{"id":525421,"date":"2026-03-09T22:13:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T22:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/525421\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T22:13:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T22:13:09","slug":"metis-nation-saskatchewan-opens-office-and-gallery-in-ottawa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/525421\/","title":{"rendered":"M\u00e9tis Nation-Saskatchewan opens office and gallery in Ottawa"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

Listen to this article<\/p>\n

Estimated 4 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.<\/p>\n

The M\u00e9tis Nation-Saskatchewan (MN-S) has opened an office and retail space in Ottawa to create a stronger presence in the capital since removing itself from the M\u00e9tis National Council in 2024.<\/p>\n

Located in Byward Market, a busy tourist area near Parliament Hill, the 1,900-square-foot space opened its doors on Feb. 26.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The space, named “Le Magazaen,” meaning “the store” in Michif, is designed both for meetings and as a retail store and gallery to showcase M\u00e9tis artisans from Saskatchewan. <\/p>\n

Richard Quintal, MN-S chief executive officer, calls it “a space where we can sit and meet with public officials, with elected officials, to be able to negotiate, talk about our priority areas, and continue the work of self-government.” <\/p>\n

Quintal said the inspiration for Le Magazaen came from the meeting places at general stores during the 1885 Northwest Resistance.<\/p>\n

“It has a feel of an 1880s general store, where we’re going to be able to sell our craftspeople and artisans’ work from Saskatchewan, so that we can empower our artists and our craftspeople who live in community to make a living,” he said.<\/p>\n

Alongside the artwork of 16 Saskatchewan M\u00e9tis artists, Le Magazaen also features a collection of loaned artwork from Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada.<\/p>\n

A major motivation to open the space came from the MN-S’s desire to have a presence in Ottawa, particularly as it finalizes a self-government treaty with the federal government. <\/p>\n

“We’ve expanded past needing the advocacy in Ottawa and having people do that for us, and so we need to have those discussions ourselves,” Quintal said.<\/p>\n

\"artworkLe Magazaen features artwork from 16 M\u00e9tis artists in Saskatchewan as well as pieces loaned by Crown Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. (M\u00e9tis Nation-Saskatchewan)<\/p>\n

The M\u00e9tis National Council, the Manitoba M\u00e9tis Federation and the M\u00e9tis Nation of Ontario all have offices in Ottawa.<\/p>\n

During the last Parliament, opposition from groups in Ontario and Alberta to a bill recognizing the governments of the M\u00e9tis Nation of Alberta, the M\u00e9tis Nation of Ontario and MN-S effectively stalled the legislation. MN-S pulled its support for the bill in April 2024, citing concerns with a “one-size-fits-all” approach.<\/p>\n

MN-S then withdrew from the M\u00e9tis National Council in September 2024.<\/p>\n

The bill died after Parliament was dissolved in early 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Jacinthe Goulet, a spokesperson for Crown-Indigenous Relations, said in a statement the department is working separately with each M\u00e9tis government on “the next steps to advance their visions of self-determination and self-government.”<\/p>\n

Need for Ottawa office questioned<\/p>\n

Jennifer Laewetz, a member of George Gordon First Nation in Saskatchewan who was previously a citizen of MN-S and whose children are citizens of MN-S, said the decision to open an office in Ottawa lacked transparency.<\/p>\n

“I think there’s just far too much confusion around what the purpose of this actually is,” said Laewetz, who is also the founder of the political advisory firm Paskwaw Strategies.<\/p>\n

Laewetz said she has been unable to find a resolution by the MN-S’s Provincial M\u00e9tis Council related directly to the establishment of the Ottawa office.<\/p>\n

Laewetz also said a virtual council meeting in January, which was livestreamed to YouTube, mentioned a lack of budget to hold in-person meetings for the council.<\/p>\n

“If the M\u00e9tis Nation [-Saskatchewan] is struggling to find a budget to hold in-person meetings for their own governance here locally, then I’m struggling … to understand the need for an office [in Ottawa],\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

“I think that if they want to advance that self government and their modern treaty, they really need to go back to the table and work with their citizens in Saskatchewan, where the heart of the governance started, and the heart of M\u00e9tis Nation-Saskatchewan actually exists.”<\/p>\n

\"artThe office is located in a busy tourist area near Parliament Hill. (M\u00e9tis Nation-Saskatchewan)<\/p>\n

Quintal said in a statement to CBC Indigenous that Le Magazaen was “established within MN-S\u2019s approved operating budget and implemented through normal operational management.”<\/p>\n

He added MN-S’s Provincial M\u00e9tis Council approves annual budgets through resolutions, which are then approved by its M\u00e9tis Nation Legislative Assembly.<\/p>\n

Quintal said the comments made about funding at the January meeting were “made in the specific context of additional in\u2011person workshops or study sessions to support the work of the PMC, not regularly scheduled in\u2011person PMC meetings,” which are all balanced within the approved operating budget.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 4 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":525422,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194295],"tags":[49,48,20739],"class_list":["post-525421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ottawa","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-ottawa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=525421"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525421\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/525422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=525421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=525421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=525421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}