Even after the longest trial in Canadian history, the status of B.C. land rights is very much up in the air.
Driving the news: Lawyers for the Cowichan Tribes in B.C. say they will bring a proposal to court in January that will protect residents’ private property rights, pitching it as a compromise after a landmark court ruling last year recognized Aboriginal title to 800 acres of land in Richmond.
Catch-up: The Cowichan Tribes v. Canada ruling was the first case in Canadian history affirming Indigenous title over land that includes privately owned property. The judge ruled that the governments’ ownership rights of those lands are “defective and invalid,” but didn’t clarify who will ultimately control the properties.
The land, which is collectively worth around $1.3 billion to $2 billion, includes a golf course, private homes, farms, and part of the Port of Vancouver.
Zoom out: B.C.’s new Premier Lorne Doerkson, who partially campaigned on strengthened property rights, said that it is his top priority to repeal B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) — legislation passed in 2019 that requires all other provincial laws to be in line with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
DRIPA has become increasingly controversial after a B.C. court set a precedent last year that any provincial law can be challenged if it’s inconsistent with the UN declaration.
While DRIPA has no direct correlation to last year’s land rights ruling, it is seen as a major point of leverage for the provincial government in negotiating with Indigenous groups.
Why it matters: Skeptics have argued that Indigenous rights and private property cannot coexist. As similar cases play out across Canada, other provinces will be watching to see if the Cowichan Tribes and the B.C. government can find a happy(ish) middle ground.—LA
