Mtis Nation-Saskatchewan cuts ties with Mtis National Council

In what could be a tectonic shift in the world of Mtis politics, the Mtis Nation-Saskatchewan (MN-S) has withdrawn from the Mtis National Council (MNC),following the lead of the Manitoba Mtis Federation in 2021.

MN-S officials, representing Mtis citizens in the province, unanimously passed a resolution to break from the41-year-old national organizationduring a meeting of the provincial Mtis council on Thursday morning.

The withdrawal was prompted by concerns that someMtis Nation of Ontario (MNO) citizens aren't Mtis, and a mood among MN-S citizens that MNC is irrelevant, MN-S Vice-President Michelle LeClair told CBC Indigenous following the vote.

"We are a strong, proud nation in Saskatchewan. We have a verifiable citizenship registry, and we cannot stand by any longer and allow this to continue," said LeClair, referring to the identity controversy surrounding MNO.

MN-S President Glen McCallumsaid in a news release, "This was not a decision our government made lightly but one we felt necessary."

The Mtis Nation emerged as a distinct people born of the intermingling of First Nations and European cultures in the historic northwest in the 18th and 19th centuries. The existence of Mtis communities in eastern Canada is a deeply contentious question.

At issueare six communities that MNO and the Ontario government recognized as "historic" in 2017. The federal government proposed to recognize MNO, MN-S and the Mtis Nation of Alberta as Indigenous governments last year in Bill C-53.

But First Nations leaders in Ontario deny the legitimacy of MNO's communities and accuse the group of identity theft.They mountedapressure campaign against Bill C-53. The chiefs are allied with the Manitoba Metis Federation (MMF), which also cited the identity dispute when cutting ties.

The MN-S resolution adopted Thursday says itscontinued association with MNO "no longer benefits the Mtis Nation within Saskatchewan or the Mtis Nation as a whole," and resolves to fully withdraw MN-S's share of finances and assets from the council.

Some might think it's a bold move, "but really it's not," LeClair said.

"It's something that our citizens have been talking about for a long time."

MN-Sheard Ontario chiefs' concerns loud and clear, she added.

An MNC spokesperson said via statement that theMtis Nation has the right to self-determination, and with that so does each Mtis government.

"While the MNC was created to bring together the Mtis Nation to work together in unity to achieve greater opportunity for Mtis citizens, we respect the decision of the MN-S," the statement said.

CBC Indigenous contacted the Mtis Nationof Ontario for comment, but has notreceived a responseby time of publishing.

MNOhas previously pointed to the Supreme Court of Canada's historic 2003 Powley ruling, which affirmed Mtis hunting rights in and aroundSault Ste. Marie, Ont., about 1,000 kilometres east of Winnipeg. It recently launched an Ontario Mtis Facts websitehighlighting the Powley case and the histories of the six disputed communities.

Annual general assembly postponed

The latest withdrawal raisesquestions about the future of MNC, a political organization formed to represent Mtis rights and interests during constitutional talksin March 1983.

LeClair wouldn't speculate on if a new national organization might form or if there exists a path on which MN-S might return to MNC.

MNC bylaws say board meetings "shall include the president and two of the founding members," referring to either MMF, MN-S or Mtis Nation of Alberta.

MMF President David Chartrandsaidthe loss of two founders means MNC is technically unable to hold meetings and therefore "defunct." When asked if that then spells doom for MNC, Chartrand said he feels the council doomed itself years ago by not promptly addressing the concerns around MNO.

"It was doomed to failure, for sure, with Ontario continuing to be inside the house with non-Mtis people by the thousands," he said.

Meanwhile, Bill C-53 is now in limbo after MN-Srescinded its support earlier this year. At a previous meeting of the provincial council in June, MN-S leaders passed a resolution vowing to resign from MNC if a resolution removing MNO from the national council wasn't adopted at MNC's annual general assembly.

That assembly was postponed until November because an expert panel investigating the Ontario communities has not finished its final report, said MNC President Cassidy Caron in this month'sMNC newsletter.

Caron previously announced she is not seeking re-election, and the vote for the new president was supposed to happen at the annual general assembly.

In her message, Caron said MNC's board of directors can exercise discretionary powers to appoint an existing MNC employee to ensure the MNC's operations will not be impeded in the leadup to the election.

The MNC statement said Caron will be meeting with MNC'sgoverning members to discuss next steps andwill share more information as it arises.