Nunavut Land Claims Agreement
The Nunavut Land Claim Agreement was signed on May 25, 1993, in Iqaluit by representatives of the Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut (now Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated), the Government of Canada and the Government of the Northwest Territories. This agreement gave the Inuit of the central and eastern Northwest Territories a separate territory called Nunavut. It is the largest Aboriginal land claim settlement in Canadian history.[1] The NLCA consists of 42 chapters, which address a big range of aspects like wildlife management and harvesting rights, land, water and environmental management regimes, parks and conservation areas, heritage resources, public sector employment and contracting, and a range of other issues.[2] The agreement indicates two areas that are the focus of the agreement: the first area consists of the Arctic islands and the mainland eastern Arctic, and their adjacent marine areas; the second area includes the Belcher Islands, its associated islands and adjacent marine areas.[2]
NLCA provides the Inuit of Nunavut with certain features
- Equal representation of Inuit with the government on a new set of wildlife management, resource management and environmental boards;[3]
- In addition to the creation of management and advisory groups, and various financial considerations, the NCLA gave the Inuit of Nunavut title to approximately 350,000 km2 (140,000 sq mi) of land, of which, 35,257 km2 (13,613 sq mi) include mineral rights;[3]
- The right to harvest wildlife on lands and waters throughout the Nunavut settlement area;[3]
- A share of federal government royalties from oil, gas and mineral development on Crown lands;[3]
- The right to negotiate with industry for economic and social benefits from the development of non-renewable resources on Inuit Owned Lands;[3]
- The creation of three federally funded national parks;[3]
- Capital transfer payments of $1.9 billion over 15 years and a $13 million Training Trust Fund for the establishment of the Government of Nunavut;[4]
A history of the Nunavut Land Claim process
In 1973 the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (ITC) began research on Inuit land use and occupancy in the Arctic. Three years later in 1976 the ITC put forward the idea of creating a Nunavut Territory and the federal Electoral Boundaries Commission that recommended dividing the Northwest Territories into two electoral districts: the Western Arctic (now the Northwest Territories) and Nunatsiaq (now Nunavut). The Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut (TFN) negotiated the land claims agreement with the federal government in 1982. Voting in the Northwest Territories determined the creation of Nunavut with a passing vote of 56%. The TFN and representatives from the federal and territorial governments signed the land claims agreement-in-principle in 1990. In 1992 the TFN and federal negotiators agreed on the substantive portions of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement. On May 25, 1993, Paul Quassa, then president of the Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut and Brian Mulroney, then Prime Minister of Canada signed the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement. On July 9, 1993 the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement and Nunavut Act were adopted by the Parliament of Canada and received Royal Assent. In 1998, amendments to the Nunavut Act were adopted by parliament and received Royal Assent. In 1999 on April 1, Nunavut with an independent government became a reality.[5]
Amendments to the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement
Since the NLCA was signed in 1993, there have been implemented amendments. The major amendments in 1995 and 1996 were alterations to different official event dates. Articles 5.4.2, 5.6.25, 8.2.2, 8.2.3, and 35.5.7 of the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement were changed. On March 1, 2002, schedule 29-3 (negotiation loans payment) of the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement was replaced.[6]
References
- ↑ Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Signed. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
- 1 2 Nunavut and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement — An Unresolved Relationship, 10th Anniversary Nunavut, Barry Dewar. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada (1997). "Chapter 2 - Implementation Panel Report". 1996-1997 Annual Report on the Implementation of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement. ISBN 0-662-63298-2. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
- ↑ Shelagh D. Grant, Polar Imperative (D&M Publisher Inc, 2011), 384.
- ↑ Land Claims, Kitikmeot Inuit Association. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
- ↑ Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, Amendments to the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement. Retrieved April 30, 2015.