FSIN OPPOSES THE SALE AND LEASE OF CROWN LAND
- Jan 24, 2023
- 2 min read
Treaty 6 Territory, Saskatoon SK – From the beginning, the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) has opposed the Saskatchewan government’s online sale and lease of Crown land as it infringes upon First Nations' inherent Treaty rights to land for traditional and cultural uses.
“We oppose the illegal sale and lease of Crown lands as it blocks First Nations from exercising their Treaty Rights to hunt, fish and trap. The province is contradicting their own policies brought in the 1990s,” said FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron.
FSIN has been given direction from First Nations leaders to intervene and will do so under the advice and support of our legal counsel. According to the government’s website, the next online event opens at the end of January.
“We support First Nations in their quest to stop the illegal sale and lease of Crown lands in their traditional territories. We will continue to oppose this until all First Nations have access to land for traditional use. We look forward to the opportunity to implement the Treaty Land Entitlement Framework Agreement and address the outstanding Natural Resource Transfer Agreement,” said FSIN Chief Cameron.
“The province continues to chip away at our Treaty rights by selling and leasing our lands – this cannot continue. That’s why the Nations in this province are in litigation about this,” said FSIN Vice Chief Heather Bear. “Our people have less land on which to hunt and practice our ways of life, to teach our younger generations the ways of doing things and less protected lands to sustain our people and livelihoods. The sales and leases of Crown lands ignore First Nations’ rights and is inconsistent with Treaties and the Treaty relationship.”
FSIN says the implementation of the provincial Trespass to Property Amendment Act in January 2022 is contributing to a reduced amount of land available to First Nations to practice inherent Treaty rights and traditional way of life; hunting, trapping, harvesting berries/plants and gathering medicine. Permission is now required from landowners prior to access and those who fail to do so can face criminal charges.
More recently, there have been meetings between First Nations’ leaders and provincial Ministers on the topic, however, the matter remains unresolved.
Associated links:
Lisa Risom
Director of Communications
Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations
10 - 134 Kahkewistahaw Crescent Treaty Six Territory
Saskatoon, SK S7R 0M9
Cell: 306-987-0505 | FSIN Office: 306-914-6815
Email: communications@fsin.com
