Roxanna Thompson
Northern News Services

Fort Simpson (Jan 13/06) - Dehcho First Nations plans for the new year hinge on the outcome of the federal election, according to Grand Chief Herb Norwegian.

Getting the Deh Cho process back on track is Norwegian's primary goal, but he said he wonders how a new government will approach negotiations.

Grand Chief Herb Norwegian looks at documents for the Dehcho Land Use Planning Committee in his office. His goal is to have the plan finished by the summer. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

"There is going to have to be some serious rethinking," said Norwegian about what will happen if a Conservative government is elected.

With a Conservative government, the process might be difficult because negotiations began with the Liberals. The Conservatives might take a business like approach and put forward a take it or leave it proposal, said Norwegian.

If a minority Liberal government wins, Norwegian said it will be back to business, but the government won't have enough clout.

"It was a bit hectic dealing with a minority government," said Norwegian.

The best election outcome for the Dehcho First Nations would be a government with both authority and flexibility.

The Deh Cho process was supposed to be a tailored approach for dealing with both the land and the government and now Canada is reneging, said Norwegian. There is no interest in a land selection process that the federal government is offering, he said.

"It's my view we're being punished because of the pipeline litigation," said Norwegian.

Coming out of 2005 with the pipeline litigation and the Deh Cho process, Norwegian said the lesson learned is not to put all your eggs in one basket.

To move forward with the Deh Cho process, federal negotiators will need a clear mandate. To date, the Dehcho First Nations has been in a defensive position dealing with small issues such as prospectors and mining permits, he said.

"So far we are just putting out little brush fires," said Norwegian.

The second key issue to watch throughout the year is the Mackenzie Valley pipeline. There are still a lot of issues up in the air and communities are being bombarded with detailed information, Norwegian said.

"The idea is to make people as uncomfortable as possible as this moves forward," he said.

If Imperial Oil divides the people and works on the weakest communities it will be a scary situation, Norwegian said.

"Our people need to be reminded that we have to be firm," he said.

In the near future, the Dehcho First Nations' goal is to finish the Dehcho Land Use plan. Norwegian hopes the plan will be finished by the summer or sooner if momentum is strong.

"It's time to muster all of the support we can get," he said.

A final public forum will be held in February or March. By then a new government will be in place and the new minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development will be briefed.

"We are in for some exciting times," said Norwegian.