Wolastoqey chiefs call Higgs’ position on treaty rights ‘deeply troublesome and offensive’ following pre-election survey

Wolastoqey Nation in New Brunswick called the Progressive Conservative position on treaty rights “deeply troublesome and offensive” and said Blaine Higgs’ party is engaged in “disinformation” and “blatant fearmongering” as election season got underway this week.

The six Wolastoqey First Nations issued the statement on Monday just as they published the results of a pre-election questionnaire outlining where the Tories, Liberals and Greens stand on Indigenous issues.

The report came just before Premier Blaine Higgs called a provincial election for October 21. The chiefs stopped short of endorsing any party, but underlined the Progressive Conservative Party’s dismal relations with First Nations.

“Of the responses we received from the Green Party, Liberal Party, and Progressive Conservative Party, we wished to see more fulsome commitments from all parties, but were particularly disappointed with the PCNB answers to our priority questions,” the chiefs said in a statement. “Notably, we find the PCNB position on Wolastoqey treaty rights deeply troublesome and offensive.”

In response to a question about treaty rights, the Progressive Conservative Party repeated familiar talking points about ongoing lawsuits launched by Wolastoqey and Mi’kmaq communities asserting Aboriginal title over traditional lands that together encompass the entire province.

“The PCNB respectfully disagrees with the assertion that land title has been unceded,” the response stated. “This is a legal question that has not been determined by the courts. We believe that historic treaties address this issue. With both court actions that have been launched against the government to establish land title, our Government will defend the interests of all New Brunswickers and mount a defence in court.”

Indigenous leaders have maintained that the Peace and Friendship Treaties signed in the mid-1700s didn’t involve the surrender of any land. They have said they resorted to lawsuits after negotiations failed. The statement of claim in the Wolastoqey case says that other than the provincial and federal governments and six named companies and their subsidiaries, no other property will be affected, and that the chiefs seek “no relief” against homeowners and other property holders.

Indigenous leaders have also repeatedly stressed in interviews that they aren’t going after people’s homes or farms, and accused Higgs of lying after he said their lawsuit “impacts every single land owner.” In the questionnaire, the Tories made a similar claim, saying: “This legal action generates uncertainty over home ownership and business operations.”

The Conservative Party’s response also stated, in part, that they would like to “invite First Nations to the table and have real ownership over a stake in new natural resource development in New Brunswick,” saying it could be a “meaningful step towards reconciliation.”

The Wolastoqey chiefs said the Conservative Party’s response “repeats their disinformation narrative about private landholders,” calling it “blatant fearmongering and unconscionable.” The statement continues: “We are looking for a government that wants to build a forward-looking relationship with First Nations, not a backward, regressive position.”

Liberal and Green positions

The Liberal Party stated in their response that “when we form government, the first conversations the premier-designate will have is with First Nations leaders.”

The statement said that under Liberal Leader Susan Holt, the government would “publicly and explicitly acknowledge your treaty rights, and our joint responsibility as treaty people.” The statement was short on details but said the Liberals aimed to “find solutions rooted in respect and recognition.”

The Greens, for their part, said that “New Brunswick is situated on the unceded and unsurrendered territories of the Wolastoqiyik, Mi’kmaq and Peskotomuhkati peoples, covered by the Treaties of Peace and Friendship.” A government led by Green Leader David Coon would “immediately rescind the directive restricting land acknowledgements for government employees,” a reference to a controversial memo issued by Attorney General Ted Flemming in 2021.

The Green Party response also noted, in part, that it would “enter into partnership agreements with First Nations for the stewardship and co-management of Crown lands and fully implement the recommendations from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the Calls to Action of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and the Systemic Racism Commissioner’s Final Report.”

The full responses compiled in a nine-page report are available online. The NDP and People’s Alliance Party didn’t respond to the questionnaire, according to the report.

Tax-sharing deal, systemic racism

The questionnaire also covered issues including the Higgs government’s controversial 2021 cancellation of tax-sharing agreements with First Nations. The Liberals said they would negotiate and establish “new tax agreements with First Nations that address the local needs and priorities and ensure all parties have a fair deal.”

The Greens said they would reinstate the tax agreements “through meaningful government-to-government negotiations, rooted in the belief that reconciliation requires collaborative efforts, not unilateral decisions that disregard Indigenous rights.”

The Tories defended the cancellation, saying “we cannot offer tax agreements that do not demonstrate a benefit to all citizens” and that it would pursue development agreements that “provide meaningful and measurable benefit to community members of all Indigenous communities.” The Wolastoqey chiefs called that policy a “regressive and paternalistic approach to Indigenous, nation-to-nation relationships.”

The questionnaire also covered systemic racism in the justice system and policing, an issue thrust into the spotlight once again with the fatal RCMP shooting of Steven “Iggy” Dedam of Elsipogtog First Nation this month. That tragedy prompted the Wolastoqey chiefs to renew demands last week for “a legitimate inquiry into systemic racism, particularly in the justice system, not a tokenistic report that now sits on a shelf,” a reference to a 2022 report on systemic racism in New Brunswick.

On systemic racism, the Liberals suggested there are “many ways that we can make the justice system more just,” though the party didn’t mention a public inquiry. Examples included a “review of existing laws and law-making processes, inclusive hiring practices and representation on boards and commissions, strengthening anti-discrimination policies within institutions, providing mandatory cultural competency training and establishing regular feedback mechanisms.”

The Greens said they would “commission an Indigenous-led, independent public inquiry into New Brunswick’s justice and policing systems to uncover and correct systemic racism and biases against Indigenous peoples and other marginalized communities.” The Greens added that they would implement recommendations from the 2022 report.

The Tories also referenced that report, saying “work has begun or will begin soon to address over 75 per cent of the Commissioner’s recommendations.” It stated, in part, that work is ongoing to update policing standards this year “and discussions around those will include systemic racism.” The Department of Justice and Public Safety is also “consulting on how to collect race-based data safely” and will “continue to aim at recruiting diversely on boards and agencies in order to ensure representation of racialized groups,” the Conservative Party said.

The Wolastoqey chiefs called the Conservative response a “departmental list of patchwork past promises (many that have nothing to do with Wolastoqey communities) written by a bureaucrat buried deep in the maze of Chancery Place cubicles.” Their statement added: “The PCNB missed the opportunity to offer fresh, future-focused ideas.”

David Gordon Koch is a journalist with the NB Media Co-op. This reporting has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada, administered by the Canadian Association of Community Television Stations and Users (CACTUS).