Stefan Sinclair-Fortin
The Sipekne'katik First Nation says it is ceasing discussions with the federal government about the implementation of a treaty-rights-based lobster fishery. An open letter signed by chief Mike Sack, sent Thursday to federal fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan, expressed the band's frustration, saying Jordan's department doesn’t have “the desire nor the ability to recognize and implement our constitutional right through a respectful process.”
The band has been in talks with Fisheries and Oceans Canada—known as DFO—since it launched its moderate livelihood fishery in September. The fishery, which has taken place outside the commercial season, is based on 18th-century treaty rights, signed between the British and the Mi’kmaq, which ensures Indigenous people can support a moderate livelihood through activities like fishing.