‘The risk is really high’: B.C. ministers backtrack on reconciliation initiative amid mounting political backlash

B.C. ministers have told Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs that the provincial government wants to slow down some reconciliation efforts due to a polarized political climate in the lead-up to the October election, according to a recording of a phone call reviewed by The Narwhal.

On a recent call, B.C. ministers acknowledged the government is concerned about public backlash to recent Indigenous Rights announcements in the lead-up to the October provincial election.

“We are really concerned about the significant political debate around the Haida Act and Land Act, and the tone of the conversation that is taking place in B.C., and the risk is really high leading into the election,” Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation Josie Osborne said in a recording of a call between B.C. ministers and Gitanyow representatives, which took place on June 20. The recording was reviewed by The Narwhal and quoted in a press release from the Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs.

Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship Nathan Cullen mentioned the fact Conservative leader John Rustad said he may “tear up” Indigenous Rights legislation if elected, and expressed concern about giving “opponents to reconciliation a stick to smash us around the head with in the next few months.”

“I have no interest in rights and title and reconciliation just being a political football in the midst of a provincial campaign like they were 20 years ago,” he said.

Cullen said political debate in B.C. is tainted with “toxicity” and he fears it getting worse.

Cullen and Osborne appear to be referring to a frenzy of criticism from the BC Conservatives in recent months, and perhaps also BC United, as both parties have zeroed in on blasting several Indigenous Rights announcements related to land use and natural resources — relying on what many observers have identified as divisive, racist and misleading rhetoric. 

Naxginkw, or Tara Marsden, who works with the Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs, was on a call that included Cullen and Osborne when they informed her that cabinet was putting conservation plans on hold, partly due to political backlash to recent announcements around Indigenous Rights. The call also included deputy minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation Shannon Baskerville, deputy ministers of Land, Water and Resource Stewardship Lori Halls and David Muter, assistant deputy minister of Energy and Mines Tania Demchuk and Don Bain, deputy chief of staff for the Premier’s Office. 

According to Marsden, the Chiefs and province had planned to make an announcement earlier this year about temporarily pausing new mineral claims in the Medizian watershed in northern B.C., and she was dismayed to hear that the interim protections were not going to be put in place before the election as expected. 

Marsden said it seems the plans are being put on hold for “political advantage,” and fears the NDP is bending to the backlash from the Conservatives and BC United on several Indigenous Rights announcements.

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“They’re really pandering to that racism in B.C. in the face of the Haida Act and the Lands Act changes,” she said.

Conservative leader John Rustad came out hard against proposed Lands Act amendments to recognize Indigenous Rights in February. The amendments were meant to create an option for First Nations and the province to negotiate agreements on consent over Crown lands in order to avoid costly litigation — but Rustad framed the amendments as an “assault” on private land rights. Just a few weeks later, the NDP government backtracked on the amendments in the face of the inflamed response. 

Osborne’s quote suggests the government is weighing how announcements focused on Indigenous Rights recognition and land management may stoke further political backlash with less than three months to go until the October provincial election.

Osborne did not respond directly to questions about her quote referring to the election. She instead sent a statement about still being committed to reforming mining claims in the province. Cullen did not respond to questions by publication time.

Mineral claims require First Nations consultation, B.C. Supreme Court rules

Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation Murray Rankin told The Narwhal in a statement “Mr. Rustad and Mr. Falcon are still focused on dividing communities and spreading misinformation, rather than bringing people together to find solutions that work better for people, communities and the economy.”

“The province welcomes genuine questions about how agreements will work and who they will impact. But we all agree — hate speech has no place whatsoever in British Columbia’s political or public discourse.  Sometimes those concerns are based on a misunderstanding or reading something someone else shared that wasn’t true. It is deeply unfortunate that a small minority have gone to extremes to mislead people about what reconciliation and specific agreements mean — and have sought to divide communities.”

‘Fear mongering’ and ‘legal blindness’ around Indigenous Rights legislation

Rankin pointed out that when the Haida agreement was announced in April, Rustad stood in the house and said “the path to reconciliation is of utmost importance for all British Columbians” and “we need to discover title … this is a path that needs to be done.” 

“But less than 24 hours later he said it is ‘a bad deal for every day, hardworking British Columbians including First Nations,’” Rankin said.

Rustad claimed the NDP is “misleading” the public around the Haida title agreement and says it threatens private property owners, even though the agreement addresses private property. 

Rustad also called plans for new protected areas “nonsense” and said he would scrap legislation recognizing Indigenous Rights, even though he voted in favour of it in 2019. (The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, colloquially referred to as DRIPA, aims to bring B.C. laws into alignment with the landmark United Nations framework for recognizing Indigenous rights.) Recently, he has championed “economic reconciliation,” saying that Indigenous people should “add to the economic pie to make sure that First Nations can prosper from the land.”

BC United Leader Kevin Falcon criticized a dock management plan with the shíshálh Nation, framing the plan as contrary to community and industry voices and claiming it “infringes on the property rights of coastal residents”. After the province announced the expansion of the Klinse-Za / Twin Sisters park in partnership with West Moberly First Nations and Saulteau First Nations — the biggest protected area announcement in a decade — Falcon decried the park as lacking “public consultation.”

Cullen did denounce misinformation around proposed changes to the Lands Act at a news conference in February, but the government had already cancelled the amendments in the face of backlash. Cullen called the misinformation “distasteful, very unfortunate and in fact quite damaging.” He acknowledged the government’s lack of communication was partly to blame for misunderstandings around the amendments.

West Moberly First Nations released a statement calling out “racist misinformation” about the Lands Act amendments, and said Treaty 8 members had faced “increased hostility and racist backlash” due to misinformation. The statement called the government’s choice to pause the changes “disheartening.” 

The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs called the Conservatives and BC United’s rhetoric a “shameless opportunity for partisan political gain.”

These claims have been called out as “fear mongering” by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous leaders as they come up. First Nations and experts are sharing details about what the agreements really include and pointing out the damage of racially charged rhetoric around inherent Indigenous Rights. 

The narrative that recognizing Indigenous Rights will threaten non-Indigenous people is not a new one — it’s a trope that’s been deployed many times before and never quite goes away.

Merle Alexander, a lawyer with Miller Titerle + Company, said there has been continual fear mongering from politicians and lawyers who are associated with industry around legislation aligning with Indigenous Rights, such as the Environmental Assessment Act, the Lands Act, the Haida Act and the Mineral Tenure Act. He said they’re stoking the frenzied public discourse by playing to concerns and ignorance as to whether these changes undermine fee simple property.

All these things are “legally and factually incorrect and require a very high degree of legal blindness,” he said.

For example, he said, some lawyers are raising doubts in media interviews and op-eds that private land may be affected by the Haida Act — but the act “completely and expressly” says title recognition will not affect fee simple land.

“The truth is, they know this. They can read,” Alexander said. 

“Anybody could read through the Haida Agreement and see these very particular clauses about fee simple land and know that you’re protected on it. They’re knowingly creating a false narrative.”

‘Pandering to that racism in B.C.’

It’s against this backdrop that the province and First Nations were set to announce no-registration zones for mineral claims as interim protections for several areas, including the Mezidian in Gitanyow territory.

The provincial government is set to change the mineral tenure act by March 2025 due to the 2023 Gitxaala v. British Columbia decision. The Gitxaala Nation and Ehattesahet First Nation argued the mineral tenure system violates the Crown’s duty to consult, which previously allowed almost anyone to stake a mineral claim in First Nations territory without the duty to consult them. The court ruled in their favour and the government is obliged to update the mineral claims system to include consultation.

But the fact the NDP government walked back on creating a no-registration reserve in the Mezidian leads Marsden to think the NDP government is trying to “play centre and not be so much to the left,” but as a result, “They’re really pandering to that racism in B.C.,” which suggests to her that the government sees Indigenous Rights as “a principle that can be easily ignored or watered down for the sake of political advantage.” 

Rankin told The Narwhal in a statement “since 2017 we have been working to move out of the courts and instead to sit down together as neighbours, to address our shared needs and aspirations.”

“For years, John Rustad and Kevin Falcon repeatedly fought First Nations in court, and they repeatedly lost. British Columbians know that this approach has caused delays and uncertainty for people and businesses,” he said.

But Marsden points out that in the Gitxaala case the province was making the argument there was no duty to consult for mineral claims — and to her, that’s more of the same status quo.

Marsden said she knows it’s hard for politicians to push back on controversial issues with voters, but that she’s seen it happen and wants to see the current government push back harder against misinformation around Indigenous Rights.

Meanwhile, the nation is left to hope the next government will meet them back at the table.

“We all have to wait until a new government is formed, and maybe that new government still thinks this [plan] is a good idea. Or maybe that government says, ‘Well, let’s start from scratch and do all of that work that you did for three years over again,’” Marsden said.

“Even if it’s an NDP future government, they can’t commit them to anything,” she said. “Commitments shift during the campaign, there’s a new cabinet, new everything. … We are sort of back to square one when it comes to provincial protection [of the Mezidian].”

West Moberly First Nations knew to expect ‘hostile responses’ before announcing park expansion

In recent months, since Eby’s government walked back its Lands Act amendments in February, support for the Conservatives has gathered momentum while BC United tries to remain a contender for fourth place, according to a recent poll. A few significant announcements around Indigenous conservation were announced with no press events, a departure from the norm that suggests a government on guard against political backlash. 

For example, in June, B.C. reached an agreement to protect vast swaths of old-growth forest in Clayoquot Sound with Ahousaht and Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations and Nature United. Clayoquot Sound is world-famous for its ancient old-growth forests and the protests to protect them from logging, which set the record as the largest act of civil disobedience in Canada’s history in 1994. That title was later taken by the Fairy Creek old-growth protests in 2021, also on Vancouver Island. These blockades created public pressure for B.C. to create its old-growth strategy. 

Despite all the history and notoriety connected to the region, there was no media advisory, no press conference and hardly a mention on government social media. In an emailed statement, the government said that it had been unable to coordinate with the First Nations for an event. 

Similarly, B.C. spent decades working on expanding the Klinse-Za / Twin Sisters Park with West Moberly First Nations, Saulteau First Nations and the federal government. This expansion was the largest protected area announcement in a decade, but the province chose to only release the press release locally in northern B.C. and forgo a press conference. This park was subsequently met with pushback from BC United. The community of Chetwynd also claimed it was not consulted.

The Narwhal asked about the communications strategy around these announcements, and Rankin told The Narwhal, “The province is proud to collaborate on announcements with First Nations, and we make decisions about how best to celebrate these achievements in partnership with Nations to ensure they are meaningful for local communities and people, while respecting local needs and capacity.”

He pointed to the recent announcements of the purchase of the terminal property in Nanaimo with Snuneymuxw First Nation, and the initialing of proposed treaties with the Kitselas and Kitsumkalum Nations as examples.

Chief Roland Willson of West Moberly First Nations told The Narwhal ahead of the Klinse-Za announcement he knew there would be pushback from conservative-leaning commentators due to the months of rhetoric leading up to it.

“We’re expecting pretty hostile responses,” he said. He similarly saw racist backlash when the nations announced a caribou recovery plan in 2019. 

“It was just fear mongering and lifting themselves up at the expense of Indigenous people, which is sad. I can’t believe that kind of stuff is still going on these days,” Willson said. “The racial profiling is actually sickening. And it’s at the expense of our people … In school, in the line at the grocery store, people are saying pretty ignorant things.”

He said some people get defensive at the suggestion of their access to land being limited, but when it comes to First Nations, “it’s fine when our rights are being trampled.”

He also said the NDP could be doing more to combat misinformation, pointing to how the party immediately backtracked on Lands Acts amendments in the face of criticism.

“They withdrew it right away, they didn’t spend any time explaining what was going out — they looked like they got caught doing something bad, and that’s not what that was.”

Is reconciliation on voters’ minds?

Alexander said there’s a false assumption out here Indigenous people are “getting too much” that Rustad knows well as a former minister of Indigenous relations and “this racist assumption is being exploited for votes.” 

“It’s really egregious,” he said. “They’re taking an anti-human rights perspective to gain political momentum. … It’s not the first time [a party] has chosen to isolate a particular minority and use it for political gain.”

Still, he’s not sure if singling out First Nations is producing viable success for the Conservatives or United — but it seems to have affected bureaucracy in the province and consequently “slowed down reconciliation.” 

“An incumbent is always a little more cautious to find themselves in a controversy during an election cycle. So who they’ve been able to probably more directly impact is the NDP,” he said. 

But Alexander thinks the average non-Indigenous voter in British Columbia is more occupied with things like housing and health — a belief backed up by recent polling — and most people probably just want to know we’re moving “slowly, progressively” towards reconciliation, which he thinks matches what’s really happening. To Alexander, progress on the action plan to align legislation with the United Nations Declaration on Indigenous Peoples has been quite slow, even while some critics frame the changes as happening too fast.

“The real issue is that reconciliation is being politicized right now, and [the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act] is the lightning rod for that,” he said.

SȾHENEP, or Adam Olsen, outgoing Green representative for Saanich North and the Islands, said the NDP seems to be trying to “defend the lead” — a sports analogy that means avoiding risk because a team is already winning.

“I don’t think that’s the right approach with this,” he said. “The NDP need to sharpen their game up as well. They’ve sent us in a remarkably better direction on Indigenous Rights. … There should be huge amounts of gratitude… But I think it’s a project that needs to be properly taken care of.”

He agreed the NDP government has not always kept the public as informed as it could have when it comes to implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. But he also said denying Aboriginal title is no longer an option. Government has to negotiate with First Nations or fight in the courts — “there is no third option here,” he said. 

Pulling out of negotiations with First Nations lacks “honest discussion about the legal landscape” in B.C., Olsen said, arguing fighting First Nations is much more costly to the taxpayer because court cases are long, expensive and grueling. 

In contrast, Olsen said that pursuing negotiations means understanding the legal aspects of title. He believes the NDP sees “the potential opportunity of unlocking friendship and cooperation as opposed to outrage and frustration. That’s really the choice British Columbians have when it comes down to it.”

— With files from Shannon Waters

Updated on July 31, 2024 at 3:55 p.m PT: This story has been updated to correct the name of the Environmental Assessment Act, which was previously written as Environmental Systems Act.