Backgrounder

The Commission accepted the Nak'azdli First Nation's request for an Inquiry on September 25, 1995. The first meeting of all the parties occurred on September 13, 1995 in Vancouver. Following this first meeting, Commissioners Carole Corcoran and Aurelien Gill heard from Elders Nicholas Prince, Betsy Leon and Francesca Antoine at the Community Session held at the Nak'azdli First Nation on November 21, 1995.

The sole issue before the Commission was whether Aht-Len-Jees I.R. No. 5 ceased to be a "reserve" of the Nak'azdli First Nation by virtue of its "disallowance" by Commissioners Ditchburn and Clark in 1923.

Aht-Len-Jees I.R. No. 5 was one of the reserves set aside for the Nak'azdli First Nation. By its Final Report in 1916 the Royal Commission on Indian Affairs for the Province of British Columbia, also known as the McKenna McBride Commission, confirmed Aht-Len-Jees as a reserve of 300 acres. The McKenna McBride Commission was a joint federal-provincial commission empowered to determine the quantative sufficiency of lands set aside for Indians, and if found insufficient, the power to fix the quantity that ought to be added.

Seven years later, a second joint federal-provincial commission was established. This time to review the final report of the McKenna McBride Commission. This second commission, known as the Ditchburn Clark Commission acted to "disallow" Aht-Len-Jees I.R. No. 5 as a reserve and in "exchange" established Uzta I.R. No. 7A as a reserve of the Nak'azdli First Nation. In their final report, Commissioners Ditchburn and Clark acted to affect the "exchange" which they stated had been made at the request of the First Nation. This statement however, was contradicted by the statements made by the Elders of the Nak'azdli First Nation during the Community Session. The Elders admitted having no knowledge of an exchange of land and in fact were never made aware of the exact circumstances surrounding the loss of Aht-Len-Jees I.R. No. 5.

It was the statements of the Elders that motivated Canada to reconsider its position and offer to negotiate the Nak'azdli First Nation claim. Canada offered to fast-track the negotiation of this claim on January 16th, 1996. The Nak'azdli First Nation accepted Canada's offer on January 31st, 1996.