The closing of a popular provincial park by two First Nations is a consequence of the B.C. government’s failure to negotiate treaties with Indigenous communities, says a prominent Indigenous lawyer.
“This is an example to British Columbia of why we should have treaties in the province,” said Hugh Braker, a lawyer and member of the First Nations Summit. “If [the province] would reach an agreement with the First Nations, they wouldn’t have these problems.” He pointed to the Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation near Gold River on Vancouver Island, which limited forestry and development in a protected watershed area in order to secure a healthy habitat for salmon. A 2009 protocol between the Haida Nation and the B.C. government requires all forestry and resource decisions to be reached through consensus with the two parties.
Reaction on social media hiking forums was mixed with some disappointed at having to change their hiking plans, including one woman who said hikers were travelling from Denmark, Australia and Toronto with the goal of hiking Joffre Lake. Others commended First Nations for asserting their rights to unceded territory and pointed hikers to beautiful nearby peaks, including Garibaldi provincial park.
That is unacceptable, said B.C. Green party MLA Adam Olsen. “How is it the situation has got to here?” asked Olsen, a member of the Tsartlip First Nation. “The result of government not responding to meeting requests is these kinds of actions. Then the public gets frustrated with First Nations. Really, I think that the frustration is with a governing body that’s not responsive.”