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The aboriginal affairs committee drafted a referendum on native land claims, and British Columbians will receive the ballot before May 2002. All British Columbians should return the ballot and let their vote count, because, as the committee chairperson John Les said, “This will give British Columbia Treaty negotiators a firm mandate at the table, a mandate that is confirmed by the consent of the public.” Treaty negotiations consume much time, and cost much money. After eight years of effort and about $500 million in costs for both the provincial and the federal governments, no treaties have been signed yet, under the BC treaty process.
Federal, provincial, and First Nations authorities completed the Nisga’a deal after twenty-five years of negotiations outside the BC treaty process, and implemented the deal last year. ...
The more immediate concern of the referendum arises from the Terms of Settlement. According to the treaty, Nisga’a will receive the proposed $490 million, 2,000 square kilometers of land, and the right to self-government. ... The only way the treaty could be validated would be to amend the Constitution. ... Law, the supreme court needs to issue a referendum, which would, at long last, give British Columbians a chance to vote on the deal.
Approximate Word count = 1019
Approximate Pages = 4.1
(250 words per page double spaced)
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