Native fishermen fight over fish resource

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It was a long hard battle for the members of the Chippewas of Nawash to win recognition of their fishing rights. And Chief Ralph Akiwenzie won't tolerate anyone who threatens them or the health of the fishery, he said.

"These rights are communal rights. They don't belong to any individual or group," he contends.

Akiwenzie made the remarks in response to the formation of an independent association of Native fishermen. The 45-member group includes fishermen from the Nawash reserve at Cape Croker on the Bruce Peninsula and the Chippewas of Saugeen to the south.

The group's vice president, Francis Lavalley, accuses the Nawash politicians involved with mediated talks with the province and federal government of selling out the interest of Native fishermen in hopes of getting more government subsidies.

"It isn't mediation for us," he said.

Lavalley, whose father and father before him have fished the waters around the Bruce Peninsula, admits he fishes without a Nawash fishing license. The Nawash band established a licensing system to regulate commercial fishing after David Fairgrieve, a provincial court judge, ruled in 1993 the Nawash and Saugeen have first right to fish the waters around the Bruce Peninsula.

To provide for the Native fishery, the Ministry of Natural Resources bought up non-Native fishing licenses. Lavalley said the entire Native fishery has only been allocated 880,000 lbs of whitefish while just one of the 12 non-Native commercial fishing boats "bought up in our name" had an annual allocation of 500,000 lbs. This leaves a considerable discrepency between what was bought on behalf of the Native fishery and what was provided.

"Where's the justice in that? Where's all the numbers bought in our name?" said Lavalley.

Akiwenzie said Nawash fishing authorities ordered an area closed to fishing to preserve the fishery from over fishing.

"Our rights and the health of the fishery are in our mind, inseparable," he said.

Nawash doesn't recognize the Aboriginal Communal Fishing License established by the province, but four Native fishermen facing charges in connection with alleged violation of the provincial license have been left to fight the legal battle alone, said association president Lorne Mandawoub.

He says the four have spent close to $10,000 of their own money on lawyers and can't afford it anymore and have had to let their lawyer go.

"Nawash council members are more interested in subsidy dollars," Mandawoub said.

Lavalley said he supports "control" of the fishery and said he believes the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources should be the agency controlling it.

"As long as the ministry gives us the rest of the fishing quota they bought in our names," he said.

But Akiwenzie said Nawash has fought too long and hard to allow that to happen.

"We are striving to protect this valuable resource," he said.