By Pearl Lorentzen, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Lakeside Leader \u201cBefore Alberta was Alberta in 1905, we signed treaties in 1899,\u201d says Loon River First Nation Chief Ivan Sawan. The treaties are nation-to-nation agreements between First Nations and the Crown and Canada, he adds. \u201cWe never ceded or surrendered our land,\u201d says Sawan. Sawan was responding to the Government of Alberta\u2019s proposed Bill 54, part of which makes citizen referendums easier. It\u2019s expected \u2013 according to many reports \u2013 to result in a referendum on Alberta separating from Canada. Loon River is in Treaty 8 territory, as are the other First Nations within the region covered by the Lakeside Leader. This treaty includes portions of Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories. The southern border in Alberta is the Athabasca… <\/p>\n
By Pearl Lorentzen, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Lakeside Leader \u201cBefore Alberta was Alberta in 1905, we signed treaties in 1899,\u201d says Loon River First Nation Chief Ivan Sawan. The treaties are nation-to-nation agreements between First Nations and the Crown and Canada, he adds. \u201cWe never ceded or surrendered our land,\u201d says Sawan. Sawan was responding to the Government of Alberta\u2019s proposed Bill 54, part of which makes citizen referendums easier. It\u2019s expected \u2013 according to many reports \u2013 to result in a referendum on Alberta separating from Canada. Loon River is in Treaty 8 territory, as are the other First Nations within the region covered by the Lakeside Leader. This treaty includes portions of Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories. The southern border in Alberta is the Athabasca... <\/p>\n