VICTORIA - An aboriginal chief invited into the B.C. legislature's chamber Monday to make history told the government, Opposition New Democrats and about 300 aboriginal protesters chanting outside that she didn't want her people's treaty to become a political football.
Kim Baird, the five-time elected chief of the 300-member Tsawwassen First Nation, said treaty-making requires acts of compromise by all sides, and her people have been making economic and social compromises for years.
Baird, 37, was summoned inside the legislature to participate in the B.C. government's introduction of the debate on a treaty with the Tsawwassen First Nation, only the second non-government-affiliated person to address the chamber.
The treaty, once ratified by the B.C. and federal governments, will become the first urban land-claims treaty in Canada. The Tsawwassen live in the southern Vancouver suburb of Delta not far from the ferry terminal that bears their name and a growing container port.
"I think I can say on my and my community's behalf, that true reconciliation requires that this treaty receive broad support," said Baird inside the legislature. "I want our treaty to have the support of as many parties and individuals as possible."
"To have it become a political football due to very specific public policy issues, in my view, sullies the whole point of true reconciliation," she said. "Compromises are indeed difficult but also very necessary."
Baird said her comments were directed at politicians, environmentalists and commentators critical of the Tsawwassen receiving 200 hectares of protected agricultural land as part of the treaty settlement.
"Critics choose to ignore Tsawwassen's history of being victims of industrial and urban development to the benefit of everyone but us," she said.
Baird said the highway to the ferry terminal serving Vancouver Island and the southern Gulf Islands cut off their reserve and the nearby container port coats their homes with coal and diesel particulate and brings train and truck traffic 24 hours a day.
"Today we have a tiny postage stamp of a reserve, a small fraction of a percentage of our traditional territory fronting a dead body of water, trapped between two massive industrial operations," she said.
Baird said the treaty will give her people the same opportunities other Canadians already enjoy.
"The Tsawwassen treaty, clause by clause, emphasizes self-reliance, personal responsibility and modern education," she said. "Or, in other words, a quality of life comparable to other British Columbians."
Premier Gordon Campbell called the treaty a triumph for the Tsawwassen people.
He said he is prepared to discuss any suggestions people have for improving the current treaty negotiating process.
The B.C. and federal governments have been attempting to negotiate treaties with B.C. first nations for almost 15 years, with little success until recently.
Only about 15 of the estimated 200 aboriginal nations have treaties, and the majority of those were negotiated about 150 years ago when British Columbia was still a British colony.
"I encourage people to come forward with positive recommendations," Campbell said.
The government introduced three pieces of legislation covering the treaty and amending current laws affected by it.
Baird had heartfelt but stern words for the aboriginal protesters who had gathered at the legislature.
"It saddens me that (there are) such a range of people who don't understand either our treaty or the objectives of my community," she said at a ceremony prior to her introduction to the legislature.
"Although I view our treaty to be very exciting, many view this treaty as a scary prospect. Our treaty hasn't come without its share of controversy. What is happening outside is testimony to that."
The protesters said they were opposed to the Tsawwassen treaty celebration and carried placards saying they were not satisfied with the negotiating process.
Last July, the Tsawwassen people voted overwhelmingly in favour of a treaty that will give them ownership of more than 700 hectares of prime land, about $ 14 million in cash, self-government provisions and fishing rights.
The Tsawwassen will agree to pay income taxes as a part of the treaty.
The land portion of the treaty has created controversy because it includes some of the most fertile farmland in Canada. Many believe it could be used as part of a huge container port development.
The New Democrats, supporters of the treaty process, have been infighting over this treaty because it gives the Tsawwassen provincially protected agricultural land.
Baird said the treaty has created fear in some parts of the aboriginal community, but much of that could be a result of her band being the first to embrace the negotiating process.
"I'm convinced that only time will prove to everyone that our treaty is not something to fear," she said. "It's something to embrace and something that will benefit all."
Campbell, who presented Baird with a carved cedar door with the First Nation's eagle and blue heron tribal symbols, praised her and the Tsawwassen people.
"There's a lot of talk about leadership in the world we live in today," he said. "Chief Kim Baird is someone who has acted on leadership. She has been a leader through action."
Baird is the great-granddaughter of former Tsawwassen chief Harry Joe, who petitioned government in 1914 for title to the Tsawwassen lands, Campbell said.
Campbell has become a champion of treaty settlements and aboriginal issues in recent years. He has forged what he calls a new relationship with aboriginals after years of controversy early in his political career.
Campbell was Opposition Liberal leader when Nisga'a Chief Joe Gosnell addressed the legislature in 1998 to celebrate the first modern-day treaty in B.C. history.
Campbell opposed the Nisga'a treaty and launched a lawsuit, which was later dropped.
Campbell now says aboriginals represent Canada's third solitude and they will not be equal partners in Canada until their health, social and economic status is the same as all Canadians.
Chief Stewart Phillip, president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, said aboriginal people from across the province are opposed to the treaty process.
Phillip said it is designed to extinguish aboriginal title and terminate aboriginal rights just to provide certainty for business and industry.
Protester Tom Sampson of the Sencot'en Alliance said he is an old man who is getting tired of fighting
"We oppose the way this government has coerced these tribes to enter the treaty process by using money to move them into a position where they can't say no because most of our tribes, our people, across the country and especially in B.C. we are still living in Third World conditions," Sampson said.
