Commercial fishermen file suit against Canadian government, Sipekne'katik over moderate livelihood fishery

Published 2024년 8월 23일

Tridge summary

The United Fisheries Conservation Alliance, representing commercial fishermen, has approached the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, seeking to declare the Sipekne’katik First Nation's self-governed summer lobster fishery in St. Marys Bay as illegal and to assert that its fishers are subject to federal regulation under the Fisheries Act. The group's notice of action targets Sipekne’katik First Nation fishers, the nation's chief, and the attorney general of Canada, and is a response to the ongoing dispute over the definition of 'moderate livelihood' and the rights of First Nations in fishing. This development comes amidst escalating tensions, with DFO officers in the area refusing to perform enforcement patrols due to perceived threats and a lack of support from senior management, and the Prime Minister and cabinet currently in Halifax for a retreat.

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Original content

A group representing commercial fishermen is asking the Nova Scotia Supreme Court to rule that the Sipekne’katik First Nation self-governed summer lobster fishery in St. Marys Bay is illegal and that its fishers are subject to federal regulation under the Fisheries Act. On Thursday the United Fisheries Conservation Alliance filed the notice of action with the court. The document names Sipekne’katik First Nation fishers, Sipekne’katik Chief Michelle Glasgow and the attorney general of Canada as defendants. The court filing is the latest page in the long and conflicted saga to determine what a “moderate livelihood” means and how it is to be pursued by First Nations. It runs counter to Sipekne’katik's lawsuit, launched in 2021, asking the court to state that the federal Fisheries Act is of “no force or effect” on its members. That lawsuit was supposed to head to trial next May. The United Fisheries Conservation Alliance had been granted intervenor status, allowing it to submit ...

Source: Saltwire