'Let's make history,' Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation Minister Scott Fraser said.
B.C. Premier John Horgan holds a press conference to announce legislation to recognize Indigenous human rights at the provincial legislature in Victoria on ThursdayBritish Columbia has become the first province in Canada to introduce legislation to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, mandating the government to bring its laws and policies into harmony with the aims of the declaration.
The UN declaration requires governments to obtain “free and informed consent” from Indigenous groups before approving any project affecting their lands or resources, but Fraser said neither the legislation nor the declaration includes wording that grants a veto over resource development projects.Terry Teegee, regional chief of the B.C. Assembly of First Nations, said making history is not for the faint of heart.
“Consent is the future. Most simply put, it’s about coming together as governments, as people seeking to find common ground.” Another article calls for an independent process to be established to recognize and adjudicate Indigenous Peoples’ rights pertaining to their lands and resources. The declaration also grants Indigenous groups the right to redress or compensation for traditional lands that have been taken, used or damaged without their free, prior and informed consent.It’s unclear what this will practically look like in B.C., which has almost no treaty settlements with it's over 200 First Nations.
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