First Nations won’t have INAC to kick around any more.

That’s because Indian and Northern Affairs Canada had a name change following the election of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s majority government. The department is now Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.

North Vancouver Island MP John Duncan, who retained his cabinet seat as minister of the department, explained it this way: “This change better reflects the scope of my ministerial responsibilities with respect to First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The title is more up to date and inclusive and is consistent with our government’s focus on moving forward in our relationship with Aboriginal peoples.”

When the name change was announced in mid-May, there were worries from some native leaders that the move would water down the government’s commitment to First Nations. But Duncan said: “I want to be clear that the new working title has no impact on my responsibilities with respect to First Nations.”

Chief Shawn Atleo said he had no worries about the name change, although he was surprised by it. After a meeting with Duncan in early June, the Assembly of First Nations leader said: “He provided assurances that I’m OK with and they gave me comforts that First Nations’ rights won’t be eroded. I don’t want to get too lost down the mineshaft over addressing the name change.”

When TimberWest held its annual general meeting in Vancouver in mid-June, a Vancouver Island protest was expected to meet shareholders and put a few more frowns on their faces.

That is because a month earlier, the Hul’qumi’num Treaty Group raised eyebrows in the financial world when it announced its opposition to the $1 billion sale of the forest company. HTG filed a ‘precautionary measures’ request with the Inter-American Human Rights Commission (IACHR), which is an independent body of human rights experts, within the Organization of American States. The filing was part of HTG’s larger human rights complaint against Canada.

Within hours of that announcement, TimberWest shares tumbled in value on the Toronto Stock Exchange, losing almost 20 per cent of its value. Much of the share price later recovered, but the damage had been done. The Vancouver-based company had been in the process of being sold to two Canadian public service pension funds.

MEETING IN LADYSMITH

A week after HTG’s initial announcement, three other nations, including Snuneymuxw, joined with the six-nation treaty group to sign a declaration opposing the sale of the company at a meeting in Ladysmith.

All those nations’ traditional territory includes more than 113,000 hectares of TimberWest lands that were part of the 2 million acre E&N Railway land grant of 1883.

A number of Naut’sa mawt Tribal Council nations are involved in the dispute. Halalt and Stz’uminus are members of HTG. Snuneymuxw, T’Sou-ke and others attended.

Chief Doug White II of Nanaimo said after that meeting: “Approximately 20,000 hectares of TimberWest lands are at the core of Snuneymuxw territory in the Nanaimo River watershed. The alienation of these lands, as part of the E&N Land Grant, represents a fundamental breach of the Snuneymuxw Douglas Treaty of 1854.

“We have written to both TimberWest and the pension corporations to put them on notice of this dark cloud on the title to this land. Snuneymuxw stands with our relations in opposition to the proposed sale.”

MORE SUPPORT FROM SUMMIT

Chief White, who is on the executive of the BC First Nations Summit, said the matter would be on the agenda when leaders met in Vancouver in early June and he was true to his word.

HTG’s chief negotiator Robert Morales appeared at the Summit over two days and came away with not only an important resolution of support from First Nation leaders, but also the backing of three other groups. Amnesty International, Lawyers Rights Watch Canada and Ecotrust Canada all said it would be assisting HTG.

“We were very heartened by the support we received from other nations, both on and off Vancouver Island,” he said. “Other Island leaders see that our fight is also theirs. We are all opposed to the large-scale sale and resource extraction on private lands in our traditional territories.

“These lands have never been surrendered or ceded, yet others have benefited from land sales such as this for 150 years. Our interests in these lands continue, even as they are being clear-cut of timber and subdivided for development.”

“The corporate world realizes that such issues can seriously impact their bottom line,” Morales said. “After HTG sent out its media announcement last week, we have been receiving calls from financial centres in many locations. Investors in resource companies like TimberWest are worried. When investors are worried, governments get worried. It means we have their attention.”