Return to search

Treaty land entitlement in Saskatchewan : conflicts in land use and occupancy in the Witchekan Lake area

This thesis examines the creation of the Witchekan Lake Reserve in Saskatchewan, the resulting treaty land entitlement (TLE) for Witchekan Lake First Nation, and the 1992
Framework Agreement for Saskatchewan Treaty Land Entitlement (TLEFA). The history of the Witchekan Lake Reserve between 1913 and 1919 is reconstructed and reveals a unique situation within TLE. The creation of a Reserve some thirty seven years prior to adherence to Treaty Six
presents a challenge to the interpretation of TLE. It also points to the importance of the historical context of Reserve creation within TLE
<p>A study of land use and occupancy of Witchekan Lake First Nation and the area occupied by Settlers was facilitated by the use of Department of Indian Affairs files, map biographies, oral interviews, transcripts of earlier interviews with deceased elders, records and correspondence
from Saskatchewan Environment and Resource Mangement (SERM) and the Department of the Interior Homestead Files. The analysis employs a non-traditional definition of the ethnicity of
Settlers. That definition is based on their birthplace, their land use and their life experiences before arriving at Witchekan Lake. Employing theoretical concepts of colonization and underlying ideologies of racial inferiority, the work proposes that the existence of two opposing types of land use and occupancy and their respective value systems led to a TLE for Witchekan Lake First Nation. It is argued here that these ideologies were present in the homestead period and have persisted into the present due to the late timing of settlement and the pluralistic composition of Settlers. <p>
A review of the events around the acquisition of the Bapaume Community Pasture by Witchekan Lake First Nation demonstrates the continuance of conflict with Settlers. This conflict first arose in the homestead era. A critique of the TLEFA, specific to the case of Witchekan Lake First Nation, proposes that lack of attention to their unique circumstances has left the community with unresolved claims. The community hoped that these unresolved claims would be settled in the TLEFA.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:SSU.etd-01082007-140520
Date08 January 2007
CreatorsMcLeod, Brenda V.
ContributorsMartin-McGuire, Peggy
PublisherUniversity of Saskatchewan
Source SetsLibrary and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
Sourcehttp://library.usask.ca/theses/available/etd-01082007-140520/
Rightsunrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University of Saskatchewan or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report.

Page generated in 0.002 seconds