Cote members vote to ratify

On Saturday, Cote First Nation members voted more than 98 percent in favor of a settlement proposal that will make their reserve one of the wealthiest in Canada.

Once fully ratified, the land claim settlement should result in a payment of $130,700,361 from the Government of Canada to the Cote First Nation.

The "1905, 1907, 1913, and 1914 Surrenders Settlement Agreement" reached between the Cote Chief/Council and the Government of Canada concerns a series of "improvident and exploitative" treaty land surrenders made in the early part of the 20th century. Among the transactions was a deal in which Cote land was surrendered in exchange for land already promised to the First Nation; a surrender which left the reserve with inadequate land for farming and stock-raising; and an exchange made without the consent of a majority of eligible members.

By 1914, the Cote First Nation was left with only 7,562 of the 36,160 acres originally set apart for it, with little compensation to show for the loss.

The First Nation submitted the first of its claims for review under Canada's Specific Claims Policy in 1987. After decades of setbacks, the government agreed to begin the negotiation process in 2006.

Officials at the Cote First Nation report that the ratification vote among Cote's adult members on October 15 easily surpassed the quorum requirements, with 1,418 votes recorded in favor of ratification versus 24 against. The band council signed the agreement that night; signatures on behalf of the Government of Canada should follow soon.

Under the proposed settlement, the government will make five annual payments of $25.7 million plus interest to the Cote First Nation. The first of those payments, along with a loan for up to $42 million worth of future payments, will be distributed immediately among the approximately 3,000 Cote residents. Every adult member of the First Nation will be entitled to his or her choice of either a lump sum payment of $20,000 or 16 annual payments of $1,500 ($24,000). Elders will receive a single payment of $25,000 or 20 annual payments of $1,500 ($30,000). Minors are entitled to the same payment as adults, plus interest, upon turning 18.

The remaining money is to be held in perpetual trust by TD Waterhouse. Income from the fund's investments will be paid annually to the Cote First Nation "to invest in businesses and other commercial opportunities, to purchase land, and to provide necessary programs, services and benefits to Cote members today and into the future," wrote Chief Norman Whitehawk in a letter to the membership.

The agreement between the First Nation and the trustee disallows any encroachment on the fund's capital. The settlement should thus provide a permanent and long-term source of income for the reserve.

In addition to the cash payment, the agreement provides the Cote First Nation with the right to purchase up to 15,745 acres of urban or rural land anywhere in the province of Saskatchewan, which the band council says represents "a huge economic potential for the Cote First Nation."

Chief Norman Whitehawk and his council declined to comment until all parties have signed the agreement.