Completed Inquiries – Reports Released

01/03/2001

Peguis First Nation [Treaty Land Entitlement] - March 2001

In March 2001, the Indian Claims Commission (ICC) released its report on the Peguis treaty land entitlement claim. The report made no recommendations because the government agreed to accept the claim for negotiation before the inquiry process was completed.

The First Nation asked the Commission to conduct an inquiry into the government's rejection of its claim that the promises made in Treaty 1 regarding the amount of reserve land to be allotted to its band had not been fulfilled. In this case, the facts surrounding the 1907 surrender of the original reserve and the subsequent survey of an alternate reserve had a bearing on the treaty land entitlement discussions. At planning conferences in January and May 1995, the parties agreed that the government should have the opportunity to review the First Nation's separate claim regarding the 1907 surrender before the Commission proceeded with its inquiry into the treaty land entitlement issue. In June 1995, the First Nation submitted its surrender claim to the government; confirming research was completed in September 1995.

Planning conferences were held in October and November 1996 to discuss the delay in the government's decision to accept or reject the claim and tentative dates were set to proceed with the Commission's inquiry.

In February 1997, the government informed the Peguis First Nation of its preliminary decision to accept the surrender claim for negotiation, but stipulated that it had not yet finalized its position with regard to the treaty land entitlement claim. A fifth planning conference was held in April 1997 to discuss this issue. At this meeting the parties agreed that additional research was required. This work was completed by Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development 's regional office and Treaty and Aboriginal Rights Research Centre Manitoba and a report submitted to the parties in December 1997. In June 1998, the government advised the Peguis First Nation that the treaty land entitlement claim was accepted for negotiation under the Specific Claims Policy.

Response: In June 1998, the government accepted the claim for negotiation.

To download the government's response 

To download the report - PDF