Ochapowace First Nation is asking the federal government to be allowed to separate back into two first nations.
The two existed when Treaty 4 was signed in 1874 and were later combined into one.
The chief of Ochapowace says the first nation has gone to court to correct a wrong done by the federal government in the 1870’s, since the two first nations were combined without consulting Indigenous leaders.
On Monday, a hearing focused on the signing of Treaty 4. Historian Kenton Storey testified about how Treaty 4 was formed and the division of land among first nations. He also said that many Indigenous people were starving when the treaty was signed because the buffalo population was depleted.
The goal of the hearing is to have the federal government recognize Ochapowace as two first nations again.
It’s expected to last five weeks.
