On January 20, 2023, PHARA sent the following letter to its members, as well as to provincial and federal legislators, and to several media outlets:
RE: Proposed Section 7 agreement between B.C. government and shíshálh Nation
The shíshálh Nation and the Province of British Columbia have begun negotiations on the first joint decision-making agreement to be negotiated under Section 7 of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Declaration Act). The agreement, when negotiated, will apply to decisions on dock tenures in the shíshálh swiya (territory/birthplace/world) and builds upon the current model for making shared decisions on dock tenures created in 2018. The Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association (PHARA) is reaching out to raise awareness of this new joint decision making process (effectively giving the shíshálh Nation a veto on authorizations), which is likely to be expanded to other authorization types in the future (for example forestry, mining, disposition of Crown land and resources, building permits, business licences, land titles and any other land use authorizations).
The following letter, sent to relevant government entities, asks how final decisions will be made, raising questions about the lack of important checks and balances that we expect to be in place for our elected governments, including accountability, transparency, oversight, complaint handling and dispute resolution. Click here to see the letter.
Yours truly, Sean McAllister Director, PHARA
