Labrador's 5,000 Inuit take charge of 'our beautiful land'

Last Updated Thu, 01 Dec 2005 15:13:23 EST
CBC News

Self-government became a reality for Labrador's 5,000 Inuit on Thursday, almost three decades after their land claim was filed.

The day's events included formal adoption of the constitution of Nunatsiavut ("our beautiful land"), the area they will control, and a swearing-in ceremony for a first cabinet.

INDEPTH: Nunatsiavut

Toby Andersen, chief negotiator for the Labrador Inuit Association, said he is overwhelmed to see a long-held dream come true.

"For me, personally, I never thought I'd live to see this day, but here it is and here we are," he said. "Words can't explain it. The elation is overwhelming."

Anderson, who has been a negotiator for more than 20 years and chief negotiator since 1989, was formerly a fisherman. "I worked like a dog as a fisherman," he said on the LIA website, "but it was nothing compared to land claims."

The Inuit are now able to make their own laws relating to cultural affairs, education and health.

The agreement has some unique features, including provisions for a commercial fishery and provisions for beneficiaries outside Nunatsiavut, the LIA said.

Andersen will serve as clerk in the new government's assembly and as the person responsible for implementing a land-claim settlement that received royal assent in June.

FROM JAN. 22, 2005: Labrador's Inuit cheer land agreement

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The agreement covers a settlement area of 72,520 square kilometres, of which the Inuit own 15,800 square kilometres outright – a holding about a quarter the size of Nova Scotia but only two per cent of Labrador's land mass.

The Inuit, once called Eskimos by some, are not to be confused with Labrador's Innu people, once called Naskapi and Montagnais Indians.

INDEPTH: Aboriginal Canadians

The Labrador Inuit are the latest in a series of aboriginal groups to win self-government, not always in the same form or with the same powers, starting in the 1970s with the Cree and Naskapi of James Bay and Northern Quebec.

The most dramatic example is Nunavut, a new territory with its own premier and a predominantly Inuit populace, carved out of the Northwest Territories in 1999.

Law-making powers, but no rush to legislate

The Labrador Inuit now have law-making powers, but LIA officials say the takeover will be gradual.

"Right off the bat, people are going to see some things, and then, over time, we're going to want to look at transition into the education system," said Gary Baikie, designated Nunasiavut's first finance minister.

The Inuit also have the option of taking control of the justice system, he said. The first cabinet will be made up of the LIA's board of directors, but the government has committed to holding an election within a year.

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December 2005 Reports

Last updated on December 08, 2005