Cowessess First Nation calls on Ottawa to follow land claim settlement, NDP leader attends meeting

Cowessess First Nation says Ottawa is delaying an existing negotiated land claim MOU warning stalled projects and urging partnership for economic sovereignty.

Cowessess First Nation is calling on Ottawa to “honour” a negotiated land claim settlement, stating it is disappointed in the federal government’s inaction.

On Wednesday, a news conference was held for residents to voice their concerns to Federal NDP Leader Avi Lewis.

People emphasized how significant the settlement is to families who have a background in farming and agriculture.

“Our people have negotiated in good faith, reached agreements, and upheld our side of the process — yet federal MPs and bureaucrats continue to stall and delay restitution that should already be completed,” read a statement by Chief Erica Beaudin.

In a news release, the First Nation said the federal government’s delay to finalize the land claim settlement has resulted in the community to lose out on “Indigenous economic participation.”

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“The high-value land claim will allow for us to be true partners in economic sovereignty for Cowessess, equal to what the federal government’s goal is for Canada,” Beaudin said.

At the conference, Savhanna Wilson, who serves as chief of staff for Lewis, said the federal NDP leader will be visiting other First Nation communities who are “impacted as well.”

“One of the things we hoped to do here is to collect the advocacy asks from the community and make sure that we understand fully what the communities that are impacted are hoping for,” Wilson said.

“For us not just as a party, but in government as well to push for. We’ll meet with the rest of the nations that are impacted as well and then there’s a couple of different options [that we are] exploring in terms of parliamentary procedures.”

The federal NDP Leader is expected to be in the Fort Qu’Appelle area on Thursday on Star Blanket Cree Nation.