Cowichan decision: Reconciliation or moving backwards?

Scores of journalists swarmed the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel in preparation for the event. Dozens of cameras watching tell me this is a bigger deal than I thought.

The date is Oct. 28, and I am attending the City of Richmond’s information session on the Cowichan decision.

A B.C. Supreme Court Aug. 7 decision has been making national headlines. The Quwʼutsun Nation were granted Aboriginal title and fishing rights to about 300 to 324 hectares of mostly rural, industrial, and government land on the south shore of Lulu Island in Richmond. The Quwʼutsun Nation includes the Cowichan and Penelakut Tribes and the Stz’uminus, Halalt, and Lyackson First Nations.

Defendants in the Cowichan trial included the City of Richmond, the federal and provincial governments, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, the Tsawwassen First Nation, and the Musqueam Indian Band.

I wonder if reconciliation is finally happening as I sit and wait for history to unfold. Unfortunately, not yet. In fact, I instead find myself asking if we are moving backwards?

“We are gathered here today on unceded territory.” This is how we start official meetings in Canada. We say these land acknowledgements to remember we live on land stolen from Indigenous Peoples.

I was shocked when Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie chose not to give a land acknowledgement. What was labelled as an “information session” by the city revealed itself as a political stunt — one that went quite disastrously.

The city sent 150 property owners in the title area a letter stating the ownership of their property is in jeopardy by the Cowichan ruling. 

Only property owners in the claim area were allowed to speak, but they were silenced and ignored — one man’s microphone was even cut off.

People spoke up from their seats demanding the mayor answer their key question — why were none of them informed? The trial began in 2019, but hearings have spanned over 11 years.

At one point, Brodie snapped “Stop it” at the clapping crowd, to which laughter erupted. He threatened to shut down the meeting many times throughout the evening.

There was no new information at the so-called information session. As one homeowner put it, his time was wasted. The true reason for the meeting was the mayor and city lawyers requesting the property owners’ assistance in appealing the case.

Brodie insisted private property is at stake and the Cowichan decision sets a precedent that can have implications across the country. The Quw’utsun Nation has said — multiple times — it’s not interested in taking private land. They even called out Brodie and Premier David Eby’s statement on the ruling, which they said were “at best, misleading, and at worst, deliberately inflammatory.”

The title area in question held a village called Tl’uqtinus. About 160 years ago, the Quw’utsun Nation found themselves amid settler expansion. From 1859 to 1864, Col. Richard Moody was placed in charge of establishing reservations in B.C., as chief commissioner for lands and works and lieutenant-governor of the colony of B.C.

Critical to the case, Moody did not establish a reservation. Instead he sold parts of the land — including parts of Tl’uqtinus to himself through Crown grants — and attempted to hide his identity by using a land agent.

The federal and provincial governments argued in court that Moody fairly bought the land and “paid full price.” However, Justice Barbara Young disagreed and said Moody’s actions were “dishonourable.”

The historical context is missing from the narrative about the Cowichan decision. The court is not gifting Indigenous Peoples land as reparations, rather they are correcting an instance of corruption.

The government made promises of truth and reconciliation, yet when it comes to challenging the status quo, the true priorities are revealed. All three branches of government are working so hard to fight the Cowichan tribes in court, yet they should have made things right before the trial.

All defendants should respect the court’s decision and discuss any necessary protections for the property owners. Instead, we have colonial legacy fighting against Indigenous sovereignty. Our governments cannot accept the ruling because it reveals the illegitimacy of colonial systems.

We don’t know what the future looks like with Indigenous nations co-existing with the Canadian state and settlers like me. What is certain is that we won’t get anywhere if we refuse to work in partnership with Indigenous Peoples and nations.