by Denise August Titian
Ha-Shilth-Sa Reporter
Nov. 16, 2006
Port Alberni - The Department
of Fisheries and Oceans' (DFO) draft guiding principles for First Nations
access to fish for food, social and ceremonial (FSC) purposes proved that
more work needed to be done on the document as speaker after speaker spoke
out against it at the First Nations Information Exchange held November
9 and 10.
"We're not committed to them (the eight guiding principles). They are darft," said DFO's Sandy Fraser in response to the concerns expressed. "We are open to adapting the principles or adding new ones," he continued.
Fraser reported that the First Nations panel made recommendations on fisheries acess issues including the need:
-
to take steps to ensure First Nations have adequate qualtities of fisheries
resources for FSC purposes.
- for First Nations to cooperate with one another when it comes to deciding
on allocations of fisheries resources.
- to restore a measure of equity to fisheries allocations for First Nations
in BC.
DFO
committed to work with First Nations to address concerns regarding fisheries
access for FSC purposes. They promised to work with First Nations to develop
a mutually agreeable framework for negotiating appropriate levels of fisheries
resources for FSC purposes.
Fraser reviewed the draft principles, reminding the people that DFO is
looking for input from the Nuu-chah-nulth.
The
eight guiding principles in the draft are:
1. Processes and decisions regarding FSC access (amount and fishing area)
should honour Canada's obligations to First Nations. (Interpretation:
Need to be consistent with current legal direction.)
2. Aboriginal fishing for FSC purposes should have first priority in management
decisions after conservation, over other user groups.
3. Processes for making FSC access decisions should incorporate some flexibility
within a generally consistent approach. (What would a balance between
flexibility and consistency look like to First Nations?)
4. Decisions regarding FSC fishing areas should take into consideration
information relating to First Nations' claimed traditional territories.
5. Decisions regarding FSC amounts should take into account the diversity
and abundance of fisheries resources available in the First Nations' fishing
area. (Provides some direction on what to do when there is not enough
of a given species or stock to address the FSC needs of all First Nations
with access to that species or stock.
6. FSC access decisions should take into account community use and operational
factors. (Operational factors could include diversity of issues, e.g.
pink salmon may only be available every second year, herring are unpredictable,
reasonable opportunity to fish, etc.)
7. Decisions regarding FSC fishing should take into account the FSC access
of other Aboriginal groups.
8. Decisions regarding FSC access should take into account differences
among First Nations (e.g. community needs, preferences, social and cultural
differences, community use, etc.)
John
Frank of Ahousaht council said he is insulted by how DFO treats the Ha'wiih.
How dare they come n and tell out Ha'wiih how to manage the resource and
care for their muschim, he asked. "Our way of managing was in place
for thousands of years," he pointed out.
Others talked about NCN history with respect to fishing. Roy Alexander
pointed to documented history about First Nations acess to fish and how
they traded fish for other goods and fed guests, including non-natives,
to their traditional territories.
In the 1950s, he said, DFO forced change by requiring licenses and boats
for commercial fishermen. Alexander said the government of the past wanted
First Nations to have a share of the commercial fishery. It was a time
when they thought they could indebt them and subsequently control them.
He pointed out that there are public records proving this at the RBC Museum.
Alexander talked about the late Vernon Ross and how he would never allow fish to got to waste. When I brought him rock cod and halibut, Ross would take the unwanted fish and distribute it amongst the elders and people on both sides of Ucluelet Harbour.
Earl
Smith (Ehattesaht) said the definition of wealth differs between government
and First Nations. "For you it's the dollar sign, but for our Ha'wiih
it's the health of the resources and the sustainability of that."
Harvey Robinson of the Ahousaht council said he's tired of having DFO
dictating to First Nations; 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you
can't fish there.'
"If you had trusted us to manage our fisheries we would never have been in this mess and we wouldn't have been in court wasting thousands of dollars on both sides," he said.
Darrell
Campbell of Ahousaht said "We're tired of being starved by your management
regime. We are the largest tribe and I have 1800 members to contend with.
' Smaller tribes with only a few hundred members get the same allocation
of home-use fish that Ahousaht gets, he added.
The NCN leaders agreed they didn't like the term 'social' in the title
of 'food, social and ceremonial purposes.' The term is too ambiguous and
they fear it may be used in the future to further limit First Nations
access to food fish.
They
reminded DFO that when planning for future FSC allocations they need to
keep in mind the steadily increasing population of Nuu-chah-communities.
They are also concerned that DFO is pushing to confine NCN to certain
fishing areas while sports fishermen are free to fish anywhere.
Nuu-chah-nulth fisheries staff asked that DFO learn more about NCN fishing
history and pass this information up the ranks to their superiors. They
say they need to create a realistic work plan that includes consultation
with the Ha'wiih (hereditary chiefs).
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