Agreement between the Baie James and North Quebec
The Agreement between the Baie James and North Quebec ( French Convention de la Baie-James et du Nord québécois , abbreviated CBJNQ ) is a contract concluded in 1975 between the government of the Canadian province of Quebec and representatives of the Cree and Inuit in the northern region -du-Québec . It regulates issues of economic development and land use, as well as the establishment of a range of cultural, social and regulatory institutions for indigenous people whose communities are covered by the treaty. A slightly modified treaty, the Northeast Québec Agreement (Convention du Nord-Est québécois, CNEQ) , has existed with the Naskapi since 1978 .
history
Prior to the founding of Canada, the areas of northern Québec were part of Rupert's Land , the territory administered by the Hudson's Bay Company . In 1870 all of Rupert's land became part of Canada and in 1895 the area between the Province of Québec and the Hudson Strait became the Ungava District of the Northwest Territories . In 1898 Québec extended its borders north to the Rivière Eastmain . In 1912, the rest of the Ungava district also came to Québec - provided that an agreement would later be negotiated with the indigenous people of the region that recognizes their cultural rights and regulates land use. There was previously no such agreement for this area and the Québec government did not hold any negotiations for the time being.
In the 1960s, Québec began developing the hydropower potential in the north and in 1971 founded the Société d'énergie de la Baie James (SEBJ), a subsidiary of the state-owned utility company Hydro-Québec , to advance the Baie James hydropower project. This gigantic project met with resistance from the Cree and Inuit living in the region, who feared serious consequences for their traditional way of life. The Association des Indiens du Québec , an ad hoc representative association of those affected, protested against the project and secured the support of Jean Chrétien , the Federal Minister for Indian Affairs, who financed her appeal in court. In November 1973, the Cree obtained an order from the Québec Supreme Court that resulted in a temporary freeze on construction. Although the raised Supreme Court of Canada , the available seven days later again, but the provincial government had no choice due to the pressure of the public, as to negotiate with the natives.
On November 15, 1974, exactly one year after the order was issued, the federal government, the provincial government, Hydro-Québec management, the Cree Grand Council and the Inuit Association signed an agreement of principle. The drafted contract was finally signed on November 11, 1975. The agreement initially only concerned the claims of the Cree and the Inuit. On January 31, 1978, the Naskapi signed a similar agreement.
content
The agreement covers the following topics:
- Land use
- The traditional country of the signatories is divided into three categories:
- Category I: Land the use of which is reserved exclusively for the indigenous people of Québec (14,000 km²)
- Category II: land owned by the province on which hunting, fishing and trapping are reserved for the indigenous people; In addition, forestry, mining and tourism are managed by joint authorities (155,000 km²)
- Category III: Publicly accessible land owned by the province on which the indigenous people are exclusively allowed to hunt and fish some specific species; the rest of the land management is the responsibility of joint authorities (911,000 km²)
- Environmental protection and social measures
- The agreement provides for two consultative committees made up of indigenous representatives and government officials to advise the government on how new laws and regulations will affect the environment and social structure. South of the 55th parallel, the Comité consultatif pour l'environnement de la Baie-James is responsible, in Nunavik (which includes all areas north of the 55th parallel) the Commission de la qualité de l'environnement Kativik . An evaluation committee checks construction projects for their environmental impact.
- Economic development and financial compensation
- The federal government, the provincial government and Hydro-Québec committed to financially compensate the indigenous people in northern Québec. CAD 225 million has been allocated to support Native American economic development through three development companies. These are the Bureau de l'indemnité cri , Makivik and the Société de développement des Naskapis .
- education
- The agreement provided for the establishment of school authorities for the indigenous people: the Commission scolaire crie for the Cree settlements, the Commission scolaire Kativik for the Inuit settlements and a special school of the Naskapi in Kawawachikamach . The use of native languages in class is expressly encouraged.
- Local self-government
- Health and social institutions
literature
- Convention de la Baie-James et du Nord Québécois . Les publications du Québec, Sainte-Foy 1998, ISBN 978-2-551-17981-7 ( online [PDF]).
- Convention du Nord-Est Québécois . Affaires indiennes et du Nord Canada, Ottawa 1984 ( Online [PDF]).