Indian Act, they’re truly self-governing, they’re truly self-determining, and they’re actually doing things the way they want to based on what their communities’ needs are. I think that’s incredibly important.”

The commission was established in 1992 as an independent body to facilitate treaty negotiations between B.C. First Nations and the provincial and federal governments. There have been eight modern treaties signed in the province.

Commissioner Jerry Lampert said the discourse in Ottawa that indicates an interest in reconciliation as well as a noticeable “sea change” in Victoria with the new NDP government are encouraging.

“We see certain moves being made from the prime minister on down that indicate that the federal government wants to see progress,” he said. “That high-level conversation has to get down to the grassroots levels at the tables we attend where the negotiations take place.”

Negotiations began in May 1993.