Fishing feud
Chief of Sipekne’katik Band says native lobster fishing rights are being interfered with
e Sipekne’katik Band is accusing southwestern Nova Scotia lobster shermen of throwing native shing rights overboard.
“ere has been protesting and people are interfering with my people exercising their rights,” Chief Mike Sack said ursday of a eet of about 10 boats operated by the band that has been shing lobster from di erent wharfs in St. Mary’s Bay in Digby County.
“It has been escalating quickly over the last little bit.”
Sack said local non-native shermen from Lobster Fishing Area 34, the most lucrative lobster waters in Canada that encompasses an area from Baccaro Point to just below Digby, do not recognize native treaty rights to sh out of season.
“Just yesterday, the local shermen gathered and have been protesting at di erent wharfs. ere have been instances where they have tried to sink the boats, cut the guys’ buoys o the traps. ey are interfering. They wouldn’t like if we interfered with their season.”
eir season, the commercial lobster season for the area, runs from the last week of November until the end of May.
Bernie Berry, a Yarmouth area lobster sherman and president of the Coldwater Lobster Association, said the chief’s claims are unfounded.
“I don’t know that you would call it a protest,” Berry said. “e bottom line is that they were given a right through several Supreme Court decisions. Some guys are concerned that some of the lobsters that are being caught are not going to food and ceremony but for sale. at’s not what this shery was set up to do. It was to provide food to the band, for ceremonies and special occasions. I think that is the concern of the shermen is the sale of some of the product that seems to have been going on.”
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled in favour of Donald Marshall Jr., in 1999, upholding the Mi’kmaq people’s rights to earn a moderate livelihood from commercial shing and hunting. Native lobster shermen subsequently interpreted the ruling as granting them rights to catch lobster out of season and clashes ensued with their non-native counterparts, who feared lobster stocks would be jeopardized.
e court was eventually forced to issue a clari cation of its ruling, which underlined that government could restrict Aboriginal
shing rights in the interests of conservation.
“Maybe some are exercising the right to a moderate living,” Sack said. “at’s no reason to have your life threatened.
“People have even quit, gone back home because they have kids to worry about. e biggest thing is that they talk about conservation. Collectively, our people take out 100,000 pounds of lobster over a year for our food shery. In the commercial season, they take out 75-million pounds of lobster. If they want conservation, put lobsters on a quota.”
Berry said there have been no altercations on the wharfs or on the water.