Tag Archives: BC supreme Court

Indigenous Nations

‘There needs to be some sense of balance’: Cattlemen’s Association president talks DRIPA challenge

Energeticcity.ca, Local Journalism Initiative

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The president of the B.C. Cattlemen’s Association (BCCA) spoke to Energeticcity.ca about potential roles the organization would seek regarding a challenge to the province’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (DRIPA).

A press release issued on Wednesday, May 6th, says the BCCA will seek intervenor status – a party acting on behalf of individuals or an organization – in the case surrounding the Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association.

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Indigenous Nations

‘Extremely offensive’: B.C. premier’s plans to change Indigenous Rights law met with frustration

By Shannon Waters & Matt Simmons, The Narwhal, Local Journalism Initiative reporters

In 2019, B.C. unanimously passed the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. It was celebrated as a major step toward working with First Nations in a better, more equal way.

But a court ruling earlier this month seems to be contributing to a change of heart for Premier David Eby. On Dec. 5, the British Columbia Court of Appeal ruled the government’s obligations under the Declaration Act are legally enforceable. Eby is now arguing judges shouldn’t be setting the province’s reconciliation agenda. And he says he is willing to change the law to make sure they can’t.

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Indigenous Nations

With court win, Quw’utsun Nation sees a ‘spiritual homecoming’ after 150 years

By David P Ball,  IndigiNews, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The shoreline at Tl’uqtinus village — once the annual home to more than a thousand people during salmon season — is today a tangle of blackberry bushes and shipping terminals in what is today ‘Richmond, B.C.’

The riverside village of Tl’uqtinus — once the annual home to more than a thousand people during salmon season — is today a sprawl of retail warehouses, mostly unused municipal lots, a Coca-Cola plant, and a fuel facility for the nearby Vancouver International Airport.

Less than 15 kilometres up the “Fraser River” from the Salish Sea, the former fishing village’s once-busy shores are today host to shipping terminals and a tangle of thorny and invasive blackberry bushes.

Last week, Tl’uqtinus village sparked an even thornier public debate over Indigenous people’s right to land — and settlers’ private property — across the province.

The B.C. Supreme Court, after a record-length trial, declared the Quw’utsun (Cowichan) Nation holds title to the 7.5-square-kilometre village site and the right to fish near it — a century-and-a-half after the province sold it to settlers.

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Indigenous Nations

Híɫzaqv leaders take RCMP to court, say police discriminate against the nation’s laws

 IndigiNews, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Hereditary and elected leaders of Híɫzaqv Nation are taking the RCMP to court, saying the police force refuses to enforce the nation’s bylaws — including a law expelling drug dealers and sexual offenders from the community.

The lawsuit says this had led to “an atmosphere of fear and lawlessness” on reserve that put members’ safety at risk. 

It further states that the case has broader implications around whether “Canada” respects Híɫzaqv jurisdiction on their own territories.

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Indigenous Nations, Politics

Behind the Campbell River Premiere of Yintah

21 people attended the premier of the feature documentary Yintah at the Campbell River Community Center on February 20th, 2025. This screening is sponsored by the North Island Powell River (NIPR) Federal Green Party Riding Association and follows the Wet’suwet’en land defender’s 10 year struggle to keep gas companies  from building a pipeline through their territory. Cortes Currents interviewed two of the event organizers about the film and some of the deeper issues within the local community. 

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