“Justice is shared. Justice is never imposed.”
Our Laws Arise from the Land was created by the BC Specific Claims Working Group to support BC Indigenous Nations to contemplate how to use Indigenous laws and legal protocols to resolve historical land-related grievances and transform Canada’s specific claims resolution process.
The specific claims process is the federal government’s approach to dealing with historical wrongs related to illegal alienations of Indigenous lands, mismanagement of Indigenous assets held “in trust” by government, and the non-fulfillment of treaties. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples sets new standards for the resolution of land-based grievances in ways that reflect and incorporate Indigenous laws and ways of resolving disputes.
Indigenous Nations have repeatedly emphasized that the specific claims process reflects a conflict of interest because Canada accepts claims, funds participation in the process, and adjudicates the claims against itself — and does so within a system that excludes Indigenous laws and protocols.
The intent of Our Laws Arise From the Land is to change this. A just and fair process for redress must be jointly developed with Indigenous Nations as equal partners and meaningfully incorporate Indigenous priorities, teachings, and legal principles into the resolution process.
We hope this resource encourages discussion and advocacy, by featuring a paper and video on key principles, ways to integrate Indigenous laws into the resolution of specific claims, as well as video interviews with Indigenous community members who are considering how to move forward articulating their own laws.
We consider this site a living resource that will grow in size and complexity as the conversation expands and Indigenous communities share their views and experiences.
Lawyer Ardith Walpetko We’dalx Walkem outlines six principles for how Indigenous legal traditions should inform processes to resolve past wrongs (especially in the specific claims process).
6 Principles
Principle 1: Creating Equal space for a plurality of legal traditions
Principle 2: Recognizing the ongoing nature of resolution
Principle 3: Expanding acceptable forms of restitution
Principle 4: Understanding Indigenous worldviews and understandings of loss
Principle 5: Undertaking shared deliberations and decision-making
Principle 6: Expanding what constitutes valid evidence
Twenty short video interviews with Indigenous community members show how Nations are using their laws to resolve historical conflicts related to their lands.