ACHO DENE KOE/FORT LIARD - Northern and national First Nations must unite to force Canada to honour its treaty rights. "In this country in this state of Canada they don't want to honour the treaty," said Chief Rose Laboucan of the Driftpile First Nation and a descendant of Treaty 8.

Chief Rose Laboucan, left, of Driftpile First Nation and Chief Ovide Mercredi of Misipawistik Cree Nation were two of the guest speakers at the Dehcho Treaty Conference in Fort Simpson. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

Laboucan was one guest speaker at a treaty conference co-hosted by the Dehcho First Nations and Liidlii Kue First Nation in Fort Simpson from Aug. 17 to 19.

Although the intent of the conference was to educate younger generations about Treaty 11 a message of frustration with the federal government resounded.

Land claims negotiations were also part of the discussion with representatives from the Sahtu and Gwich'in governments -- two NWT First Nations with settled agreements -- on hand to discuss their experiences with their negotiations and settlements.

Richard Nerysoo, Gwich'in Tribal Council president, and Frank Andrew, Sahtu Dene Council grand chief, expressed their frustration with the land claims process and parts of the agreement they say the government and the First Nations already interpret differently.

Dehcho leaders listened with interest to Archie Catholique, Lutsel K'e's community negotiator, who spoke about the Akaitcho's work to negotiate the implementation of their treaty.

Akaitcho's different approach to negotiations prompted Dehcho leaders to ask for a review of the Dehcho process to ensure it is in line with Treaty 11, said Chief Jim Antoine of Liidlii Kue First Nation. The Dehcho Process is supposed to honour the spirit and intent of the treaty.

"There's a lot of concern are we on the right track," he said.

But Laboucan said getting Canada to honour the intent of land claims and treaties is going to take a united front.

Canada is afraid of treaties 1 to 11 because of what it would mean if they had to honour the promises made in them, said Laboucan. It's time for aboriginal leaders and people across the country, aboriginal and non-aboriginal alike, to press the government to honour the treaties and sign the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, she added.

"If we don't do it with unity we will never get there," she said.

Ovide Mercredi of Misipawistik, a guest speaker from Cree Nation in Manitoba, said descendants of treaties 1 to 11 may have to protest on an international scale to get Canada to implement the treaties as they're understood by their founding aboriginal signatories.

First Nations can't go to the Canadian courts because they will hold up the white version of the treaty for fear of losing jurisdiction over the land and having to share wealth from natural resources, he said.

The intent of the conference was to educate youths and younger leaders about Treaty 11 -- enacted in 1921 -- said Antoine. For the older leaders the conference was a chance to reassess and reevaluate where we are today with the treaties, he added.

Treaty 11, which covers most of the Mackenzie district, was examined from a variety of levels including local, territorial, national and international. The conference opened with a panel of nine elders from the Deh Cho who shared the oral history surrounding Treaty 11, an agreement that was understood as a promise of peace and friendship, not a binding contract about the land.

The elders are the children or grandchildren of people who witnessed the treaty and because of the Dene's oral history they have an excellent recollection of it, said Antoine.

The conference also heard from Sharon Venne, the chairperson of the United Nations seminar on Treaties, and Ron Lameman, who both worked to have treaties protected by the UN.

"Generally, everybody that came said they learned quite a bit from each other," said Antoine.

The conference concluded with the participants around the table sharing their personal thoughts and suggestions.

Some participants also called for more treaty conferences, possibly on a yearly basis.

"There's definitely a need to have a forum of this nature again," Antoine said.

The treaty conference was held in response to a resolution passed at the Dehcho annual assembly in 2009 requesting such a gathering be held this year.

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