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Pink Lake in Gatineau Park is seen in October 2021. Kitigan Zibi’s title claim encompasses eight main areas, including the sprawling western Quebec park. (Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Pepin\/Radio-Canada)<\/p>\nKitigan Zibi Anishin\u0101beg has filed a land title claim against the Quebec and Canadian governments, one that encompasses large swaths of land in western Quebec. <\/p>\n
Part of the claim is intended to protect the interests of future generations of members of the western Quebec First Nation, said Chief Jean-Guy Whiteduck.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to protect the resources, make sure they’re managed in a sustainable way that everyone benefits, today and into the future,\u201d Whiteduck told CBC<\/p>\n
The title claim was filed in Quebec Superior Court on Oct. 24. It includes a $5-billion lawsuit over alleged violations of constitutionally protected rights by the Canadian and Quebec governments and Hydro-Qu\u00e9bec, according to a press release from the First Nation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a reasonable number, based on other similar types of cases and just given the area of the land at issue and the nature of the breaches of rights that have occurred,\u201d said Julian Riddell, a lawyer representing Kitigan Zibi in the case. <\/p>\n
The National Capital Commission (NCC) has also been named as a defendant in the case. <\/p>\n
Includes reservoir, Ottawa River islands<\/p>\n
The title claim encompasses eight main areas, including Gatineau Park, the Baskatong Reservoir, and the Papineau-Labelle wildlife reserve. It also covers several islands in the Ottawa River, including Morris and Kettle Islands. <\/p>\n
Whiteduck says Kitigan Zibi never relinquished these lands.<\/p>\n
Pink Lake in Gatineau Park is seen in October 2021. Kitigan Zibi’s title claim encompasses eight main areas, including the sprawling western Quebec park. (Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Pepin\/Radio-Canada)<\/p>\n
The claim isn’t meant to affect private citizens who own property in the land in question, Whiteduck said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEventually, if the whole Algonquin territory is involved, there will be many private owners on it. I think it\u2019s something that can be resolved at the negotiation table that\u2019s fair to the fee simple owners,\u201d Whiteduck said. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not to take anything away from them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Could set precedent, says lawyer<\/p>\n
The title claim is largely centred on the 1760 Treaty of Swegatchy between the British government and the Algonquin Anishinaabe Nation and the Royal Proclamation of 1763. <\/p>\n
The Treat of Swegatchy promised the protection of the Algonquin Anishinaabe Nation\u2019s lands and way of life, according to documents included in the court filing.<\/p>\n
As part of the case, Kitigan Zibi claims the transfer of control over Gatineau Park to the NCC by the Canadian government was in direct contravention of both the treaty and the Royal Proclamation. <\/p>\n
Moreover, court filings also claim the Quebec government violated these accords in authorizing the construction of the Mercier hydroelectric dam, as well as the creation of the Baskatong Reservoir in 1927.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Julian Riddell is a lawyer representing Kitigan Zibi Anishin\u0101beg in its land title case over large portions of western Quebec. (Submitted by Julian Riddell)<\/p>\n
The reservoir led to the flooding of lands previously under the control of the Algonquin Anishinaabe Nation, an ancestor of Kitigan Zibi.<\/p>\n
Riddell says the title claim has the potential to set a precedent in Quebec as the first successful Indigenous title case in the province.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe case also has a historic treaty aspect to it,\u201d Riddell said. \u201c[It] is relying on those agreements and promises, which has been done to some extent in other cases, but these particular issues have never been addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Comes after B.C. victory<\/p>\n
In the past, the Quebec government has refused to negotiate with Kitigan Zibi over claims to their ancestral territories, Whiteduck said.<\/p>\n
The recent land claim victory by the Quw\u2019utsun Nation in August<\/a> \u2014 in which the British Columbia Supreme Court ruled the First Nation ad a right to over 300 hectares of land in Richmond, B.C. \u2014 inspired the filing of Kitigan Zibi\u2019s own land claim case, he added.<\/p>\n