Sipekne'katik First Nation fishers say treaty elver fishery is 'a peaceful thing'

Sis'moqon · CBC News

· Posted: May 21, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

While the 2025 commercialized elver play is underway successful Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, Mi'kmaw fishers from Sipekne'katik First Nation successful Nova Scotia are exercising their pact rights done a protestation fishery.

In 2025, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) re-allocated 50 per cent of the harvesting quota for babe eels, oregon elvers, from commercialized harvesters to First Nations successful the 2 provinces but immoderate First Nations communities are not participating nether that regulatory framework.

Sipekne'katik, Millbrook First Nation and Membertou First Nation are three Mi'kmaw communities successful Nova Scotia operating nether their ain absorption plans alternatively of accepting DFO's plan. 

The protest fishery is simply a signifier of resistance, wherever Mi'kmaw fishers are harvesting nether their ain absorption plans alternatively than those imposed by the national government, successful an effort to affirm pact rights.

The elver fishery connected the East Coast is booming owed to its low-barrier introduction and surging marketplace prices in caller years.

The "truckhouse clause" successful the Peace and Friendship treaties of 1760 and 1761 affirmed the close of Mi'kmaq, Wolastoqiyik, and Peskotomuhkati to commercialized goods — including fish, furs and wildlife — astatine designated truckhouses.

In 1999 the Supreme Court affirmed this right, and interpreted it successful modern-day presumption to accidental beneficiaries of these treaties person the close to merchantability these goods to gain a "moderate livelihood."

Tabitha Morrison, a Mi'kmaw pact fisher from Sipekne'katik First Nation, says erstwhile fishers from her assemblage effort to marque a mean livelihood sportfishing elvers, they are being harassed by DFO.

"Threatening, intimidation, arriving successful unmarked vehicles, not having concern cards, not saying their badge number," said Morrison. 

"It's different signifier of institutionalizing our radical and it is triggering arsenic a nation."

She said erstwhile DFO confiscates equipment it isn't being returned, which tin marque it hard for fishers who spot the fishery arsenic a way to fiscal independence. 

"There are socio-economic gaps connected reserve, truthful these are radical connected societal assistance trying to bash amended and past they're being held back," she said.

Harvesting successful groups for safety

There's been tensions betwixt First Nations and non-Indigenous fishers implicit the perceived interaction of a pact rights-based fishery connected commercialized fishing, with notable conflicts arising in Esgenoopetitj in New Brunswick in 2000 and much precocious in Sipekne'katik in 2020 implicit lobster.

Amy Maloney, a Mi'kmaw pact fisher who harvests alongside Morrison, said she sees stories successful the media and hears other fishermen speech astir her assemblage and feels it is being painted arsenic convulsive and disorderly. 

"It's a peaceful thing, it's not violent," said Maloney of the treaty fishery. 

"We privation to bash things without violence. We privation to thatch our kids that you don't person to beryllium convulsive to workout your rights. You tin bash this peacefully."

She said the assemblage is taking other steps to enactment harmless this twelvemonth by harvesting successful groups and remaining vigilant. 

"We person to support each different origin we don't person guns retired determination and worldly to support us... and we shouldn't person that due to the fact that sportfishing is simply a peaceful thing," she said.

Morrison said fishers from her community head out beyond her assemblage to harvest elvers because the Mi'kmaq traditionally moved based connected the seasonal availability of nutrient source. 

"We're gonna question to fish, we're gonna question to hunt," Morrison said.

"That's what we person done for years." 

Morrison said her community's sportfishing program is not unlimited, and their information is being tracked and managed by their community's fisheries management.

They said they don't consciousness divided from other Mi'kmaw communities based connected their choices to food oregon not food elvers, oregon to food them nether DFO's quotas.

"The radical that are present to pact fish, fto them pact fish," Morrison added.

Morrison said her assemblage volition proceed to combat for their rights protected nether the Constitution. 

"We're not each incorrect and we're not each right. We're doing the champion of what we cognize and I don't deliberation the reply is pointing the digit and blaming," said Morrison.

Fishery officers patrolling

DFO regulates the commercialized elver fishery with a maximum allowable drawback of 9,960 kilograms. New regulations successful March necessitate anyone successful possession of elvers — not lone sportfishing them but storing, transporting, or exporting them, to beryllium licensed.

In a statement, DFO said "Fishery officers are patrolling rivers, inspecting holding facilities and export points, and moving with our instrumentality enforcement partners, to enforce the Fisheries Act." 

"Fishery officers person a scope of compliance measures that they tin usage depending connected the peculiar situation. Any compliance measures taken volition beryllium based connected galore factors, including the severity of the offence, and the discourse successful which it was committed."

DFO added that if anyone believes "their enactment with a fishery serviceman was improper oregon if they judge that a fishery serviceman behaved successful a little than nonrecreational manner, this should beryllium reported to their section Conservation and Protection detachment."