The president of the N.W.T. Métis Nation is asking the government of Canada for a formal apology for having forced their people out of Wood Buffalo National Park early in the twentieth century.
Garry Bailey, the president of the N.W.T. Métis Nation, said the apology would be part of a larger national compensation package with Parks Canada that would recognize that the Métis have hunting, fishing and trapping rights in Wood Buffalo National Park. The Métis are also hoping to have a say in any economic development that could happen in the park.
“[The apology would] admit that Canada was wrong and they did wrong to the Métis people,” Bailey told CBC. “That makes a lot of difference in somebody’s mind when they think something has been taken away from them.”
Bailey said ideally the apology would come from a federal minister, Parks Canada or Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Métis lost territory in the park
The government of Canada drew the boundaries of Wood Buffalo National Park in 1922 to protect one of the last remaining bison herds. Métis elders told Bailey that, a year later, workers told all Indigenous people to exit the park grounds so a count of the buffalo population could be made.
Bailey argues that First Nations in the region have since been able to negotiate limited hunting rights in the park through their treaties — but this was something not extended to the Métis, which caused them to lose their territory.
“Our people aren’t familiar with the area,” he said. “They’ve had to break the law for the last 97 years to harvest in the park … they haven’t been able to say they’ve trapped there or hunted there.”
Bailey said Métis people are currently allowed to harvest some wildlife in the park, but that is not reflected in park policy. Parks Canada was asked to comment on the limited harvesting, but did not provide a response by publication time.
The Métis Nation will be hiring researchers to find out more about their history on the land and to learn about the families that were there before the park was established.
Negotiations are ongoing
The N.W.T. Métis Nation has been in negotiations for at least a year with the three regional presidents from Hay River, Fort Resolution and Fort Smith along with representatives from Parks Canada. No federal ministers are currently in the working group.
Bailey could not go into more detail of what the Métis Nation is asking for in the negotiations.
“This is not going to happen overnight,” Bailey said. “We’re starting the talks and so far it’s positive.”
Bailey said he is optimistic that an agreement can be reached because the federal government is dedicated to reconciliation with Indigenous people and the recognition of their rights under Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution.
“Reconciliation includes admitting the wrongs that have been done and dealing with it,” Bailey said.