On November 25, 2023, the Saskatchewan government signed a historic Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Metis Nation-Saskatchewan.
The MOU outlined four specific areas of cooperation and collaboration:
- Promotion of education and licensing of as many community members as possible.
- Minimizing unnecessary criminalization of individuals for regulatory offences.
- The need for appropriate compensation for seized firearms.
- Protection of gun owners’ current and future privileges.
CSSA recently spoke to Glen McCallum, President of Métis Nation-Saskatchewan, about the MOU and the progress that’s been made since the memorandum was signed.
“The MOU is all about harvesting and everything that entails, including firearms safety, firearms licensing, and it [the MOU] is an ongoing process that we’re still in negotiations about,” Mr. McCallum said.
“One benefit that came out of MOU is the relationship we have with Bob [Commissioner Robert (Bob) Freberg] and the Saskatoon Wildlife Federation.”
CSSA: What prompted the negotiations for the MOU?
MCCALLUM: “Well, as you know, under Section 35 [of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms], many First Nations and Inuit have the same rights in regards to harvesting, but there’s always that jurisdictional issue in regards to the federal crown land, provincial land, that ongoing negotiations need to happen in regards to a better understanding of what rights we have and knowing what jurisdictions are available.
“I really like the openness that the province is starting to have with the Métis Nation of Saskatchewan, to be able to work on partnerships and continue building on those partnerships. I’m very satisfied with that.”
CSSA: So the relationship with the province hasn’t always been good?
MCCALLUM: “No, it hasn’t always been good, but again, you know that yourself. As you well know, Bill C-53[i] was dealt with. We walked away from it.
“And then there’s the politics of the Métis Nation [the public’s perception] which for many years was not so good here in this province. We’ve changed that in the last seven years and, because of those efforts on our side, the citizens of Saskatchewan are more open to embrace the Métis Nation.
“Look at what we’ve done with the little bit of taxpayers’ dollars we’ve received from the federal government regarding education, economic development, Métis child and family services, language, the list goes on.
“We’ve actually made good headway in regards to building our registry, which is over 30,000 now, and our people in this province, the silent majority, have embraced our government. I love that, and that it shows others like the federal government, provincial government, that we are doing our jobs and engaging with our people, educating our people, in regards to the importance of a government, but more importantly, Section 35 rights and ongoing negotiations and communication with governments that needs to happen.
“So, the MOU is just a starting point to be able to start the conversation that leads to agreements like what we’re doing now with harvesting. Same with the University of Saskatchewan. We started with an MOU, a citizenship agreement, and now we’re teaching governments at the University of Saskatchewan. We just signed a research agreement with the University of Saskatchewan. It’s no different than the way that we’ve worked with the federal government, from an MOU framework agreement, core governance agreement, now we’re working on our treaty and legislation, hopefully to happen in January.”
CSSA: This process is all about building trust and communication. Is that an accurate description?
MCCALLUM: “Absolutely. The more we can communicate and open that conversation, the better we are going to be as far as working together. We’ve been always been on the sidelines, you know, French players in regards to Métis here in Saskatchewan and in Canada. But in the last seven years, we’ve made great strides to be able to develop those great relationships that we need. Without that, the know-like-trust factor, real progress is impossible.
“Take a look at reconciliation. Everybody likes using the word reconciliation. I see it as a weasel word where people talk a lot, feel good about themselves, go home and nobody does anything about it.
“Everybody talks about the gangs, the drugs, the incarceration rates being so high, the suicides. But nobody seems to understand the reality, which is that it’s not on the shoulders of the federal or provincial government, industry or institutions. It’s on our shoulders, as governments to be supported properly with the right capacity to be able to do the work that we need to do.
“Look at residential schools and the generational effects of residential schools, where people were taken to a foreign place, and they’ve forgotten their way of life, their language, their identity, culture, values, language, and now we have to replace it.
“Other people are not going to be able to do that. It’s on our shoulders now. So the moment that industry and government start realizing that it’s on our shoulders, they would better support us, and then they can talk about reconciliation and the support they give to Indigenous people.”
“We don’t need help from anybody. We can help ourselves. What we need is better support systems in place, which is money always boils down to money.
“We have our challenges. We have our challenges as leaders, but again, to do it. And I love what we’ve done in the last seven years in waking up our people, believing in our identity, culture, values, and language.”
“Batoche is coming up next week [Back to Batoche Days – July 18-21[ii]] and we’ll have thousands of people there. We’ve been celebrating our history at that site for over 50 years, and now it contains the Batoche Historic Site.
“We’ve got a great relationship with the federal government, and the province is coming on side. The province will be there this year, along with Bob [Freberg] and the Saskatchewan Firearms Office. Two years ago, we had 20,000 people there. Last year over 40,000. This year? Who knows, but it’s going to be a great event!”
CSSA: I know Commissioner Robert (Bob) Freberg played a big role in getting this MOU done. Tell me a little bit about Bob Freberg, and your relationship with him, please.
MCCALLUM: “Bob is a great man.
“He’s retired, and the government brought him back because of his grounded-ness. He understood, and he always tells me that because we’re two different people, it doesn’t mean that we have big differences in regards to where we come from. Having family, having land, having access to how we can survive, and the trapping piece he brought up.
“So, we hit it off right. Bob and I are good friends now. I wish I had met him a long time ago, because he’s a very good man, and he’s very concerned in regards to the lack of consideration given to Indigenous people, but at the same time [he’s very concerned] with non-Indigenous people in regards to why we misunderstand each other so much.
“But Bob brings that to the government, and I appreciate that in Bob. He’s got a very service-oriented heart, and I greatly appreciate that about him. He’s a very good friend of mine.”
CSSA: Is there anything else you would like to add?
MCCALLUM: “Yes, come out to Batoche. Grand Entry happens on July 19th. You’re going to see a lot of people, there’s a lot of activity, a lot of entertainment, a lot of good food, and if you want to come, I’ll cover you.
CSSA: Thank you Glen, for your time today, and for the invitation. I’ll see if I can make that happen.
[i] https://www.parl.ca/legisinfo/en/bill/44-1/c-53
[ii] https://metisgathering.ca/back-to-batoche/
