Treaty Day Marks 25 Years of Friendship, Achievement
NOTE: A social media version of this release, with high-res downloadable photos and audio and video clips is available at http://gov.ns.ca/news/smr/2011-10-03-Treaty-Day/ . More photos, audio and video clips will be added after the event.
Premier Darrell Dexter, Mi'kmaw chiefs and the lieutenant governor celebrated the accomplishments of outstanding Mi'kmaq today, Oct. 3.
The Treaty Day awards ceremony at Province House capped off the 25th anniversary of Treaty Day celebrations in Nova Scotia.
"When I look back over the past few decades, I have seen so many important milestones for the Mi'kmaq and non-Mi'kmaq of Nova Scotia," said Premier Dexter, who is also Minister of Aboriginal Affairs. "We have made considerable progress in how we work together – from a cultural perspective, and how we do business and set policy."
More than a decade ago, an historic decision in the Donald Marshall Jr. case established in law Mi'kmaw treaty rights based on a 1752 agreement with the queen. It confirmed the Mi'kmaq's right to hunt, fish and gather to earn a moderate livelihood.
Mi'kmaw leaders and the province have worked to build a relationship that makes Nova Scotia a better place to live for Mi'kmaq.
The Mi'kmaq-Nova Scotia-Canada Tripartite Forum, Made-in-Nova Scotia negotiation process and common approach to consultation are the building blocks of this relationship. The common approach to consultation is unique, and other provinces are watching to see what they can learn from it.
"Nova Scotia and the Mi'kmaq have come a long way together in the past 25 years," said Mi'kmaw Grand Chief Ben Sylliboy. "We'll keep working together and celebrating our accomplishments together. We're proud to mark this anniversary in the House of Assembly and to have a reminder of our culture here for the future."
"These events to acknowledge the Peace and Friendship Treaties of the 1700s are the basis of the ongoing partnerships between the Mi'kmaq and the Crown," said John Duncan, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development. "I encourage continued participation in this important day as we continue to develop these partnerships together."
During the Treaty Day ceremony, the premier and Mi'kmaw representatives presented a number of awards to elders and youth from Mi'kmaw communities throughout the province.
As well, a collection of images and artifacts reflecting historical Mi'kmaw culture and life, created by the Nova Scotia Museum, was shown to the public for the first time. The Mi'kmaw Collection, Province House, is permanently installed in the building. It includes stone tools and pottery from before European contact, a quillwork tea cosy from the 1800s, historical photographs and reproductions of a painting and a lithograph depicting Mi'kmaw activities in the Halifax area.
The Treaty Day ceremony began in 1986 with the signing of a proclamation by then-Grand Chief Donald Marshall Senior. It marks the beginning of Mi'kmaq History Month in Nova Scotia.