Bigstone chief part of United Treaty Movement

By Pearl Lorentzen, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The United Treaty Movement is “an ongoing process of chiefs trying to coordinate and be heard,” says Bigstone Cree Nation Chief Andy Alook, “because we are not being heard.”

The chiefs are from Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. They’re hoping to “affect positive change,” says Alook.

On May 26 and 27, the group held a rally on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, when King Charles III’s visit Canada to open parliament. They had hoped to meet with the King, but it didn’t happen. However, Alook did listen to the throne speech.

He says King Charles spoke about Truth and Reconciliation, consultation with Indigenous people, and fast tracking major projects in Canada.

However, Alook felt that the King’s speech didn’t address the issues of First Nations people. In a subsequent statement, Alook said, “While ceremonial words were delivered within the walls of the Senate, outside—on the steps of Parliament Hill and across this land—First Nations leadership stood in ceremony, solidarity, and strength.”

Alook says First Nations people need to be a part of improving the economy.

“It’s not that we’re opposed to land and resource development, because we agreed to share the land,” he says. “By properly protecting the environment and consultation, we want to be able to benefit the First Nations’ quality of life.”

Alook hopes that through consultation with First Nations, Canada can protect the environment while also improving the economy.

“There needs to be an improved consultation process, on treaty land and engagement with First Nations people,” he says.

Alook is opposed to Alberta Bill 54 (the one that makes referendums easier). This was part of the reason for the rally in Ottawa and a similar one in Edmonton on May 15.

Alook is also opposed to Ontario’s Bill 5, which according to a CBC report, “would fast-track approvals of major projects, exempt some from provincial laws.”

“I felt that there hasn’t been proper consultation on these bills being pushed forward,” Alook says.

Alberta’s Bill 54 includes changes to all areas of elections and referendums in Alberta. One issue that Alook and other Alberta chiefs have with this bill is that proposes to lower the threshold for a citizen-led referendum.

The Ottawa rally is part of an ongoing effort by the United Treaty Movement.

“We are stronger when we come together in unity,” Alook says.

In a statement released on June 12, Alook says, “As First Nations gathered in unity on the unceded territory of the Anishinabe Algonquin Nation, we collectively acknowledged the significance of those two days under the banner of the United Treaty Movement. This movement represented more than an event—it was a powerful assertion of sovereignty, a living reminder that our Treaties are not relics of the past but binding Nation-to-Nation agreements that continue to shape the present.”