The Yale First Nation Treaty was ratified in the provincial legislature

THE YALE FIRST NATION TREATY WAS
ratified in the provincial legislature on June 2. That’s the good news. The bad news is Sto:lo leaders who oppose the treaty say the deal is far from done. Sto:lo Tribal Council (STC) and the Sto:lo Nation (SN) have expressed their opposition to the treaty approved by the 66 members of the Yale Band.† The conflict, reports the Chilliwack Times, is over the Five Mile Fishery, a stretch along the Fraser Canyon from Yale to Sawmill Creek which has been claimed by the Yale in their treaty. Sto:lo families have fished there for centuries and have been in conflict with the Yale fishers over many years. Under the treaty, Yale will have the authority to approve who fishes in the canyon.  Sto:lo Tribal Council Grand Chief Clarence Pennier said Yale Chief Robert Hope will not negotiate so they are taking their fight to those public institutions that support the treaty. “Our beef is with the government because they haven’t recognized the title and rights of the Sto:lo,” he said. “They are just hiding behind this treaty.” Chief Hope claims that Yale is a distinct First Nations from the Sto:lo, but Pennier insists it’s all Sto:lo territory. “Yale isn’t a separate nation. They never have been. They are Sto:lo and have been and will continue to be.” Pennier wants guaranteed access for Sto:lo fishing families in the area, and if governments don’t listen the issue will proceed to the courts.