MNS Official Renews Call For Harvesting Talks

MNS Official Renews Call For Harvesting Talks

Friday, July 22, 2005 at 15:23

A northern Metis leader is calling on the provincial government to not let its current dispute with the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan short-circuit negotiations on Metis harvesting rights.

MNS Clearwater-Clear Lake area director Philip Chartier says the recent court ruling in Meadow Lake underscores the need for an agreement to be hammered out between the province and Metis leaders.

Chartier says the Metis have their own Wildlife Act that they passed in 1994, which he believes most Metis hunters and fishers are adhering to.

However, Chartier believes all kinds of problems can arise without a formal partnership between the Metis and the province.

Chartier says he knows the province is interested in protecting the interests of the multi-million-dollar outfitting industry, and he feels a Metis harvesting agreement could accomodate everyone.

Chartier says the MNS suspends the membership and refuses to defend any Metis that doesn’t adhere to the organization’s Wildlife Act.

He also feels the responsibility of Metis was proven when they banned hunting with a spotlight two years before the province adopted the measure.