T艥ilhqot鈥檌n chiefs are calling on the Alaskan District 104 Fishery to stop intercepting vulnerable salmon stocks bound for their territory, stating the fishery鈥檚 harvesting is infringing on T艥ilhqot鈥檌n Aboriginal rights.
鈥淥ur people depend on the salmon run every year to ensure that our families do not go hungry,鈥� Nits鈥檌l蕯in (Chief) Joe Alphonse said in a Feb. 11 press release issued by the Ts虃ilhqot鈥檌n National Government (TNG).
The chiefs are making their call at the Pacific Salmon Commission鈥檚 fortieth annual meeting in Portland, Ore. The commission works to implement the Pacific Salmon Treaty which authorizes the Alaskan Salmon Fishery.
鈥淵ear after year we are faced with record low Chilko sockeye returns while the Alaskan 104 Fishery catches these salmon without limit,鈥� said Alphonse.
In 2019, low sockeye returns led to the closure of fisheries in both Canada and the United States.
鈥淭he T艥ilhqot鈥檌n Nation made the difficult decision to close its own traditional, community-based fishery at tremendous sacrifice to the community鈥檚 cultural practices and food security,鈥� writes the nation in its press release.
Meanwhile, the Alaskan fishery continued operations, harvesting 45,000 Chilko River sockeye which the nation calls the foundation of their traditional fishery. The Alaskan fishery also harvested 78,000 Fraser River sockeye while no First Nations on the Fraser River were able to fish.
TNG states the Alaskan fishery鈥檚 actions are impacting the nation鈥檚 food security and infringing on First Nations鈥� Aboriginal rights as the salmon stocks bring food and fulfill social and ceremonial needs for First Nations along the Chilko and Fraser rivers.
The Ts虃ilhqot鈥檌n Nation is also still recovering from the impact of the Ts虃ilhqox (Chilcotin River) landslide which led to record low levels of sockeye salmon runs.
"We call on the Pacific Salmon Commission to stop the Alaskan 104 Fishery until the Chilko sockeye run rebounds and to create a meaningful seat at the decision-making table for the T艥ilhqot鈥檌n Nation to manage our own stocks," said Alphonse.
The T艥ilhqot鈥檌n National Government is the governing body for the T艥ilhqot鈥檌n people. The T艥ilhqot鈥檌n Nation is comprised of six communities located throughout the T艥ilhqot鈥檌n (Chilcotin) territory and is the only Nation in Canada with a court declaration of Aboriginal title (Tsilhqot鈥檌n Nation v. British Columbia).
