Summary:
They said that they recognized that we had a right to self-government but it
was not inherent…this is a right that I inherit from my ancestors, not
a right that you can give me, not a right that Mulroney can give me, nor a right
that Premier Harcourt can give me… we have a matrilineal system to begin
with…we have clearly defined tracks of land that belong to the people
of a given House and they know the boundaries of that…based on that ownership
we also have the jurisdiction to take care of ourselves and to govern ourselves
and you’ll see the flavor of McEachern’s decision is such that what
he has done is taken use and occupation and made it lesser and that’s
what he’s given, what he thinks he has given us in his decision.