Manitoba's moose hunting regulations unconstitutional, First Nations leaders say

Some First Nations leaders in Manitoba say the provincial government is failing to prioritize Indigenous people's constitutional right to harvest moose for consumption — leaving the province vulnerable to a constitutional challenge in Canada's highest court.

Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which advocates for First Nations in northern Manitoba, says the provincial  government must stop issuing licences to non-Indigenous hunters without first ensuring that First Nations people have harvested enough moose for food and ceremonial purposes.

Citing concerns about declining moose populations, the province has limited hunting on the land where First Nations peoples have traditionally harvested moose. 

But in 2021, the government changed its hunting regulations to allow a lottery draw for moose hunting licences in some game hunting areas in the Duck Mountain and Porcupine Mountain areas. Up to five licences were available in each area through the draw.

In April of this year, the province announced further changes to its hunting regulations, converting nine more game hunting areas — most of which are in MKO territory — into licence-draw areas.

In a letter to provincial officials earlier this month, MKO called for the moose licence lottery to be cancelled within its region, and for any licences issued to non-Indigenous hunters in those areas to be cancelled.

"They're really cracking down on the regulations of our own people doing the hunting, yet they're permitting other non-Indigenous people to go hunting," said Pimicikamak Cree Nation Chief David Monias, whose community in northern Manitoba is one of the affected areas.

In an email to CBC on Tuesday, a spokesperson for the province confirmed a draw was instituted this year in nine game hunting areas, mainly in the northwestern regions around Flin Flon, Thompson and The Pas, in order to collect harvesting information from licensed hunters.

The spokesperson said more and better information is needed to protect the long-term sustainability of moose populations, which are under pressure from a growing number of biological threats, including disease and predation. 

Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak argues that the needs of First Nations communities must be met before licences are granted to non-Indigenous hunters.

"When we signed treaties, that's what was promised to us. We just want to live off the land," said Nelson Genaille, chief of Sapotaweyak Cree Nation, which is one of MKO's members.

Genaille and Monias say people in their communities are relying on the moose harvest more than ever now because of the high cost of living.

"We're helping many people in terms of being able to subsidize some of their fuel costs and stuff like that, so they can go out to hunt because of the high cost of gas and the high cost of living in the community," Monias said.

In the past nine months, Monias, Genaille and MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee have all written letters to the government, and say they haven't received a response.

In a letter dated Sept. 14, Settee wrote that nine months "without a substantive direct response on behalf of the Crown to the issues and requests presented in these letters is inconsistent" with promises under treaties and legislation, including the section of the Constitution Act, 1982, which affirms Indigenous and treaty rights.

The chiefs have received a written opinion from Legal Aid Manitoba's Public Interest Law Centre, which says "prioritizing First Nation harvesting rights for food is a mandatory constitutional obligation.

But the province's current rules "fail to accord top priority to the right of First Nations Peoples to harvest moose for food," the law centre wrote in an opinion dated Sept. 13, which was supplied by MKO.

"These regulations and the lottery system are vulnerable to a constitutional challenge that Manitoba has unjustifiably infringed the rights of First Nations Peoples to harvest moose for food," the opinion says.

"If conservation needs require limiting the harvest of moose, then all moose which remain following conservation measures must go to supporting the constitutionally protected food harvesting rights of First Nations."

The provincial spokesperson confirmed receiving MKO's Sept. 14 letter and said Greg Nesbitt, the minister of natural resources and northern development, will respond "shortly" on behalf of the government.

"The province welcomes the opportunity to engage further … about right-based harvesting levels in northern Manitoba from local Indigenous communities and MKO to support the shared goal of sustainable moose populations," the spokesperson wrote.