MOTION ON NOTICE

At the Council meeting of April 23, 2002, Councillor Bass submitted the following Notice of Motion which was recognized by the Chair.

2. Opposing the Provincial Referendum on Treaty Negotiations (File: 3139)

WHEREAS, the City of Vancouver, through its delegation to the Lower Mainland Treaty Advisory Committee (LMTAC) plays an active role in providing input on treaty negotiations between the governments of Canada, British Columbia, and BC's First Nations;

AND WHEREAS, the GVRD in their statement of principles regarding BC treaty negotiations, recognizes aboriginal rights as articulated in Section 35 of the Constitution Act;

AND WHEREAS, Vancouver has a larger aboriginal population than any other area in British Columbia;

AND WHEREAS, the British Columbian government has called a referendum to gain public input on the principles guiding treaty negotiations with First Nations in BC;

AND WHEREAS, prominent Canadian pollster Angus Reid described the BC treaty referendum as "one of the most amateurish, one- sided attempts to gauge the public will that I have seen in my professional career";

AND WHEREAS, First Nations and other groups across BC have condemned the referendum process as flawed, immoral, divisive, and, being a vote of the majority on the rights of a minority group;

AND WHEREAS, the best way to resolve treaties with BC First Nations is through good faith negotiations at a government- to- government level within the already established treaty process;

AND WHEREAS, citizen participation in the referendum provides no real opportunity for public input into negotiations, and only serves to validate this flawed and divisive referendum process;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the City of Vancouver reject the BC government's referendum on aboriginal treaties, and encourage the citizens of Vancouver to actively boycott the vote, and protest the referendum process.

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(c) 1998 City of Vancouver