Garden River says no to 100 per cent treaty settlement payouts
Garden River First Nation members will not be receiving a full payout of past treaty payments under the $10 billion Robinson Huron Treaty settlement.
The chief of the community east of Sault Ste. Marie said the leadership’s “fiduciary duty” to the community and future generations was partly behind the decision.
Chief Karen Bell said while members of Garden River First Nation will not be receiving a full payout, they will still receive a “good portion” of the settlement.
“Individual members of Garden River First Nation definitely will get money,” said Bell.
“We haven’t determined what percentage we’re going to be doing yet. But that will be a discussion that we have at the leadership table in the near future, and we are going to be doing a lot consultation with our members on and off the First Nation.”
In all, 21 First Nations communities who are part of the treaty will share in the settlement. The award compensates First Nations who signed the 1850 Robinson Huron Treaty in which First Nations agreed to allow resource extraction on their territory in exchange for a share of the revenue generated.
But the federal and provincial governments failed to follow the treaty and did not increase the revenue shared with First Nations, as had been agreed to in the treaty. The last increase came in 1875.
The $10 billion settlement was the result of a years-long court battle.
Can't please everyone
While the decision by chief and council prompted a strong reaction on social media, Bell said that was not unexpected.
“We have to make decisions and some of these decisions are not going to be liked or applauded by everybody,” she said.
“But, we got to think about the 3,500 people we’re making decisions for, not the 30 or 40 people that are on social media that are making comments.”
Bell said the settlement agreement covers the First Nation collectively, not individual members, and she said a 100 per cent individual payout would violate that aspect of the agreement.
“Which means we would be in litigation now with the law firm that did all the 17 years of work on this, along with the litigation committee, along with the federal and provincial governments that signed on the dotted line to hand over this money,” said Bell.
She said leadership must also take into account a trust fund for members under the age of 18, legal costs, a “war chest” for future litigation and money for language and culture preservation.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
Amish youth experience a rite of passage called Rumspringa. It’s not what you might think
The idea of “Rumspringa” has a specific spot in the American imagination. A rite of passage for young people in some Amish communities, Rumspringa is seen by most outsiders as a wild time away from strict Amish rules, when teenagers can experiment with the modern vices of the world.
Djokovic needs medical attention after getting knocked on the head by a water bottle at Italian Open
Novak Djokovic needed medical attention after apparently getting knocked on the head by a water bottle after a win at the Italian Open on Friday.