Jennifer McPhee
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 09/02) - Only when diamonds were discovered in the NWT did the Dogrib show any interest in the territory around Lac de Gras, according to a paper released by Akaitcho Treaty 8 First Nations last Friday.

The 29-page document contains Akaitcho's objections to the Dogrib (or Tlicho) agreement initialled by the federal government on Sept. 4 in Wha Ti.

The final signing is planned for later this year.

If Akaitcho does not receive a response from the federal government in the next 60 days, they intend to continue trying to kill the agreement in Federal Court.

"The federal negotiator has said the Tlicho agreement is the best agreement," said Ndilo Chief Peter Liske. "The federal government wants people to hear these things. But it's not true."

Akaitcho leaders say the Dogrib have claimed territory that belongs to them and want the boundaries adjusted accordingly.

They argue that in the 1970s, Dogrib began claiming hunting territory based on a map used by Dogrib Chief Monfwi in 1921.

According to the Akaitcho document: "That map was not in 1921 and is not now an appropriate description of the actual Tlicho territory."

The Akaitcho say both groups hunted within the other's territory but maintain each had their own areas of land they primarily used.

The document goes on to say a treaty around 1923 included an understanding of separate lands of the two peoples on either side of the Tli Ke -- a river now known in English as Boundary Creek.

This is the boundary the Akaitcho are proposing, with a possible shared area extending northeast into the barren lands to the Nunavut border.

Akaitcho also takes issue with the federal government's claim the Dogrib agreement will not hurt the rights of other aboriginal groups. For instance, the Dogrib agreement authorizes the creation of boards with the authority to make decisions about land, water and wildlife. But they say the federal and territorial governments have the authority to appoint 50 per cent of the board members. The agreement gives Dogrib at least 25 percent on this board no matter how many aboriginal groups eventually enter into agreements with the government.

Akaitcho say this gives them no control over the Bathurst caribou herd which they depend on for sustenance, unless they enter into an agreement with the government.

Acting Akaitcho chief negotiator Sharon Venne said the proposed changes must be made before the Dogrib agreement goes through a final initialling.

"If (the federal government) is making these public pronouncements that it is not going to affect Akaitcho, then they should have no problem including language that clearly sets out that it is not going to impact Akaitcho," said Venne.

Dogrib chief negotiator John B. Zoe said he is still going through Akaitcho's response. He said he will be reviewing the document with Akaitcho's chief negotiator to gain a better understanding of its contents.