Dogribs looking for final agreement by March-April
Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Jan 26/01) - Federal, territorial and Dogrib leaders put their heads together yesterday on the left coast to chart a path down the home stretch of the Dogrib land claim negotiation.
Certainty will be the central issue of discussion between the federal government and Dogrib leaders at the Vancouver meeting, organized at the request of the Dogribs.
Also on the agenda was the GNWT's role in the final negotiations, training required for self-government, the development of a schedule for reaching a final agreement.
Scheduled to attend were Indian Affairs Minister Robert Nault, Premier Stephen Kakfwi, territorial Aboriginal Affairs Minister Jim Antoine, Dogrib Treaty 11 land claim manager Ted Blondin, chief federal negotiator Jean-Yves Assiniwi and chief Dogrib negotiator John B. Zoe.
Zoe said the home stretch has proven the longest stretch of the negotiation.
A final agreement was scheduled to be signed last summer. Then the Dogribs claimed the discussions were being stalled by territorial negotiators who could not or would not make decisions on behalf of the government.
Aboriginal Affairs assistant Deputy Minister Mark Warren said the territorial government's main objective is to help the Dogribs conclude an agreement as soon as possible. He could neither confirm nor deny reports that at a meeting in Rae two weeks ago a commitment was to reduce the role of territorial officials in the negotiations.
The Dogribs were hoping to get the federal and territorial governments to commit to completing the agreement by March or April, but Zoe said even that's late.
"The time line was about a year ago," said Zoe. "It's long overdue."
Zoe said the meeting is being held in Vancouver because all of the key players are in town.
One of the obstacles to a final agreement has been a boundary dispute between the Dogribs and Akaitcho Treaty 8. The federal government is hoping the final agreement will include a new mechanism to make land claims agreements binding and final. Until now, the government has demanded aboriginal groups give up -- "extinguish" -- all aboriginal rights not specified in land claim agreements.
According to a Nov. 21 confidential cabinet document obtained by Yellowknifer, the new mechanism distinguishes between land-based and other aboriginal rights. Instead of demanding the Dogribs give up all rights the federal government will insist they agree not to exercise their rights.
Where land-based rights are concerned, that agreement will be made doubly binding by a fall-back agreement that will prevent the Dogribs from attempting to exercise their rights through the courts.
Zoe said that as far as he knows, the new mechanism has not yet been approved by a federal committee charged with reviewing it or by cabinet.
