Dehcho First Nations to decide if GNWT to be part of land claim negotiations

Herb Norwegian, Grand Chief of the Dehcho First Nations, along with negotiators, are travelling to Dehcho communities throughout southwestern N.W.T. this week to determine if community members want the territorial government at the table during further land claim negotiations.

Ka'a'gee Tu First Nation Chief Lloyd Chicot, who will be part of the meetings, said his community is used to discussing land claim agreements with the federal government.

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The territorial government has been part of the negotiations since at least 2001 when it signed on to the Deh Cho First Nations Framework Agreement.

But Chicot feels the GNWT an unnecessary middleman.

"That relationship [with Canada] was evolving and we were negotiating to further it, to make it stronger," he said.

"The GNWT became part of the negotiations...[And]the federal government's sort of walking away from the table and asking us to negotiate with the Government of the Northwest Territories."

'Common ground' needed

In April, the premier said there would be new offers for three outstanding land claims in the N.W.T. including for the Dehcho First Nations.

New offers for the Northwest Territories Metis Nation and Akaitcho First Nation were announced Friday in the N.W.T. legislature, but no offer was announced regarding the Dehcho land claim.

McLeod said the federal andterritorial governments are waiting for the Dehcho First Nations "to come to their own conclusions on these important matters" like not including the territorial government in furtherland claim negotiations and for there to be common ground between all parties before a revised offer can be made.

"Once the Dehcho First Nations provides confirmation that there is common ground between the parties on these matters, Canada and the GNWT will provide the Dehcho First Nations with a revised offer shortly thereafter," McLeod said in the legislature.

Should the Dehcho have its own resource management board?

At the meetings this week, community members will also decide if they want to create a separate resource management board similar to the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board for the Dehcho region.

The board would monitor water and air quality as well as any potential impact from pipeline activity in the region.

"The other way around, it would be the Mackenzie Valley water board making those decisions without really any thorough followup on some of these issues that the communities have brought them," Chicot said.

The idea of a separate land and water board was part of the original land claim negotiations, Chicot says, but was put aside to focus on lands and resources instead.

The community consultations take place across the region until Friday.