First Nation Profile

• The Ta'an Kwäch'än are affiliated with the Southern Tutchone Council and are traditionally based in the Lake Laberge (Tà'an Män) area, north of Whitehorse.



• There are approximately 410 Ta'an Kwäch'än Council citizens, about half of whom live in the City of Whitehorse.



• Ta'an Kwäch'än's ancestral lands extend north to Hootalinqua, south to McClintock Valley and Marsh Lake; west to White Bank village at the confluence of the Takhini and Little Rivers; and east to Winter Crossing on the Teslin River. Their northeast territory extends to Livingstone Creek and the area below the confluence of the Big Salmon and South Big Salmon Rivers.



• At the heart of their traditional territory lies Lake Laberge from which the Ta'an Kwäch'än take their name. Ta'an Kwäch'än means "people of the flat lake"/ "head of the lake people".

Chronology

• In 1902, Chief Jim Boss recognized the 1898 Yukon Gold Rush was having a significant impact on his people. Chief Boss wrote to the Superintendent General of Indian Affairs seeking recognition and protection of his people's land and culture. In his letter dated January 13, 1902, Chief Boss said: "Tell the King very hard, we want something for our Indians because they take our land."



• In 1956, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada amalgamated traditional members of the Ta'an Kwäch'än and the Marsh Lake people into one Indian Act band named the Whitehorse Indian Band, later to become known as the Kwanlin Dun First Nation.



• In May 1993, the Government of Canada, the Government of Yukon and the Council for Yukon Indians signed the Yukon Umbrella Final Agreement (UFA). The UFA listed the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council as a separate First Nation entity that would negotiate separate final and self-government agreements.



• In 1996, a negotiator's Memorandum of Understanding acknowledging completion of the Ta'an Kwäch'än settlement was signed between the Government of Canada, the Government of Yukon and the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council. The memorandum was subject to a list of outstanding matters including the separation of the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council from Kwanlin Dun First Nation and the resolution of overlapping traditional territories and settlement land selections.



• In July 1998, the Ta'an Kwäch'än became a recognized Indian Act band separate from Kwanlin Dun First Nation.



• In April 2001, the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council and Kwanlin Dun First Nation reached a mutual resolution on their settlement land selections picked from the same traditional territory. That same month, negotiators initialled a negotiators' memorandum marking the conclusion of Ta'an Kwäch'än Council's land claim negotiations.



• In August 2001, negotiators initialed the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council Final and Self-Government Agreements and recommended the agreements to the Principals for ratification.



• In November 2001, Ta'an Kwäch'än Council held a ratification vote to approve the ratification of the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council's agreements.



• On January 13, 2002, a signing ceremony of Ta'an Kwäch'än Council Final and Self-Government Agreements and Implementation Plans take place. This significant event marks the 100th anniversary of Chief Jim Boss's letter to the Government of Canada.



• The Ta'an Kwäch'än Council is the eighth Yukon First Nation to sign its land claim and self-government agreements.

Highlights of the Final and Self-Government Agreements

Land

• Ownership of approximately 785 square kilometres (303 square miles) of settlement land. The total settlement land is divided into Category A land: 388 square kilometres (150 square miles) and Category B and fee simple land: 396 square kilometres (153 square miles).



• Direct involvement as a government in a broad range of decisions about land and resources within its traditional territory.



• Unique provisions in the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council Final Agreement include:



• the protection of the historical Livingstone Trail located northeast of Whitehorse;



• recognition of the earlier designation of the Yukon River Thirty Mile Section as a Canadian Heritage River; and,



• the establishment of the Yukon River Watershed Working Group charged with protection and enhancement of Yukon River between Lake Bennett and Lake Laberge.



• Retention of the Lake Laberge Indian Reserve No. 1 as a reserve with specific provisions affecting it outlined in the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council Self-Government Agreement.

Funding

• Approximately $26.95 million in financial compensation paid over the next 15 years, less loan repayment of $10.07 million (adjusted for interest).



• An additional one-time payment of $3.5 million resulting from the Government of Canada's decision to effectively re-index compensation dollars.



• Commitment by the Government of Canada to establish a unique $4.9 million economic development fund.



• The First Nation will also receive funding to deliver programs and services transferred to it under the Programs and Services Transfer Agreement.



• Implementation plans for the final and self-government agreements will provide funding for implementation.



• The Ta'an Kwäch'än Council final agreement includes commitments from the Government of Yukon to provide the First Nation with preferential opportunities on certain development projects and government contracts within its traditional territory.

Rights & Benefits

• Preferential fish and wildlife harvesting rights within the traditional territory including exclusive hunting rights on Category A settlement land.



• First Nation participation in decision making affecting fish and wildlife and non-settlement land within the traditional territory through various boards, committees and councils.



• The self-government agreement provides Ta'an Kwäch'än Council with the tools to seize economic development opportunities, preserve its cultural heritage and foster community pride.



• Exercise law-making powers on settlement lands in the areas of land use and control, hunting, trapping and fishing, the administration of justice, environmental protection, licensing and the regulation of business. The Ta'an Kwäch'än Council also have the power to enact laws for its citizens primarily around the provision of program and services.



• The final and self-government agreements put the Ta'an Kwäch'än people in a better position to control their destiny, prosperity and well-being.

For more information:

Detailed highlights of the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council Final and Self-Government Agreements are available on the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council's Internet web site: www.taan.ca

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