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Completed Inquiries – Reports Released
01/03/1997
Moosomin First Nation [1909 Surrender] - March 1997
March 1997 This inquiry dealt with the surrender of Moosomin Indian Reserves 112 and 112A in central Saskatchewan on May 7, 1909, in exchange for a reserve farther north, near Cochin, Saskatchewan. The Moosomin First Nation claimed that the surrender was invalid because the Band's consent to the surrender did not comply with the requirements of the Indian Act and the Crown did not fulfil its fiduciary obligations in relation to that surrender. Between 1902 and 1907, local settlers and politicians petitioned the Department of Indian Affairs to have the rich agricultural lands in the Moosomin Reserve on the North Saskatchewan River near Battleford opened up for settlement, but the Moosomin Band had twice emphatically refused to surrender any of these lands. In January 1909, a letter of petition, purporting to represent the views of 22 members of the Moosomin Band, proposed the surrender of the reserve on certain terms. Curiously, not a single member of the Band actually signed or affixed his mark to the document as an expression of their intention to surrender the reserve. This letter prompted local clergymen and Indian Affairs officials to renew their efforts to secure a surrender of both of the Band's reserves on less favourable terms. Indian Agent Day went to the Moosomin Reserve on May 7, 1909, with $20,000 in cash to be distributed to the Band if it agreed to surrender. In this third and largely undocumented attempt by Canada to obtain the surrender, Moosomin Band members purported to surrender 15,360 acres of the best agricultural land in Saskatchewan in exchange for a reserve that the Department itself later described as hilly, stony, and practically useless. Even though the Department's records are replete with information on virtually every other subject involving the Band, there is a complete absence of any details from Agent Day about any surrender meeting, of any discussions, or of a record of the votes cast. Oral submissions were heard on this inquiry on September 24, 1996, at which time Canada advised that it had not formulated any position in the inquiry and, therefore, would not be providing written or oral submissions to the Indian Claims Commission. Canada was provided extra time to prepare, but the new deadline passed and the Commission remained without any written or oral submissions from Canada on the merits of this claim. Every reasonable opportunity was afforded to Canada to meet its obligation to assist this Commission fully in its deliberations. In its final report, released in March 1997, the Commission concluded that Canada breached its fiduciary obligations in securing the surrender of the Moosomin reserve lands because the Crown failed to respect the Band's decision-making autonomy and, instead, took advantage of its position of authority and unduly influenced the Band to surrender its land. Crown officials deliberately set out to use their positions of authority and influence to completely subordinate the interests of the Moosomin Band to the interests of settlers, clergymen, and local politicians, who had long sought the removal of the Indians and the sale of their reserves. The surrender was pursued in the face of consistent statements from the Band that it did not wish to give up its land; the intentions and wishes of the Band were ignored. The Crown failed to meet its fiduciary duty to exercise its power and discretion in a conscientious manner. Finally, the evidence is clear that the Governor in Council gave its consent under section 49(4) of the Indian Act to a surrender that was foolish, improvident, and exploitative, both in the process and in the end result. The Crown's failure to prevent the surrender under these circumstances amounted to a breach of fiduciary duty. Response: In December 1997, the government accepted recommendations made in the March 1997 report. Download Government Response Click Here for the Report
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