BC MLAs debate K’ómoks Treaty one day after Eby’s DRIPA retreat

VANCOUVER — BC MLAs opened second reading debate Tuesday on a treaty with the K’ómoks First Nation, ratifying a 303-page modern treaty one day after Premier David Eby quietly dropped plans to tie a controversial Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act pause to a confidence vote..Optically speaking, the back-to-back moves let the NDP government pivot from potential political crisis to a visible “win” on reconciliation. Yet the timing also threw a spotlight on two stubborn realities plaguing B.C.’s treaty process: the glacial pace of negotiations and the minefield of overlapping Indigenous title claims.On Monday, the Wei Wai Kum First Nation publicly demanded the legislature pause the K’ómoks ratification, warning the deal covers nearly 80 per cent of its traditional territory — one of the largest overlaps in the history of B.C. treaty-making..Hereditary leaders from that indigenous groups called it an attempt to “rewrite history” without adequate consultation and predicted fresh conflict and litigation.The K’ómoks Treaty has been in the works since 1994 — more than 32 years.That timeline is typical. BC’s first modern treaty, the Nisga’a Final Agreement, was ratified in 2000 after more than a century of negotiations. Tsawwassen’s deal took 14 years and came into force in 2009.The Maa-nulth treaty (five Nuu-chah-nulth nations) and Tla’amin Nation treaty followed in 2011 and 2016 respectively. Each required years of talks, community votes, and separate implementation bills in Victoria and Ottawa.For homeowners, cottagers and businesses in the Comox Valley, the so-called “elephant in the room” is whether the treaty touches existing private property. The answer is no.The treaty transfers only Crown land, former federal Indian reserves, and a small number of parcels already acquired by the province for settlement purposes. No third-party fee-simple titles held by non-K’ómoks owners are altered or expropriated..K’ómoks does, however, receive fee-simple ownership of its new treaty lands — roughly 34.6 square kilometres initially, with room to add up to 15.9 square kilometres later — but private property rights outside those parcels remain untouched.The treaty even guarantees reasonable access across K’ómoks Lands to adjacent private estates and preserves the public right of navigation.Once ratified, the deal will replace the Indian Act with a form of K’ómoks self-government. The nation will gain limited law-making powers while still remaining subject to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and Criminal Code. K’ómoks will hold harvesting rights for fish, wildlife, plants and forests, plus seats on co-management boards for parks, environmental assessments and water resources. Capital transfers, ongoing fiscal deals and resource-revenue sharing are included.Caroline Elliott, a leading candidate in the ongoing Conservative Party of BC leadership race, was one of the first political figures to weigh in..“Amidst their weak attempts to deal with their own DRIPA mess, the NDP has announced a new treaty that embeds UNDRIP permanently,” said Elliott in an X post on Tuesday immediately following discussion of the treaty in the legislature.Elliott’s use of the term “permanent” may be a bit of a misnomer, however. What makes this treaty unusual is its own marketing line: “A Living Agreement.” The preamble and opening chapters declare it is deliberately designed to evolve. Every 10 years the three parties must hold a “Periodic Renewal” to review new court rulings, changes in legislation or policy, innovations from other treaties, and any “unforeseen circumstances” that significantly affect rights or benefits.Tuesday’s debate is only the first provincial hurdle. The bill must clear its third reading. Ottawa must then pass its own implementation legislation. The earliest possible effective date is 2028 — more than three decades after talks began.

BC MLAs debate K’ómoks Treaty one day after Eby’s DRIPA retreat

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