Draft agreement reached in Akaitcho land claim process, says N.W.T. premier
CBC
N.W.T. Premier Caroline Cochrane says there has been progress on the Akaitcho land claims and self-government negotiation process.
The Akaitcho process involves the Akaitcho Dene First Nations, including the Yellowknives Dene First Nation (Dettah and Ndilǫ), Łutsel K'e Dene First Nations and Deninu Kųę́ First Nation (Fort Resolution), and their federal and territorial counterparts.
In the Legislative Assembly on May 29, Cochrane said the three parties have entered into a draft agreement in principle. But as for what the agreement includes, neither the N.W.T. or the Akaitcho Dene First Nations will say.
"The initialling of these agreements reflects our government's commitment to strengthening relationships with Indigenous governments and demonstrates our sincere interest in meaningful partnerships," Cochrane said in the Legislative Assembly.
CBC News contacted the Akaitcho Treaty 8 Tribal Corporation, the representatives of the Akaitcho, by phone but was told the negotiations are confidential.
CBC News also contacted the premier and was told by Nicole Bonnell, a spokesperson for the territorial government, by email that the "terms of the agreement are held in confidence by the parties and would only be shared with other Indigenous parties for consultation purposes on a confidential basis."
Bonnell said in the email that an agreement in principle is the basis for a final agreement.
The negotiations between the Akaitcho, the N.W.T. and Canada have been ongoing since the 1990s, with the latest round starting in the early 2000s.
This is the first update on that process in years.
In 2019, Fred Sangris, who was the Yellowknives Dene First Nation's negotiator in the Akaitcho process, and is currently Ndilǫ's chief, said an agreement in principle was expected within the year.
In 2007, the territorial government and the Akaitcho reached an agreement on an interim land withdrawal of 62,000 square kilometres within the Akaitcho traditional territory. This is formerly Crown land that the territorial government took over, and the withdrawal means no development can take place until an agreement is reached.
The interim withdrawal also involves 1,000 square kilometres in Yellowknife.
A suspended Moncton structural engineer faces more lawsuits alleging design flaws in buildings that require repair.
Sajjade Tugano has come a long way since he first set foot in Chibougamau, six hours north of Quebec City, in the depths of winter in November 2021.
A national mentor-based hockey organization that helps marginalized youth through the sport is paying tribute to one of its members and youngest coaches.
After months of asking the City of Saskatoon to do more to solve its homelessness crisis, advocate David Fineday took to the stand at city council Tuesday.
A community organization wants to breathe new life into a historic building in Regina.
Some Prince County residents are walking away with more answers after attending Tuesday night's public information session in Albany, P.E.I., on the Wejipek Wind Project.
After just a few months of using vape detectors in a couple of bathrooms, a B.C. high school principal says it's reduced vape use in those areas to basically zero.
Burlington MP Karina Gould gets boost from local young people after entering Liberal leadership race
A day after entering the Liberal leadership race, Burlington, Ont., MP and government House leader Karina Gould was cheered at a campaign launch party by local residents — including young people expressing hope the 37-year-old politician will represent their voices.
Anold Mulaisho was born intersex and wonders where they fit in, in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order for the United States to recognize only two sexes, male and female.
WARNING: This story contains references to suicide.
Subway service is down on Line 1 between Sheppard West and Lawrence West due to a broken power rail, the TTC said Wednesday morning.
A long-term care home in Toronto's Yorkville neighbourhood has cleared one more hurdle to add desperately needed beds to its property, a move that's been praised by housing advocates but opposed by locals concerned about the impact on the neighbourhood.
A Charlottetown resident is calling on the P.E.I. government to do more to protect homeowners after reading about a recent oil spill very similar to one on his Montague property 20 years ago, which he says ruined him financially.
WARNING: This story includes details of abuse.
Two years after Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly declared she was taking the unprecedented step of moving to confiscate millions of dollars from a sanctioned Russian oligarch with assets in Canada, the government has not actually begun the court process to forfeit the money, let alone to hand it over to Ukrainian reconstruction — and it may never happen.
Alberta business and oilpatch leaders are returning home from Washington this week after the U.S. presidential inauguration festivities — and gritting their teeth after a roller-coaster of emotions.
Youth workers in Toronto's Jane and Finch area are flipping the script on negative stereotypes about their communities with a new fundraising campaign that offers anti-bias training in exchange for donations to bolster their programming.
In a sudden move that came late Tuesday evening, city officials rolled out cots and temporarily opened a warm building in east London as frigid temperatures continued.