Treaty rights at forefront of fight against Saskatchewan First Act

Indigenous rights groups and experts across the country are saying treaty rights are under threat in Saskatchewan.

Indigenous rights groups and experts across the country are saying treaty rights are under threat in Saskatchewan.

The Saskatchewan First Act is the latest piece of provincial legislation facing backlash from Indigenous groups saying it infringes on treaty rights and will impact their traditional way of life.

“We have 80,000 Metis people in this province, and their rights are being disrespected,” Michelle LeClair, the vice-president of Metis Saskatchewan said after the Act went through third and final reading on Wednesday.

Also known as Bill 88, the Act is meant to defend the province from federal overreach on it’s natural resources.

“This bill is not a division between that relationship and protecting treaty rights, this is a bill that is protecting our opportunity in this province from federal infringement,” Premier Scott Moe said.

The act isn’t the first of its kind in Canada.

“We’re finally telling the federal government, no more,” Alberta premier Danielle Smith said after the province introduced the Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act in November.

The act, similar to Bill 88, seeks to protect Alberta from federal laws it deems unconstitutional. As with Saskatchewan, the decision was met with controversy from Indigenous groups.