Forests Minister Steve Thomson’s rationalization for constructing a luxury house on top of a First Nations burial site on Grace Islet is unacceptable.
As the minister notes (“The search for balance at Grace Islet,” July 23), the archeology branch site-alteration permit for Grace Islet expired in the fall of 2013. In the summer of that year, First Nations, the Islands Trust (the land-use authority on the southern Gulf Islands) and I all objected to the permit renewal, partly because work that was damaging the site had been done without authorization.
One year ago, on July 31, 2013, I wrote the minister requesting that the permit renewal be denied, and proposed that “discussions toward a long-term resolution with First Nations regarding this sacred burial ground should be undertaken.”
At that time, the minister could have rejected the permit renewal and encouraged the landowner to work with First Nations to resolve the issue. Instead, he did nothing.
If the minister had visited Grace Islet, as I also requested during the spring sitting of the legislature, he would know the proposed house covers much of the islet. This is not a situation in which a development can be located to avoid remains — the house is being built on top of burial cairns. First Nations’ rights are not being honoured or even “balanced.” They are being trampled.
The minister states the islet is not covered by B.C.’s Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Act, because (surprise) the owner has not registered it as such. But Grace Islet is a graveyard by any other name. It would be inconceivable to propose the construction of a house in Ross Bay cemetery, regardless of how “balanced” the approach.
The province is obligated by law to protect Grace Islet. The minister could have acted a year ago, but refused.
He encourages direct discussions among stakeholders, but having received authorization from the ministry, the landowner ignores requests to meet. The minister states it is impractical for the province to purchase outright every piece of property containing human remains, but he hasn’t been asked to do this.
I have asked the minister to play a role in the protection of the islet. There is a range of strategies that could be employed to protect Grace Islet, for example, fundraising in the community, tax incentives like the federal eco-gift program and transferring development potential to more suitable locations than on a First Nations graveyard. We can do this, especially the community of Saltspring, which has raised millions of dollars over the past dozen years to protect thousands of acres of land.
We need the minister to stop the rhetoric about “good, open dialogue,” and pointing fingers at the Capital Regional District, which itself argues that once the site-alteration permit was issued by the ministry, it had no legal grounds to withhold a building permit.
In the wake of the Tsilhquot’in court decision clarifying the reality of First Nations title, and the legal obligation of the province to accommodate First Nations concerns, the premier is proposing to meet with First Nations leaders this September to discuss the path to reconciliation.
What better way to demonstrate good faith than for the premier to instruct Thomson, as we requested a year ago, to suspend the alteration permit and get the landowner in the same room with First Nations to discuss how we can protect Grace Islet with fair compensation?
Gary Holman is New Democrat MLA for Saanich North and the Islands.
