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06/12/1995
Indian Claims Commission Recommends that Canada Negotiate Settlement with Homalco
Ottawa (December 6, 1995) - The Indian Claims Commission, established in 1991 to help resolve specific land claims of First Nations in Canada, has recommended to the Government of Canada that it negotiate an early settlement of a specific land claim of the Homalco Indian Band of Bute Inlet and Campbell River, British Columbia.
The Homalco First Nation, with a population of about 350, has 11 reserves. Most are located around the Bute Inlet area, with its newest community site near Campbell River, home to most of the 100 Band members living on reserve.
The land involved is adjacent to the Aupe Indian Reserve No. 6 and No. 6A in the Church House area at the mouth of Bute Inlet, approximately 40 kilometres northeast of Campbell River. The issue dates back to 1888.
In releasing the report of the Indian Claims Commission (ICC) on the Homalco claim, Commissioner Carole Corcoran said the Commission has concluded that Canada is in breach of its fiduciary obligation to the Homalco Band and therefore recommends that Canada accept the Band's claim for negotiation.
The report was presented Thursday (Dec. 14) to Homalco Chief Richard Harry at an informal meeting with Commissioner Corcoran in Vancouver.
The Band claims that the land set apart at the adjoining Aupe reserves No. 6 and No. 6A was insufficient and inadequate. "There was a discrepancy between the acreage description in the 1888 Minute of Decision outlining the boundaries of Aupe Indian Reserve No. 6 and the present size of the reserve," Commissioner Corcoran said. "In 1907, the Band requested an additional 80 acres of reserve land adjoining Aupe I.R. No.6 but their request was denied. Shortly thereafter, William Thompson, the Band's school teacher at the time, applied for a pre-emption involving the same land."
Over the protests of the Band and despite Canada's representations to the Province of British Columbia on the Band's behalf, the teacher and his family had acquired 145 acres in the area by 1924. In 1915, a Royal Commission recommended that the Band receive 29.7 acres of land. The Indian Claims Commission had found that, except for the family's pre-emption claim, the Band would have received the recommended 29.7 acres. Instead, the Band received 20.8 acres, representing a loss to the Band of 9.62 acres.
"Canada had a duty to protect the Band's Indian settlement lands," said Commissioner Corcoran. "They failed to do so. As a result, we are recommending that the claim of the Homalco Indian Band be accepted for negotiation."
The Homalco claim was filed July 6, 1994 under Canada's Specific Claims Policy under which the government of Canada agreed to negotiate any specific claim where there is an outstanding lawful obligation on the part of the Federal government.
The ICC was established in 1991. Its mandate is: to inquire, at the request of a First Nation, into specific claims that have been rejected by the federal government or where the First Nation disputes the compensation criteria being considered in negotiations; and to provide mediation services on consent of the parties at any stage of the claims process.
