Gitxaala Nation launches appeal on Courts refusal to address UNDRIP on mineral tenures

The Gitxaala Nation is taking measures in response to a recent court decision that did not address their concerns related to mineral tenure in their territory.

The Decision from the BC Supreme Court was released on September 26th and was met by a call for reform from the Gitxaala Nation after a number of their concerns were left unresolved.

Yesterday, the Nation highlighted their scope of their appeal to the Court decision.

Towards those concerns Gitxaała is appealing the following: 

(1) the Court’s refusal to quash the specific mineral claims challenged by Gitxaała;

(2) the Court’s refusal to prevent further automatic claim-staking in Gitxaała territories 

(3) the Court’s decision that the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) is not legally enforceable.

Gitxaala Chief Councillor Linda Innes noted of the Nation's ongoing efforts towards the BC Government's approach to mineral claims and how it is working against their introduction of UNDRIP.

“The provincial government fought us tooth and claw in Court to argue that DRIPA – the law BC itself enacted to uphold UNDRIP – is not legally enforceable, 

The Court’s decision is a result of BC’s efforts to score political points on DRIPA while avoiding any legal accountability – but DRIPA must be more than an empty political promise

While the Court’s decision requires BC to design a new mineral tenure system, the provincial government has not been willing to publicly admit that the current mineral tenure system is inconsistent with UNDRIP. 

That does not bode well for reform. Frankly it’s shameful that the BC government fought against its own law in court, forcing us to continue legal action just to ensure UNDRIP’s minimum standards are upheld in an overhaul of the mineral tenure regime."

The full statement from the Gitxaala Nation is available here.

More items of interest from the Gitxaala Nation can be reviewed through our archive page here.

Notes from the BC Legislature can be examined from our archive here.