The Nisg̱a’a Lisims government has filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court of B.C. against Raven Clan Outlaws, who they say are illegally occupying Nisg̱a’a Treaty territory as defined by a treaty which came into effect in May 2000.
The occupation in question is taking place on Crown land located between km 11 and km 13 of the Nass Forest Service Road in northern British Columbia.
Despite being Crown land, the Nisg̱a’a Nation have recognized rights in the region — the Nass Wildlife area — and say Raven Clan Outlaws are interfering with those rights and damaging the territory.
That damage, they say, includes “forest resources by clear-cutting trees, erecting permanent cabins and structures, marketing accommodations, operating a farm, raising and selling livestock near waterways (and seemingly) growing and selling cannabis without a license.”
In a press release sent out Thursday, the government says “the actions of the occupants are limiting Nisg̱a’a citizens’ ability to exercise their treaty rights to safely harvest wildlife in the area. Hunting in the vicinity of an occupied site would not only be dangerous but is also against Nisg̱a’a laws.”
The man behind Raven Clan Outlaws, and defendant in the Nisg̱a’a Lisims government’s suit is Wilhelm Marsden, a member of the Gitanyow Band.
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According to the band, their traditional territory covers 1.7 million hectares of Northwestern British Columbia, also encompassing the area on Nass Forest Service Road.
In an e-mail, Nisg̱a’a Lisims government president Eva Clayton says “unlike the Nisg̱a’a Nation, which has rights under the constitution and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People to the observance of our treaty, the Gitanyow only claim — but have not yet proven or established — Aboriginal title and rights within their asserted traditional territory.”
Clayton added, “Mr. Marsden and the other Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs have not entered into a treaty, nor have the courts confirmed any of their rights. They have acknowledged in 2021 litigation between the Nisg̱a’a Nation and British Columbia that their unproven claims do not give them a right to infringe Nisg̱a’a Treaty rights, but are now conducting activities that do so.”
Marsden did not respond to Global News’ request for comment.
The Nation says the lawsuit is the first time a modern treaty nation is taking steps to enforce its treaty rights against people who are not part of the treaty.
“Nisg̱a’a Lisims government is taking this action to protect our citizens’ rights, our traditional lands and the larger Nass Wildlife Area,” said Clayton in a release.
“We believe that we have a very strong case, since the Nisg̱a’a Treaty clearly outlines our rights,” she continued. “We are taking the steps necessary to have our treaty respected and enforced … we will do everything we can to protect these hard-won rights.”
The Nation says it has attempted to engage with Raven Clan Outlaws at the site to no avail.
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