The Council of the Haida Nation ("CHN") (''X̱aaydaG̱a Waadlux̱an Naay'') is the

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

of the

Haida Nation The Council of the Haida Nation ("CHN") (''X̱aaydaG̱a Waadlux̱an Naay'') is the elected government of the Haida Nation. The council consists of a president and vice-president elected by popular vote, twelve regional representatives from four el ...

. The council consists of a president and vice-president elected by popular vote, twelve regional representatives from four electoral regions, and one appointed representative from each of the

Old Massett Village Council Old Massett Village Council is a band government of the Haida people, located in Old Massett, on Haida Gwaii. Old Massett Village Council is one of two Canadian band governments for the Haida Nation, the other is the Skidegate Band Council. The mai ...

and

Skidegate Band Council The Skidegate Band Council, also known as the Skidegate First Nation, is a band government of the Haida people, one of two of the Haida Tribal Society aka the Council of the Haida Nation. Its offices are located in Skidegate, British Columbia. In ...

. The Haida Nation is engaged in a legal title dispute regarding their territories, the islands of

Haida Gwaii Haida Gwaii (; hai, X̱aaydag̱a Gwaay.yaay / , literally "Islands of the Haida people") is an archipelago located between off the northern Pacific coast of Canada. The islands are separated from the mainland to the east by the shallow Hecat ...

and surrounding waters, asserting that

the Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...

has never legally acquired title to these areas, and has illegally infringed upon Haida Title and rights within the territories through the imposition of Canadian sovereignty and the extraction of resources under Canadian authority. There are two main Haida villages on Haida Gwaii: G̱aaw, known in English as Old Massett, and Hlg̱aagilda, known in English as Skidegate. Haida populations in Kxeen and T'agwan are also represented on the Council of the Haida Nation. The CHN recognizes the separate jurisdiction of the Kaigani Haida, in southern

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

, who are members of the Haida Nation, but are governed by the

Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

. All Haida territories were in the past also claimed by Russia and Spain as well as the United States. Once Russian and Spanish claims to Haida Gwaii were given up in treaties with Britain and the United States, the islands continued to be claimed by the United States until the British claim to them was formalized by the creation of the

Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands The Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands was a British colony constituting the archipelago of the same name from 1853 to 1858, when it was amalgamated into the Colony of British Columbia. In 2010 the archipelago was renamed Haida Gwaii. The Q ...

in 1853. Russian claims to Kaigani Haida territory were sold to the United States in 1867 with the

Alaska Purchase The Alaska Purchase (russian: Продажа Аляски, Prodazha Alyaski, Sale of Alaska) was the United States' acquisition of Alaska from the Russian Empire. Alaska was formally transferred to the United States on October 18, 1867, through a ...

. The Council, formed in 1973, has been involved in many conflicts over the fate of its territories, which have been part of Canada since 1871, and by the

Colony of British Columbia The Colony of British Columbia refers to one of two colonies of British North America, located on the Pacific coast of modern-day Canada: *Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866) *Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871) See also *History of Br ...

and the Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands prior to that. No treaties between the

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

and the governments of the Haida were ever signed, as in most of the rest of the current Canadian province of British Columbia. The Constitution of the Haida Nation was accepted formally in 2003.

Environment

The Haida Gwaii archipelago is one of the richest marine and terrestrial environments on earth. The Haida people are a product of their environment; thus their culture is an emanation of respect and gratitude for their provider, the land and sea. The archipelago consists of over 200 islands and is located off the

coast of British Columbia , settlement_type = Region of British Columbia , image_skyline = , nickname = "The Coast" , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = British ...

, Canada. As a result of its location, the western coast of Haida Gwaii is exposed to very strong winds and ocean waves of up to high. The average yearly rainfall on the western coast is , compared to on the eastern coast. The Haida Nation encompasses the Haida Gwaii archipelago and surrounding water. This includes the

Dixon Entrance The Dixon Entrance (french: Entrée Dixon) is a strait about long and wide in the Pacific Ocean at the Canada–United States border, between the U.S. state of Alaska and the province of British Columbia in Canada. The Dixon Entrance is part of t ...

, half of the

Hecate Strait , image = HecateStrait(PittIsland).JPG , image_size = 260px , alt = , caption = Hecate Strait and Pitt Island , image_bathymetry = Loc-QCS-Hecate-Dixon.png , alt_bathymetry = , caption ...

, half the distance to

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are o ...

, and westward from the land toward the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

Mandate

The Mandate is an order for the Council of the Haida Nation. The Council follows the Mandate to the best of their abilities. The Mandate acknowledges the following: * The Council must care for the lands and waters of the Nation area. * The Council must preserve the language and culture of the Haida people. * The Council must aim for independence of the Haida Nation. * The Council must serve the best interests of the Nation in ways that align with the Constitution. * The Council must encourage co-existence with other Nations, yet maintain the policies and interests of the Haida Nation. * The Council must aim to improve the rights of all Indigenous peoples. * The Council must create land policies which account for the resources available within the land. * The Council must regulate citizen access to land resources. * The Council must designate process for land use which account for the resources available within Haida Gwaii. * The Council must deal with any external affairs within the Haida Nation. * The Council must be the defence for the Haida Nation. * The Council must update Haida citizens quarterly at formal meetings. This excludes any necessarily confidential information. * The Vice President must advertise for the Council quarterly meetings at least seven days in advance to the meeting date. * The Council must record meetings. * The Council have the official publication as "Haida Laas".

Languages

The constitution acknowledges the

Haida language Haida (', ', ', ') is the language of the Haida people, spoken in the Haida Gwaii archipelago off the coast of Canada and on Prince of Wales Island in Alaska. An endangered language, Haida currently has 24 native speakers, though revitalizatio ...

(X̱aad Kil and X̱aayda Kil) and English as the official languages of the Haida Nation.

Governance

The House of Assembly is a legal form of Haida National government. This group has the right to pass laws which align with the Constitution of the Haida Nation. The House of Assembly meet yearly with the Council of the Haida Nation. These meetings occur in October during the third week of the month. Each yearly meeting alternates between G̱aaw (Old Masset) and Hlg̱aagilda (Skidegate). In addition to the House of Assembly meetings, the Council of the Haida Nation meet quarterly with Haida citizens. The Vice President calls the House of Assembly meeting twenty days before the meeting date. They may also call other meeting dates if required, again, at least twenty days before the scheduled date. All motions placed through the House of Assembly can only be approved by a vote of three-quarter approval or more.

Secretariat

The Council of the Haida Nation sustains a Secretariat.The duties of the Secretariat are as follows: the Secretariat answers to both the House of Assembly and the Council of the Haida Nation, the Secretariat acts as Treasurer and will manage the staff of the Council of the Haida Nation, and the Secretariat has multiple rights to the credit of the Council of the Haida Nation.

Subsidiary bodies (Village Councils)

The Village Councils are concerned with the well-being of the communities and Band members. The Village Councils may initiate laws.

Skidegate Band Council

Chief Councillor: Billy Yovanovich Councillors: Duane Alsop, Lyndale George, David Crosby, Michelle McDonald, Trent Moraes, Michelle Pineault, Robert Russ.

Old Masset Village Council

Chief Councillor: Donald (Duffy) Edgars Councillors: V. Freda Davis (Deputy), Lisa White, Cecil Brown, Patrika McEvoy, Robert Brown, Brodie Swanson, Jade Collison, .

Citizenship

The Haida citizenship act was approved on 31 May 2017. When accepted as a Haida Nation citizen, one receives both a Card and a Certificate. The card is used for identification purposes, and the certificate is the official Citizenship document. The Constitution of the Haida Nation states that title of Haida Gwaii Citizen may be given to an individual who does not have Haida ancestry. This title does not include receiving Haida indigenous rights or Haida heritage claims.

References

External links

Haida Nation Skidegate Band Council
bad link.
Council of the Haida Nation - Forest GuardiansBritish Columbia Treaty Commission
{{Canada topic Haida governments