Introduction
The YeKooche First Nation government is located in British Columbia on Yekooche reserves. The YeKooche Aboriginal are a group of people who have been living on Yekooche reserves long enough before colonization. Statistics collected in 2008 reviewed that there are about 217 band members of the Yekooche community. These are people with different cultural values, customs, and language from the other residents of the country. Some of these characteristics are unique and apply to that specific community. These people have lived near Cunningham Lake for many years. They have remained predominantly farmers, hunters or nomads. Evidence of such people can be found in the works of arts, rock artifacts, and in some sites all over the states. The heritage of the aboriginal is not only linked to the art of rocks but also to the environment at large. They are linked to things like plants, sceneries or animals. The heritage of the aboriginal people needs to be protected and this does not simply mean looking after the arts or artifacts but supporting them in accessing their original land where they can be able to restore their artistic learning. This paper will give the cultural heritage of the aboriginal, and explain how their language, culture and way of life have been swept away by civilization. It will also give a brief overview of the Tsawwassen First Nation treaty that became effective in 2009.
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
The Yekooche first nation is among the five communities that make up the Tl’azt’en Nation. We still have sites in the US that are still important to this date. They remind them of the spiritual, social and historical lives of the Aboriginal. The Yekooche are closely attached to these sites. In New South Wales there are more than 35, 000 Aboriginal sites. These can be found in cities, along river banks or in densely populated forests. They give a reflection of the life of the Aboriginal groups (Anon. “Yekooche First Nation web site” 2010)
The cultural heritage consists of items or places that are of significance to the Aboriginal people on their traditions, customs and history. The culture of the Aboriginal people consists of both physical and non physical substances. Their cultural heritage gives a relationship between the interaction of Aboriginal people and their environment. It is through cultural heritage that, we recognize and understand Aboriginal people and their cultural practices which form part of their past and their present lives.
Cultural heritage of the Aboriginal is not only about cultural aspects, but also about passing knowledge and teachings to the younger generations about the way of life. It was the work of the adults to teach the young generation cultural values and the expected behaviors in the society (Anon. “Urban native life” 2008). The Aboriginal groups valued traditions and their native language more than any thing else. Although, they were living in poverty they enjoyed their life style and were not ready to shun from it was it not for the influence of the Europeans.
Civilization
Civilization is not acquired by birth but it is learned. It is through collective efforts that one gets civilized. It results in intelligent ideas and structures built by intelligent people either working alone or in groups. Most of the west Europeans has had the chance of attending schools and it is through these schools that they have been civilized. They have a new way of doing things which is far much different from how the Aboriginal carry out their day to day activities. Western civilization began in 1907 (Anon. “Urban native life” 2008). After getting civilized, the Europeans made much technological advancement which helped them gain superiority over the aboriginal. They built strong and permanent houses and big buildings. They were among the first group of people to invent most of the advanced systems we have today. The Europeans snatched away land and wealth from the Aboriginal people and utilized it into more usable forms. They were great explorers and discoverers and could use whatever they had to produce sophisticated things. Initially, they just had boats and gun powder which they used to discover other better things. The Aboriginal groups were left with no option than to sell their work to the Europeans. They started industrial revolution and could use most of the materials gotten from the indigenous community (Anon. 2008). They took advantage of the ignorance of the Aboriginals and their lack of skills to buy their materials at throw away prices. Most of the Aboriginals were enslaved in the industries where they had to perform difficult tasks such as being casual laborers. They were never compensated according to the amount of work they did.
Since the arrival of the Europeans in America, the Yekooche First Nation Aboriginal have been uncertain about their culture and identity. Their cultures have been done away with and they have been forced to adapt the western way of life. Most of them have lost their land to the Europeans with very little compensation if any.
The European population has grown drastically within Canada and British Columbia. Peace treaties have been signed between Europeans, England, and France and not to mention the Aboriginal communities. The First Nation Aboriginals have been promised the provision of free education, free land, health care facilities and skills on agricultural practices. Family education which was commonly provided to the younger generation has been swept away and has been replaced with Europeans native education. The main purpose of introducing the native education was to get rid of the Aboriginal language, their cultural values and beliefs and the traditional way of life. To do this, they ensured that the Aboriginals children were sent to schools which were many miles away from their homes and by the time they returned home none of them could communicate fluently in their mother tongues. Some of the children died in those schools while others were adopted by the Europeans. There are still some who chose to remain in urban centre and started new lives (Anon. “Aboriginal people and cultural life” 2010).
Despite the efforts of the European government to sweep away the Aboriginal culture and language, they were not 100% successful because even today we have some communities who speak Aboriginal language and who uphold their way of life and culture. Many of these communities have isolated themselves from the European cultures of which they were meant to adapt. The living standards of these communities are worse than those of people living in the developing countries. They live in poorly ventilated houses with bad sanitation. At times they lack water and have to travel for long distances in search for it. They live in marginalized rural areas where most of the families live below the poverty line.
Aboriginal Land Claim
For many centuries, the First Nation Aboriginals have been suffering from the Europeans cultures. This has resulted in the loss of languages, land, and their personalities. Some of the Aboriginals have died and others have been absorbed in the culture of the west Europeans. They have forgotten their way of live and have adopted the western styles. Many changes have occurred in the Aboriginal communities and most of the traditional beliefs and values of their fore fathers (Anon. “Aboriginal people and cultural life” 2010). In 1992, the First Nation Aboriginal from all over the world assembled in a town called Kari-Oca in Brazil during the World congress of Aboriginal. During the assembly the agenda of sustainable development was discussed at length and resulted in the agreement known as Agenda 21. This Agenda emphasized on the need to clean the environment. The agenda on sustainable development was of utmost important to the Aboriginal people and that was the reason for attending the assembly.
It was during this gathering that the Aboriginals gave their petitions regarding the right to their land and cultural values. Their petition was heard. Today, the Aboriginals have been included in Agenda 21 and they constitute one of the major groups in the Agenda. Some countries such as Finland, Canada and Australia have adopted regulations which focus on protection of the Aboriginal. In the past the Aboriginals were viewed as old-fashioned by western European and were basically ignored. They wondered how they (being civilized) could ever learn something from hunters and gatherers. In comparing the life of the west European to that of the Aboriginal, it had no similarities. these people lived in grass and mud houses and used spears in their hunting job while the civilized west Europeans lived in well built permanent houses with televisions and air-conditioners and used vehicles to get them wherever they so desired.
YeKooche First Nation Treaty
The inclusion of the aboriginal in agenda 21 did not solve all their problems since they were not able to recover all their land. Other treaties had to be signed and one of them was the YeKooche First Nation treaty. The regional government is dedicated to negotiating practical, reasonable treaty settlements that are endowed with firmness and equality. By resolving Aboriginal claims, treaties are aimed to reducing the need for exclusive proceedings and create assurance over the possession and use of Crown land. These treaties are not made solely for the benefit of the aboriginal but the general economic development throughout British Columbia.
Negotiations for the Yekooche First Nation treaty started in early 1995 and an Agreement in Principle (AIP) was signed in the year 2005. This marked the fourth step in treaty negotiation process. Normally the treaty undergoes six steps, and it is in its fifth step. The AIP replicates British Columbia’s widely authorized ideologies that steer provincial negotiations with First Nations and Canada. The AIP compliments the regional negotiating principle that hunting, fishing and frivolous openings on Crown land will be made certain for the exploitation and advantage of all British Columbians (Anon. “Yekooche First Nation web site” 2010). The community will still be able to hunt and fish in the Yekooche civic treaty lands. Yekooche will be able to hunt flora and fauna and wandering birds within a distinct area that will comprise treaty and non-treaty lands A Final Agreement with Yekooche First Nation will evidently delineate the rights and duties of the First Nation, Canada and British Columbia in a way that is unswerving to the British Columbia’s guiding principles (Ministry of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation, 2010). Canada and British Columbia are expected to meet the costs of the treaty package. British Columbia is to contribute mostly Crown land while Canada contributes cash.
The negotiations for the Yekooche treaty are still underway and are expected to come to an end after the sixth step has been finished.
The treaty with Yekooche First Nation will:
- define plainly the civil rights and duties of the Yekooche First Nation which must be consistent with the British Columbia principles
- motivate provincial economic development and expansion that will be of advantage to all British Columbians;
- grant sureness on lands and resources for improving the investment
- augment the First Nation’s contributions in the local economy;
- lessen the First Nation’s dependence on government aids and impose taxation
- make available concord on self-government and supportiveness of the local government relations.
Land
Anticipated treaty lands cover an area of 5,960 hectares of regional Crown land and 379.8 hectares of Indian Reserves surrounded by the area of the Yekooche Statement of Intent area (SOI). The land wrap up connects three of the reserves into one adjoining parcel. The land wrap up endorses British Columbia’s parley principle that secretive possessions should not be confiscated for treaty agreements. General, anticipated treaty lands encompass 6,339.8 Hectares. British.Columbia.’s openly authorized negotiating principle that treaties should embrace means for balancing land-use planning between First Nations governments and neighboring local governments is replicated in the AIP. Yekooche First Nation reserves will turn out to be treaty lands that the First Nation will possess in fee straightforward. Fee straightforward possession provides the First Nation with suppleness to supervise its land and engender long-term economic settlements (Ministry of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation, 2010).
Conclusion
For a long time, the YeKooche aboriginal have been denied their right to land by the Europeans. Their cultural heritage was swept away, many were made slaves, and forced to live according to the European standards. Since the arrival of the Europeans in America, the Aboriginal people have been doubtful about their culture and identity. Their cultures have been swept away and they have been forced to familiarize themselves with the western way of life. Most of them have lost their land to the Europeans with very little reimbursement if any.
The heritage of the YeKooche aboriginal needs to be protected and this does not simply mean looking after the arts or artifacts but supporting them in accessing their original land where they can be able to restore their artistic learning. The YeKooche First Nation emphasizes that it has a distinctive historical, political, legal, and cultural association and relationship to YeKooche reserves, lands and waters, including historical occupation. Negotiations towards the Yekooche Treaty agreement between Canada and British Columbia are still underway. The treaty wrap up as summarized in the AIP comprises land, cash and natural resources such as fisheries. The agreement has been negotiated in order to reduce collisions on third parties. Fair recompense for inevitable disturbance of commercial interests will be guaranteed
References
Anon. (2010). Aboriginal people and cultural life. Web.
Anon. (2008). Urban native life historical background; Canadian museum of civilization. Web.
Anon. (2010). Yekooche First Nation web site. Web.
Ministry of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation, (2010). First Nations with ratified Final Agreements. Web.