Ottawa signs agreement with Whitecap
Commitment to further discussion
Whitecap Dakota First Nation wants to reconcile the Dakota peoples’ relationship with the Crown.
A memorandum of understanding signed Saturday between Chief Darcy Bear and Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan will recognize the long-standing relationship between the Dakota people and the Canadian government.
At the time the treaties were signed in Saskatchewan, the Dakota were left out of negotiations because they were considered American due to the significant tracks of territory held in the United States.
“There’s always been this misunderstanding that we’ve been considered American Indians. When they had the treaty signing, you had to be British Indians,” Bear said.
“Anytime the British were in a conflict, we were called to fight. And we answered that call. We have all these British ties.”
In Saskatchewan, land of treaties, Whitecap is still outside of any such agreement.
Bear hopes the agreement signed Saturday, which commits the government to opening further discussions with the First Nation, will open the door to a fair and open discussion for a possible agreement in future.
For Whitecap, the end goal of the deal is to open land negotiations. Being without an agreement, the Dakota were provided less land per family than those who signed trea- ties during the settlement of Saskatchewan, Bear said.
Given that 2012 marks the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 and the contributions of Dakota people to the British in that conflict and previous others, Bear said the Dakota people deserve to be brought into the fold.
“Based on all that,” he said, “we’re looking at how we can move forward without going to court. We don’t want to go to court here — that’s not how we like to do things.”
Duncan didn’t leave any hints the government was open to new land claims, but he emphasized the agreement as a move toward reconciliation.
“Today, our government and Whitecap Dakota have taken an important step to renew and strengthen our relationship,” Duncan said.
The government of Canada has also offered to enter into similar agreements and pursue a similar dialogue with the other Dakota-Lakota First Nations in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.