A good read for BC hunters to understand what is happening with wildlife management in our province.
https://engage.gov.bc.ca/wildlifeandhabitat/
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A good read for BC hunters to understand what is happening with wildlife management in our province.
https://engage.gov.bc.ca/wildlifeandhabitat/
This could be intresting.Quote:
We built this strategy together with Indigenous peoples,
A FOIFA request asking who the Whorgon Government has been consulting with and how the best interests of "all British Columbians" was considered when making these agreements would be a good start.......Hello, BCWF,........FOIFA request.
180 - it's not a secret who the government consults with...or who they negotiate with; they aren't the same parties.
The provincial government "consults" with stakeholders like BCWF.
It negotiates with other governments and nations. Those governments and nations are not stakeholders. Those are government to government negotiations. BCWF isn't party to negotiations. To be a party to those negotiations you need to be a government - read the Feds, the Province or a First Nation governing authority.
Further, you should know (you probably already do know this) that Together for Wildlife is a FLNRORD deal. That's one ministry, and the Wildlife Branch is just a part of that ministry, and not a powerful part of it (nowhere near as powerful, for example, as BC Timber Sales).
You then have the Ministry of the Environment, with George Heyman, which runs parks and the COS.
And then you have the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation.
Three ministries all doing different things that effect wildlife, conservation and hunting.
I'm not sure how you imagine the consultation goes, or how you imagine the negotiation goes, but it's not like it's a big secret, and it's not like a FOI is going to tell us something we don't already know.
The best interests of British Columbians is considered by whoever in the provincial government is negotiating on your behalf. That means guys in the party that you don't like who probably don't share your values. Not my fault and not BCWF's fault. You are represented by provincial bureaucrats taking instructions from the NDP. It's not complicated.
BCWF doesn't have a seat on the Minsters Wildlife Advisory Council. We were involved with the Together for Wildlife planning, along with a bunch of other stakeholders, and separate from First Nations' involvement, which led to the MWAC.
With the adoption of UNDRIP and Bill 41 FNs must be on board with any changes to wildlife management.
It's extremely unlikely that the NDP are losing power anytime soon. If you don't trust them to negotiate on your behalf you'll need to come to grips with this and consider a plan B.
This is directed at everyone on the forum, and all your pals, not just 180:
Although BCWF has over 40,000 members, most aren't particularly active on the advocacy side of things. We have a letter writing campaign explicitly set up to make it easy for people to send an access letter to their MLA and the premier. It's here: https://bcwf.bc.ca/initiatives/acces...c-land-in-b-c/
Our goal is 2,000 signatures. We have 841. That's less than 2% of BCWF members (if you need that de-coded it means that less than 2% is brutal).
BTW, you don't need to be a member to send the letter.
BCWF is also underfunded if you expect it to take on the government, the resource industries and First Nations. An injunction costs about $60k each. Having people who can get us in the door to talk to politicians costs real money.
Consider joining the BCWF as a direct member.
Consider making a donation to BCWF in addition to the membership.
Get involved in advocacy with your MLA.
Sign the damn letter and get your friends to do so as well.
Once again, well said Rob.
Your post should be put on the BC facebook groups as well...
Yes it is a very poor response letter wise. I dont think its a true reflection of the hunting Community as it is the most important issue in many hunter/fisher/outdoor recreational users etc..
Send the letter Rob has posted it takes less than 1 minute.
Many would like to know what plan B is....
More to 180s FOI suggestion.
In case you were unaware (not 180 in particular, but any "you" reading this):
"Under every B.C. Cabinet Minister’s mandate letter, ministries are required to move forward on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action and to review policies, programs and legislation to find ways to bring the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples into action".
Scott Fraser's mandate letter is linked above, but includes:
As part of our commitment to true, lasting reconciliation with First Nations in British Columbia our government will be fully adopting and implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), and the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. As minister, you are responsible for moving forward on the calls to action and reviewing policies, programs, and legislation to determine how to bring the principles of the declaration into action in British Columbia.
In your role as Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation I expect that you will make substantive progress on the following priorities:
- Work collaboratively and respectfully with First Nations to establish a clear, cross-government vision of reconciliation to guide the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action, and the Tsilhqot’in Supreme Court decision.
- In partnership with First Nations, transform the treaty process so it respects case law and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
- Support Indigenous communities seeking to revitalize connections to their languages.
- Provide reliable, dedicated funding and support for Friendship Centres.
- With the Minister of Finance, negotiate with First Nations leadership and communities around expanding opportunities for their share of B.C.’s gaming industry.
Every minister got similar instructions. Managing wildlife and organizing resident hunting will be executed with the need to pursue reconciliation as action item #1. You may not like this, you may not think it's wise, but it is a fact and it dominates the environment in which we are operating.
All BC government relations with FNs are guided by these 10 principles:
Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples
The Province wants to renew its relationship with Indigenous peoplesin B.C., and affirms its desire to achieve a government-to-government relationship based on respect, recognition and exercise of Aboriginal title and rights and to the reconciliation of Aboriginal and Crown titles and jurisdictions. We agree to work with Indigenous peoples to jointly design, construct and implement principled, pragmatic and organized approaches informed by the Supreme Court of Canada Tsilhqot’in decision and other established law, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action.
Indigenous people have a special constitutional relationship with the Crown. This relationship, including existing Aboriginal and treaty rights, is recognized and affirmed in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.
The Province’s draft reconciliation principles are intended as bold statements to guide this new relationship and end the denial of Indigenous rights that have led to disempowerment and assimilationist policies and practices. The principles will assure the Province conducts itself in a way that reflects a clear shift in an often troubled relationship with Indigenous peoples to a modern government-to-government relationship that is strong, sophisticated and valued. These principles create the space needed to exercise our respective jurisdictions for the benefit of all British Columbians. We will recognize success when we know Indigenous peoples believe themselves to be self-determining, self-governing, self-sufficient and can practise their Indigenous cultural traditions and customs as an important and respected part of B.C. society.
B.C.’s principles are about renewing the Crown-Indigenous relationship. They are an important starting point to move away from the status quo and to empower the Province
to fundamentally change its relationship with Indigenous peoples, a process that will take time and will call for innovative thinking and action. This is necessary to ensure a modernized Crown-Indigenous relationship in B.C.
Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples
1 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that all relations with Indigenous peoples need to be based on the recognition and implementation of their right to self- determination, including the inherent right of self-government.
This opening principle affirms the priority of recognition in renewed government-to- government relationships. As set out by the courts, an Indigenous nation or rights-holding group is a group of Indigenous people sharing critical features such as language, customs, traditions, and historical experience at key moments in time like first contact, assertion
of Crown sovereignty, or effective control. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples estimated that there are between 60 and 80 historical nations in Canada.
The Province’s recognition of the ongoing presence and inherent rights of Indigenous peoples as a defining feature of Canada is grounded in the promise of section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, in addition to reflecting articles 3 and 4 of UNDRIP. The promise mandates the reconciliation of the prior existence of Indigenous peoples and the assertion of Crown sovereignty, as well as the fulfilment of historic treaty relationships.
This principle reflects UNDRIP’s call to respect and promote the inherent rights of Indigenous peoples. This includes the rights that derive from their political, economic, and social structures and from their cultures, spiritual traditions, histories, laws, and philosophies, especially their rights to their lands, territories and resources.
The constitutional and legal order in Canada recognizes the reality that Indigenous peoples’ ancestors owned and governed the lands which now constitute Canada prior to the Crown’s assertion of sovereignty. All of the Crown’s relationships with Indigenous peoples are
based on recognition of this fact and supported by the recognition of Indigenous title and rights, as well as the negotiation and implementation of pre-Confederation, historic, and modern treaties.
It is the mutual responsibility of all governments to shift their relationships and arrangements with Indigenous peoples so that they are based on recognition and respect for the right
to self-determination, including the inherent right of self-government for Indigenous
nations. This responsibility includes changes in the operating practices and processes of
the provincial government. For Indigenous peoples, this responsibility includes how they define and govern themselves as nations and governments and the parameters of their relationships with other orders of government.
2 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that reconciliation is a fundamental purpose of section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.
Reconciliation is an ongoing process through which Indigenous peoples and the Crown work cooperatively to establish and maintain a mutually respectful framework for living together, with a view to fostering strong, healthy, and sustainable Indigenous nations within a strong Canada. As we build a new future, reconciliation requires recognition of rights and that we all acknowledge the wrongs of the past, know our true history, and work together to implement Indigenous rights.
Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples
This transformative process involves reconciling the pre-existence of Indigenous peoples and their rights and the assertion of sovereignty of the Crown, including inherent rights, title, and jurisdiction. Reconciliation, based on recognition, will require hard work, changes in perspectives and actions, and compromise and good faith, by all.
Reconciliation frames the Crown’s actions in relation to Aboriginal and treaty rights and informs the Crown’s broader relationship with Indigenous peoples. The Province’s approach to reconciliation is guided by UNDRIP, the TRC Calls to Action, constitutional values, and collaboration with Indigenous peoples as well as the federal and other provincial and territorial governments.
3 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that the honour of the Crown guides the conduct of the Crown in all of its dealings with Indigenous peoples.
The Province recognizes that it must uphold the honour of the Crown, which requires the provincial government and its departments, agencies, and officials to act with honour, integrity, good faith, and fairness in all of its dealings with Indigenous peoples. The honour of the Crown gives rise to different legal duties in different circumstances, including fiduciary obligations and diligence. The overarching aim is to ensure that Indigenous peoples are treated with respect and as full partners in Confederation.
4 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that Indigenous self-government is part of Canada’s evolving system of cooperative federalism and distinct orders of government.
This principle affirms the inherent right of self-government as an existing Aboriginal right within section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. Recognition of the inherent jurisdiction and legal orders of Indigenous nations is therefore the starting point of discussions aimed at interactions between federal, provincial, territorial, and Indigenous jurisdictions and laws.
As informed by UNDRIP, Indigenous peoples have a unique connection to and constitutionally protected interest in their lands, including decision making, governance, jurisdiction, legal traditions, and fiscal relations associated with those lands.
Government-to-government relationships, including treaty relationships, therefore include:
- developingmechanismsanddesigningprocesseswhichreco gnizethatIndigenous peoples are foundational to Canada’s constitutional framework;
- involvingIndigenouspeoplesintheeffectivedecisionma kingandgovernanceofour shared home;
- puttinginplaceeffectivemechanismstosupportthetrans itionawayfromcolonial systems of administration and governance; and
- ensuring,basedonrecognitionofrights,thespaceforthe operationofIndigenous jurisdictions and laws.
5 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that treaties, agreements, and other constructive arrangements between Indigenous peoples and the Crown have been and are intended to be acts of reconciliation based on mutual recognition
and respect.
This principle recognizes that Indigenous peoples have diverse interests and aspirations and that reconciliation can be achieved in different ways with different nations, groups, and communities.
This principle honours historic treaties as frameworks for living together, including the modern expression of these relationships. In accordance with the Royal Proclamation of 1763, many Indigenous nations and the Crown historically relied on treaties for mutual recognition and respect to frame their relationships. Across much of Canada, the treaty relationship between the Indigenous nations and Crown is a foundation for ongoing cooperation and partnership with Indigenous peoples.
The Province recognizes the role that treaty making has played in building Canada and the contemporary importance of treaties, both historic and those negotiated after 1973, as foundations for ongoing efforts at reconciliation. The spirit and intent of both Indigenous and Crown parties to treaties, as reflected in oral and written histories, must inform constructive partnerships, based on the recognition of rights, that support full and timely treaty implementation.
In accordance with section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, all Indigenous peoples in Canada should have the choice and opportunity to enter into treaties, agreements, and other constructive arrangements with the Crown as acts of reconciliation that form the foundation for ongoing relations. The Province prefers no one mechanism of reconciliation to another. It is prepared to enter into innovative and flexible arrangements with Indigenous peoples that will ensure that the relationship accords with the aspirations, needs, and circumstances of the Crown-Indigenous relationship.
The Province also acknowledges that the existence of Indigenous rights is not dependent on an agreement and, where agreements are formed, they should be based on the recognition and implementation of rights and not their extinguishment, modification, or surrender.
Accordingly, this principle recognizes and affirms the importance that Indigenous peoples determine and develop their own priorities and strategies for organization and advancement. The Province recognizes Indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination, including the right to freely pursue their economic, political, social, and cultural development.
Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples
6 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that meaningful engagement with Indigenous peoples aims to secure their free, prior and informed consent when B.C. proposes to take actions which impact them and their rights, including their lands, territories and resources.
This principle acknowledges the Province’s commitment to a new government-to- government relationship that builds on and goes beyond the legal duty to consult. In delivering on this commitment, the Province recognizes the right of Indigenous peoples
to participate in decision making in matters that affect their rights through their own representative institutions and the need to consult and cooperate in good faith with the aim of securing their free, prior and informed consent.
The Supreme Court of Canada has clarified that the standard to secure consent of Indigenous peoples is strongest in the case of Aboriginal title lands. The Supreme Court of Canada has confirmed that Aboriginal title gives the holder the right to use, control, and manage the land and the right to the economic benefits of the land and its resources. The Indigenous nation, as proper title holder, decides how to use and manage its lands for both traditional activities and modern purposes, subject to the limit that the land cannot be developed in a way that would deprive future generations of the benefit of the land.
The importance of free, prior and informed consent, as identified in UNDRIP, extends beyond title lands. To this end, British Columbia will look for opportunities to build processes and approaches aimed at securing consent, as well as creative and innovative mechanisms that will help build deeper collaboration, consensus, and new ways of working together. It will ensure that Indigenous peoples and their governments have a role in public decision making as part of Canada’s constitutional framework and ensure that Indigenous rights, interests, and aspirations are recognized in decision making.
7 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that respecting and implementing rights is essential and that any infringement of section 35 rights must by law meet a high threshold of justification which includes Indigenous perspectives and satisfies the Crown’s fiduciary obligations.
This principle reaffirms the central importance of working in partnership to recognize and implement rights and, as such, that any infringement of Aboriginal or treaty rights requires justification in accordance with the highest standards established by Canada’s courts and must be attained in a manner consistent with the honour of the Crown and the objective of reconciliation.
This requirement flows from the constitutional arrangements in Canada. Meaningful engagement with Indigenous peoples is therefore mandated whenever the Province may seek to infringe a section 35 right.
Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples
8 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that reconciliation and self-government require a renewed fiscal relationship, developed in collaboration with the federal government and Indigenous nations that promotes a mutually supportive climate for economic partnership and resource development.
The Province recognizes that the rights, interests, perspectives, and governance role of Indigenous peoples are central to securing a new fiscal relationship. It also recognizes the importance of strong Indigenous governments in achieving political, social, economic, and cultural development and improved quality of life. This principle recognizes that a renewed economic and fiscal relationship must ensure that Indigenous nations have the fiscal capacity, as well as access to land and resources, in order to govern effectively and to provide programs and services to those for whom they are responsible.
The renewed fiscal relationship will also enable Indigenous peoples to have fair and ongoing access to their lands, territories, and resources to support their traditional economies and
to share in the wealth generated from those lands and resources as part of the broader provincial economy.
A fairer fiscal relationship with Indigenous nations can be achieved by the Province, in concert with the federal government, through a number of mechanisms such as new tax arrangements and the negotiation of revenue-sharing agreements.
9 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that reconciliation is an ongoing process that occurs in the context of evolving Crown-Indigenous relationships.
This principle recognizes that reconciliation processes, including processes for negotiation and implementation of treaties, agreements and other constructive arrangements, will need to be innovative and flexible and build over time in the context of evolving Crown- Indigenous relationships. These relationships are to be guided by the recognition and implementation of rights.
Treaties, agreements, and other constructive arrangements should be capable of evolution over time. Moreover, they should provide predictability for the future as to how provisions may be changed or implemented and in what circumstances. The Province is open
to flexibility, innovation, and diversity in the nature, form, and content of agreements
and arrangements.
The Province also recognizes that it has an active role and responsibility in ensuring the cultural survival of Indigenous peoples as well as in protecting Aboriginal and treaty rights.
The Province will collaborate with Indigenous peoples on changes to provincial laws, policies and practices.
Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples
10 The Province of British Columbia recognizes that a distinctions-based approach is needed to ensure that the unique rights, interests and circumstances of Indigenous peoples in B.C. are acknowledged, affirmed, and implemented.
The Province recognizes First Nations, the Métis Nation, and Inuit as the Indigenous peoples of Canada, consisting of distinct, rights-bearing communities with their own histories, including with the Crown. The work of forming renewed relationships based on the recognition of rights, respect, co-operation, and partnership must reflect the unique interests, priorities and circumstances of each people.
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There isn't much of a need for FOI. Where we're going is all out in the open already. We can't paddle this huge barge back upstream to the way things once were.
We can try to influence how it travels downstream into the future.
338win mag wondered what a plan B would look like.
I don't have details, as I'm getting up to speed on current realties much like most of you, and because there is no actual Plan B as of yet, but, we know the challenge:
1) the government (along with the rest of our society) is going to pursue reconciliation;
2) FNs self-government will continue to become the norm;
3) As a result FNs will have increased control over wildlife and the landbase;
4) Past history indicates that the province doesn't manage wildlife or hunters well;
5) We need to influence how the change happens, and that will take more effort and more money. That doesn't mean we have to get into knock down drag out legal fights every time we have a chance. Canada is a country of laws and values. Reconciliation is going to happen and that is a good thing. However, there are potentially better and worse versions of reconciliation. We need to work hard to get a version that is better for everyone, including hunting conservationists and other out door recreationalists. .