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Five leaders signed the agreement, described as a commitment of the Metis Nation of Ontario and local community councils to work together to ensure that Metis people in the region will be consulted about land use planning, energy, mining and forestry developments on traditional territories. “Metis people see the benefit of development, it creates jobs and economic opportunities in the community,” said Gary Lipinski, president of the Metis Nation of Ontario (MNO). “Our concern is that all people, including Metis people, should benefit from that development.” With mining taking off in the Northwest, Cam Burgess, MNO Region 2 (Thunder Bay, Marathon, Greenstone) council representative, said it is especially important for that industry to work with Metis. He said along with protecting the rights of harvesters, he would like to see Metis benefit from any job opportunities arising from developments. “We also want to work with the forestry industry and the Ministry of Natural Resources. We have a good working relationship with them now and we want to keep it that way,” he added. During community consultations, Lipinski said, one of the questions government and industry representatives had was, who would they consult with. “We want to make it a very clear, transparent and open process . . . of who to consult with and how,” he said. He said the MNO has been in contact with energy, mining and forestry companies to make sure they know to go to local Metis councils with their development proposals. It is then the council‘s responsibility to pass the information along to the MNO head office in Ottawa. The councils will discuss potential effects the development would have on Metis harvesting rights and patterns. Lipinski, Burgess, Wendy Landry, president of the Thunder Bay Metis Council, William Gordon, president of the Geraldton Metis Council, and Trent Desaulniers, president of the Superior Northshore Metis Council, signed the agreement. It was the third such agreement signed in Ontario. Others have been signed in the Timmins and Sudbury areas. Another was to be signed in Fort Frances later Monday. At its annual general assembly in Toronto on Nov. 17, the MNO is to sign a different agreement with the provincial government, one that will formally recognize the MNO as the representative body for Metis people and the contributions Metis have made in Ontario. “Overall we are very pleased with the relationship that has been developing with the government of Ontario,” said Lipinski. He said he is to meet with Premier Dalton McGuinty in December. Top of Page |
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September 2, 2010, 7:48 am |