Share resource revenue with aboriginals, expert advises – StarPhoenix
The Saskatchewan government should rethink its refusal to share natural resource revenue with aboriginal people, says one of Canada’s top aboriginal constitutional law experts. “It’s in the interest of governments to maintain the status quo, but the intent of the treaties was to share. That includes resource revenue,” said Larry Chartrand, a University of Ottawa professor of aboriginal law. “You can’t conclude anything other than that.”
Last week’s landmark Supreme Court ruling suggests a dramatic shift toward recognizing aboriginal people’s rights, said Chartrand, who is in Saskatoon for the summer teaching at the University of Saskatchewan’s legal studies for native people program.
Chartrand, a native of Meadow Lake, noted the Supreme Court sided forcefully with a British Columbia First Nation, awarding the group title to 1,750 square kilometres of land. The court moves beyond its former rulings saying the Crown has a “duty to consult” First Nations and Metis when development affects them. The Crown must now obtain “consent” in some cases.
