Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to continue asking questions of the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources on caribou. I’d like to start with, well, temporarily setting aside the whole aboriginal rights issue, the urgency of the caribou. Does the Minister fully appreciate what the caribou mean to the Yellowknives Dene and all aboriginal people? Could he describe his understanding of what they mean?
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Maybe asking the Minister for his opinion. Mr. Miltenberger.
It should be ruled out.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I stand here as the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. I spent a lot of time over the last few years becoming very conversant in all the issues, mainly wildlife that we’re dealing with. Plus I’ve been around for a long time, long enough to know and fully appreciate the value and importance of caribou to the people of the Northwest Territories as part of the fundamental nature and character of the Northwest Territories and has helped define how the people have evolved over the centuries.
I appreciate that note of caution. I do understand that, as well, and I fully understand that the caribou are meaningful and spiritual as well as in the physical and nutritional and emotional ways. And I think we all do in this House. But I’m wondering if that understanding was carried into the consultation process and, if so, during the consultation process did the Minister receive the go-ahead from the Yellowknives Dene for this ban?
The reason we’re still having these discussions with the Yellowknives, of course, is because we haven’t come to a final understanding and agreement on the ban. There is work underway, but, no, the Yellowknives did not approve or support the ban when it was initiated.
Again, this is by way of making sure that we’re all clear on why we are dealing with this issue today. I would for the record like to ask the Minister why he did then go ahead with the ban.
Emergency interim measures by definition, in my mind, we were faced with a need to make a decision to protect the caribou otherwise there would be a possible further precipitous decline and under the authorities that I did have or do have I made that very difficult decision to protect the herd and at the same time engage in the measures that were currently underway to find that area of accommodation and support among the aboriginal governments.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Finally, I’d like to know – and I’d like to start by appreciating the Minister’s action along with that of the Yellowknives Dene to get together and talk about this, involve the entire community -- how will this process continue and how will support be gathered throughout the range of the Bathurst caribou to ensure that the solution is acceptable to all and put in place effectively and quickly.
I’d like to separate again the two fundamental issues. There’s the short-term issue of the number of months of the ban, which we’re going to sort out here hopefully in the next little while. The longer-range planning within the Tlicho and between the Tlicho and Yellowknives and the Northwest Territories Métis and all the other stakeholders to come up with a harvest management plan is a process that is in fact now underway. The dates have slipped where the Wekeezhii board has not been able to meet its initial targets, but that longer term process is absolutely fundamental to the well-being and survival of the herds and the involvement of all the aboriginal governments through a co-management process.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
