Federal Action Needed on Marshall Ruling

Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Ernest Fage said the federal government must meet with the native community, the fishing industry and the province as soon as possible to work out a process for dealing with the Marshall decision.

Mr. Fage said he made that point repeatedly during today's meeting of Atlantic Conference of Fisheries Ministers in Quebec City. Finding a process to deal with the Marshall decision is one of the most critical items facing the fishery today, he said.

The minister also met privately with federal Fisheries Minister Herb Dhaliwal and was encouraged that he agreed all parties must sit down to address the issue in a timely fashion.

"The Supreme Court of Canada has made this landmark ruling. Now we must get on with the task of seeing exactly what it means," said Mr. Fage.

The minister said access to the fishery resource is a federal responsibility, and it is the federal government that must move quickly to manage the implications of the decision.

"The fishery is key to our coastal communities. Our fishing industry and native fishermen deserve to have a process put in place federally right away to start answering the questions that come from this decision."

Last Friday, the Supreme Court of Canada overturned the 1996 conviction of Donald Marshall Jr. for catching eels with a prohibited net in Antigonish County, and for selling them without a commercial fishing licence. The court ruled that the terms of a 1760 treaty with the British give Mi'kmaq the right to catch and sell fish for sustenance.

Mr. Fage said the province has to have input in any further discussions. He added the cost of implementing the decision must not be borne by the current fishing industry players or by the provincial government.