Poli 305 - BC polítics 7 - Federalism _ First Nations

• 1. This allows the provincial lieutenant governor to reserve a law saying that they are reserving that legislation and sending it to the House of Commons to be debated and passed
• 2. This gave the federal government the power to veto any provincial law but it hasn't been used in a long time and they wouldn't dare to use it now.

• 1. It says that the federal government has the power to legislate, notwithstanding that list for the peace order and good government of Canada. So they can overrule the provinces if a law was not according to the peace order and good governance of Canada
• 2. The courts have largely discredited this power

• 1. The federal government wanted to establish the welfare states however most of the provisions of a welfare state or provincial including civil rights and property.
• 2. So in order for them to create a welfare state they had to negotiate with the provinces

In order to establish pen Canadian social benefits that were equal across the country they negotiated with the provinces and offered them money

Federal government paid half and the provinces paid half for social programs at the beginning.

• 1. The process of federalism is the mutual exchange of jurisdictional involvement in exchange for money.
• 2. Today there is an intricate relationship between federal and provincial government where the federal government's aims to provide leadership and they are confident that the Canadian people expect their social programs (which are provincial jurisdiction) to be in place.

They see British Columbia as the spoiled child of Confederation

Charlottetown Accord 1992

the recognition of Quebec as a distinct society was looked down upon by many British Columbians because they felt like they were also as distinct society from the rest of Canada

• 1. Icons and images of Canada as a winter country don't apply in British Columbia
• 2. British Columbia sees itself as a separate region from the other Western provinces based on landscape and economy

That he didn't fight as hard as Alberta and was criticized for not sticking up for BC

1. The citizens assembly on electoral reform

• minor thing
• 2. Regional districts for municipal structures since the 1960s
• 3. Grants law: requirement to pay for gasoline before you fill your tank
• 4. Insight : safe injection site
• 5. BC Alberta and Saskatchewan Free Trade Agreement TILMA - Trade Investment and Labour Mobility agreement which creates Canada's 2nd largest economy

the federal government has jurisdiction over these two pipeline. The National Energy Board and the federal government makes the decisions and BC has no say in the process.

• 1. human rights issues: moral and ethical issues in respect to treaties
• 2. economic issues: so much of the land in BC is still in dispute. All sorts of economic activity cannot proceed without negotiation with First Nations

• North east of province is called treating 8
• It is a major oil and gas region. the Northern Gateway pipeline is proposed to go through this region and First Nations say that this will violate their treaty

• Indigenous people have been in BC since time immemorial.
• The first Europeans arrived in BC in 1774 to 75
• 1. Spanish navigators from Mexico began to map the coast
• Juan de Fuca, Valdez, Galliano and Langara
• 2. In 1774 British Captain Cook came to be BC
• In 1778 captain Vancouver came
• 3. Alexander Mackenzie came across Canada and arrived in Bella Coola in 1773 and relied heavily on indigenous people but never saw the land as belonging to the Aboriginal people.

* British Columbia was further from Britain than any other part of the Empire at that point in time

Russia had claimed Alaska but you the United States was looking at Washington and Oregon. when the United States purchased Alaska from the Russians the boundary was at 54 40, but this split the Haida between Haida Gwaii and an island on the Alaskan side but there was no consideration for this

In 1763 the British signed the Royal Proclamation which was the basis for signing treaties with Aboriginal people.

This came as a product of a military alliance between the British crown and the Six Nations of Iroqois during a war between the British and French. The French signed an alliance with the Huron.

It was a recognition of the existence and ownership of the Aboriginal people to the land

• 1. Treaty 8 in northeastern BC
• 2. The Douglas treaties: on the east coast of Vancouver Island. this includes the Nanaimo First Nation.

The Catholic Church was the mediator on how wars would be resolved. one Christian king could not claim the territory of another Christian king, but between Christians and non believers this was acceptable. Therefore Aboriginal lamd was seen as open for claiming. BC was unclaimed by other Christian kings

Halquamalem

• All of the land in the Halqqmelam group was given to private investors and BC is only able to negotiate with respect to crown land. therefore with no Crown land there is no basis for negotiations Sophie's first nations have been shut out of the possibility of a treaty negotiation.
• The inter-american court on human rights does not agree that the doctrine of discovery is valid and this group have tried to bring their case before this court

Europeans showed up, had a dominant military. smallpox wiped out much of the populations and then Europeans set up their own structures.

The federal government has jurisdiction over First Nations but the provinces claim the resources common to all negotiations have to be made between the federal government's the provinces and the First Nations and this makes things very difficult

1842 Fort Victoria was established. Fort George was earlier but it was only a trading post and not a permanent settlement.

In the 1840s and 1850s during the time when the first settlements were established and into the first gold rush

He was responsible for land allocation and had a demeaning attitude towards First Nations and their claims. When BC entered Confederation the positive influence of Douglas had disappeared and in the terms of the union, he said that all aboriginal claims had been extinguished. the federal government was willing to accept this even though it wasn't true.

• The potlatch our feast, ceremonies, dances where the host would give all their walk away to their guests. This was a way for the host to gain status among the community. This was central to their culture. The gifts were under an obligation to hold their own potlatches and to give something back again in the future.
• in 1885 the church's lobby the federal government to have the potlatch eliminated

• 1. The potlatch was banned in 1885
• 2. In 1927 the federal government change the Envy an act to prevent lobbying and to prohibit indigenous people hiring lawyers to make land claims
• 3. Residential schools were also established in this period

• 1. In 1949 Frank Calder was elected as an MLA from the Nisga'a In
• 2. In 1951 Canada reversed the prohibition of the potlatch and of the laws against hiring lawyers and lobbying for land claims.

• 1. Did Aboriginal title exist? On this question all six of the justices agreed.
• 2. If so, does it continue to exist. on this question they were split evenly so the Nisga'a lost because there was no majority

* the seven Supreme Court justice abstained because in order to sue the government you had to have the government's permission and this was a technicality

• Even though the Nisga'a lost. They succeeded in getting the court to admit the aboriginal title did exist. So therefore the federal government began to change its position on claims in BC, but they couldn't get far because the province had jurisdiction on resources
• The Calder case shifted the government's position from the Nile of Aboriginal claims to an acceptance of the existence of claims

In 1969 Pierre Trudeau and John Christian wanted to abolish the Indian Act and remove the federal government's responsibility for Aboriginal people. this would have eliminated the treaties. he wanted to turn indigenous people into ordinary Canadians

Even though it would have gotten rid of the Indian Act, it would have also removed the identities of indigenous people and this was not right. federal government therefore back down.

• 1. This brought Aboriginal people together to fight for their rights
• 2. and also got other Canadians to think about the positions of Aboriginal people

He was a chief in the Musqueam First Nation. this was at the mouth of the Fraser at UBC They allowed DIAND to lease one hundred and fifty acres of their land to the Shaughnessy Golf Club. The Indian agents leased their land way below market value so Guerin took the issue to the Supreme Court and argued that they should be compensated for the loss of revenue. The court ruled the original title continue to rest with Aboriginal people, not with governments. Aboriginal title existed inherently

The case determined the aboriginal title continue to exist, unless it was removed by a treaty.