Frequently Asked Questions About the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement

1) Who are the Labrador Inuit?
2) Who are recognized as beneficiaries?
3) Where will the Inuit have rights?
4) What benefits will accrue to Newfoundland and Labrador as a result of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement?
5) How will the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement affect the Voisey's Bay project?
6) How much is the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement going to cost?
7) What is the Implementation Fund?
8) What is Newfoundland and Labrador contributing under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement?
9) What harvesting rights will the Labrador Inuit enjoy?
10) Does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provide for Labrador Inuit input with respect to environmental issues?
11) What self-government rights will the Labrador Inuit have?
12) How will the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement affect Inuit women?
13) How will Labrador Inuit self-government affect non-Inuit living in the Inuit Communities?
14) How will non-Inuit residents of Labrador be affected?
15) Does the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms apply?
16) How does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement address the issue of matrimonial property?
17) Why does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provide for harvesting outside of the Settlement Area?
18) What taxation powers will the Inuit Government have?
19) Does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provide for "certainty" with respect to the Aboriginal rights of the Labrador Inuit?
20) Why are the Labrador Inuit maintaining their claim to Aboriginal rights in northeastern Quebec and adjacent marine areas?
21) What measures are in place to ensure that the Inuit Government will be accountable to the people it governs?
22) What is the status of the Torngat Mountains National Park Reserve of Canada and what benefits will the Inuit enjoy inside the Park Reserve?
23) How will the settlement of this claim affect other Aboriginal groups with overlapping claims in Labrador?
24) What is the status of overlap negotiations?
25) How does this Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement affect the Labrador Metis Nation?
26) Have the public and third parties been consulted with respect to the content of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement?
27) When will the benefits begin to flow to the Inuit?
28) What are the total loans owed by the LIA and will they be repaid?
29) What are the next steps?

A. The Labrador Inuit number approximately 5,300 Inuit and Kablunangâjuit (individuals of partial Inuit ancestry) who live primarily in five coastal communities (Nain, Hopedale, Makkovik, Postville and Rigolet) and the upper Lake Melville area in Labrador. They claim Aboriginal rights and title to territory in northern Labrador and northeastern Quebec. The Inuit have never entered into a treaty with the British Crown, Canada or Newfoundland and Labrador.

A. The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement sets out the eligibility criteria. Generally, an individual who is Inuit pursuant to Inuit custom and tradition and is of Inuit ancestry and is either a permanent resident of the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area, or connected to the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area is eligible to be a beneficiary. The criteria are broad enough to include a small number of non-Inuit who are accepted as Inuit according to Inuit custom and tradition.

A. In the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area, the Inuit will have a variety of rights and benefits related to land and resources. These include preferential harvesting rights, allocations of commercial fishing licenses and a share of provincial resource royalties.

In Labrador Inuit Lands, Inuit will enjoy a variety of rights, including the right to manage these lands, exclusive rights to carving stone, ownership of quarry materials and a 25 percent interest in subsurface resources. They will also have the right to impacts and benefits agreements for any developments in these lands.

The Inuit will have self-government rights in Labrador Inuit Lands and the Inuit Communities.

4) Q. What benefits will accrue to Newfoundland and Labrador as a result of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement?

A. The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement will aid in the social and economic development of Labrador by providing certainty with respect to the ownership of the lands and resources. Achieving certainty with respect to ownership of land and resources provides a stable environment for economic development.

5) Q. How will the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement affect the Voisey's Bay project?

A. In July 2002, the Labrador Inuit Association, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Government of Canada signed the Voisey's Bay Interim Measures Agreement which sets out Inuit rights and benefits in relation to the Voisey's Bay project. The LIA has also signed an Inuit Impact and Benefits Agreement with Inco/Voisey's Bay Nickel Company.

The Voisey's Bay Project is well underway on the basis of the agreements reached with the Labrador Inuit. No changes are expected as a result of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement.

The certainty provided through the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement will help support economic development, such as the Voisey's Bay project and other developments.

A. Canada has committed to a capital transfer of $140 million ($1997) and a transfer of $156 million ($1997) for implementation costs. These payments have been adjusted to take inflation into account and will be made according to schedules of payments set out in the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement.

7) Q. What is the Implementation Fund?

A. The Implementation Fund is provided by Canada to assist the Inuit in meeting their implementation obligations under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement. In providing the fund, Canada is discharged from any implementation obligations except as otherwise provided under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement. Canada will continue to pay for its own costs of implementing the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement, and some specific funding obligations which may be set out in ancillary agreements.

The Implementation Fund also includes a number of specific funds which are intended to address specific areas of interest or concern to the Inuit. These include cultural heritage and heritage resources, commemoration of the community of Hebron and other resource issues.

The Implementation Fund will be paid out according to a schedule of payments set out in the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement.

8) Q. What are Newfoundland and Labrador contributing under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement?

A. Newfoundland and Labrador are providing a Labrador Inuit Settlement Area of 28,000 sq mi (72,520 sq. km). Of this, 6,100 sq mi (15,800 sq km) will be owned by the Labrador Inuit and known as Labrador Inuit Lands. In Labrador Inuit Lands, the Inuit will enjoy benefits such as 25 percent of provincial revenues from subsurface resources, exclusive harvesting rights and control of new developments. In the remaining 21,900 sq mi (56,720 sq. km) of the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area, the Inuit will receive 50 percent of the first $2 million and 5 percent thereafter of provincial revenues from subsurface resources, and priority harvesting rights.

The Inuit will also receive 5 percent of provincial revenues from the Voisey's Bay project.

A. The Labrador Inuit will have preferential rights to harvest fish and wildlife, including migratory birds, in the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area for subsistence purposes.

The Nunatsiavut Government will be offered an allocation of commercial licences for specified species of fish in the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area and for others in waters adjacent to the tidal waters of the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area. It will be offered access to the available commercial harvest for shrimp in waters adjacent to the tidal waters of the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area through the issuance of an additional licence or by some other means.

Inuit will participate with federal and provincial representatives on boards making recommendations to the appropriate federal or provincial Minister on the management of fisheries and wildlife in the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area.

10) Q. Does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provide for Labrador Inuit input with respect to environmental issues?

A. The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provides for the establishment of an Inuit environmental assessment process for the assessment of projects in Labrador Inuit Lands. No project will proceed in Labrador Inuit Lands unless approved by all governments requiring an assessment of the project, including the Nunatsiavut Government.

Inuit will be guaranteed participation in federal and provincial environmental assessments respecting projects in the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area outside Labrador Inuit Lands and may have a role, through consultation or other means, in those outside the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area that may reasonably be expected to have adverse effects in the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area or Inuit rights under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement.

A. The Labrador Inuit will have the right to govern themselves in accordance with the terms of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement. The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provides for the establishment of a regional Nunatsiavut Government, five Inuit Community Governments and Inuit Community Corporations.

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms will apply to the Inuit Government.

The Nunatsiavut Government may make laws applicable to Inuit in Labrador Inuit Lands and the Inuit Communities with respect to culture and language, education, health and social services, as well as land and resource management.

Each Inuit Community Government has the power to make laws of a local or municipal nature.

Inuit Community Corporations may be established to provide for the representation of Inuit who reside outside the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area.

12) Q. How will the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement affect Inuit women?

A. The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement makes no distinction based on gender. Inuit women will have equal access to all rights and benefits under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement.

13) Q. How will Labrador Inuit self-government affect non-Inuit living in the Inuit Communities?

A. Inuit Community Governments will have powers similar to those that the existing municipalities exercise. Non-Inuit residents in the Inuit Communities will participate in their government through the right to vote for and have guaranteed representation on community councils. Community councillors will be divided into two groups. The first group, consisting of Inuit and non-Inuit residing in a community on May 10, 1999 (the date the AIP was initialled), will occupy at least 75 percent of the seats of a community council. The second group, consisting of non-Inuit who become resident in a community after May 10, 1999, will occupy the remainder.

As a result of negotiated agreements with Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador, the Nunatsiavut Government will provide education, health and social services to all residents in the Inuit Communities, both Inuit and non-Inuit.

A. Existing interests of private landowners in Labrador will not be affected. Crown land leases and licenses will be protected and may continue according to their terms and conditions, but applications for renewal of those in Labrador Inuit Lands and the Inuit Communities will have to be made to the Nunatsiavut Government, which may impose additional reasonable terms and conditions such as fees.

Existing interests of commercial harvesters in Labrador will not be affected. Domestic harvesters will require permission from the Nunatsiavut Government to harvest on Labrador Inuit Lands, but special provision has been made to accommodate harvesting on Labrador Inuit Lands by non-Inuit who are long-term residents of the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area. Outside Labrador Inuit Lands, non-Inuit will continue to harvest domestically in accordance with federal and provincial laws.

Free access to cross Labrador Inuit Lands along standard routes for casual purposes will continue. Nunatsiavut Government consent will be required for access to Labrador Inuit Lands on new routes or for commercial purposes and a fee may be imposed by the Nunatsiavut Government for such access.

A. Yes, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms applies to the Inuit Government and to all matters within its authority.

16) Q. How does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement address the issue of matrimonial property?

A. The Nunatsiavut Government will have the ability to make laws in respect of the division of matrimonial property. However, any such laws will have to accord rights and protections that are comparable to the rights and protections enjoyed by individuals under laws of general application.

17) Q. Why does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provide for harvesting outside of the Settlement Area?

A. Approximately half of the Inuit who will be beneficiaries under the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement reside in the upper Lake Melville Area, which is outside the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area.

In order to address the specific concerns of these individuals, Canada has agreed to a time limited period during which these individuals can continue to harvest migratory birds and fish in their traditionally used areas.

Inuit who are ordinarily resident in Labrador outside the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area will be entitled to harvest migratory birds, in a prescribed area, for a nine-year period following the effective date of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement. This harvesting shall be carried out as if the area were the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area. Inuit harvesting under this arrangement will not be able to harvest on lands which are owned or subject to a surface interest, unless the owner or interest holder agrees. Harvesting will be halted during times of scarcity.

Canada and the Nunatsiavut Government will negotiate a communal food fishing license whereby Inuit who reside in Labrador, outside the Settlement Area, will be able to fish in the tidal waters of Lake Melville. This arrangement will not be treaty-protected and will be for a period of nine years, although the Minister may extend the arrangement.

The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement also provides for the ability to harvest other species of wildlife outside the Settlement Area. The provincial government oversees such harvesting.

A. The Nunatsiavut Government will be able to make laws in relation to direct taxation of Inuit in Labrador Inuit Lands and the Inuit Communities and, by agreement with Canada or Newfoundland and Labrador, of non-Inuit in Labrador Inuit Lands and the Inuit Communities. Federal taxation power will not be limited. The Inuit Government will receive tax treatment similar to that of other municipal governments in Canada.

19) Q. Does the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provide for "certainty" with respect to the Aboriginal rights of the Labrador Inuit?

A. Yes. The Agreement sets out the terms for certainty as to the section 35 Charter rights of the Labrador Inuit. These terms apply to all of Canada except any claims or rights of the Labrador Inuit in an identified area of northeastern Quebec and adjacent marine areas. With this exception in mind, in exchange for the rights and benefits specified in the Agreement, Inuit cede and release to Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador all of their Aboriginal rights outside of Labrador Inuit Lands and Aboriginal rights related to subsurface resources in Labrador Inuit Lands. Inside Labrador Inuit Lands, the Agreement modifies the Aboriginal rights of the Inuit to those rights set out in the Agreement.

20) Q. Why are the Labrador Inuit maintaining their claim to Aboriginal rights in northeastern Quebec and adjacent marine areas?

A. The Labrador Inuit claim Aboriginal rights and title in an area in northeastern Quebec and adjacent marine areas.

Canada's view is that all Aboriginal rights in northeastern Quebec were addressed as part of the James Bay and Northeastern Quebec Agreement, and therefore the Labrador Inuit no longer have rights in this area.

Any attempt to deal with specific interests in this area, would require the agreement and participation of the beneficiaries to the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement (Nunavik Inuit, Cree, Government of Quebec and Government of Canada). Canada is willing to participate in any discussions that might take place.

With respect to the adjacent marine areas, the Labrador Inuit have not submitted a claim to this area, and as a result, it is not addressed in the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement.

21) Q. What measures are in place to ensure that the Inuit Government will be accountable to the people it governs?

A. The Inuit Constitution, which was adopted by Inuit on April 15, 2002, requires that the Nunatsiavut Government be democratically accountable to the Inuit and that the Inuit Community Governments be democratically accountable to all residents of the Inuit Communities. This will be done through regular elections, a process for challenges to Inuit laws, rules regarding conflict of interest and financial accountability.

In addition, the Inuit Constitution provides that the AngajukKak (mayor) of each community government will sit in the Nunatsiavut Assembly.

Finally, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the protections it affords, will continue to apply to the Inuit Government.

22) Q. What is the status of the Torngat Mountains National Park Reserve of Canada and what benefits will the Inuit enjoy inside the Park Reserve?

A. Canada and the Province have negotiated a land transfer agreement by which approximately 9,600 square kilometres (3,700 sq. miles) of land will be transferred by the Province to Canada to create the Torngat Mountains National Park Reserve. Canada will establish the Park Reserve under the Canada National Parks Act on the same day that the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement comes into effect.

The Inuit have negotiated a Park Impacts and Benefits Agreement with Canada that sets out a wide range of rights and benefits that Inuit will enjoy within the Park Reserve. These include harvesting rights, rights to carving stone, and economic development opportunities related to the Park.

Once all outstanding Aboriginal claims in northern Labrador have been resolved, the Torngat Mountains National Park Reserve will become the Torngat Mountains National Park.

23) Q. How will the settlement of this claim affect other Aboriginal groups with overlapping claims in Labrador?

A. The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement provides that nothing in the Agreement will be construed to affect the section 35 Charter rights of other Aboriginal groups. Canada encourages Aboriginal groups to negotiate among themselves to conclude Aboriginal overlaps to deal with ownership, jurisdiction and management of lands and resources in the overlap area.

A. The LIA and the Innu Nation have negotiated an overlap agreement that addresses their respective interests in the shared area they have identified. The LIA and Makivik Corporation which represents the Inuit of northern Quebec, have initialled an overlap agreement that sets out how they will co-exist in their shared areas.

25) Q. How does this Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement affect the Labrador Metis Nation?

A. If the Labrador Metis Nation can prove that they are an Aboriginal group, the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement explicitly states that it does not affect the rights of an Aboriginal group other than the one which is signatory to the Agreement.

26) Q. Have the public and third parties been consulted with respect to the content of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement?

A. Canada has consulted with local government leaders, as well as representatives of the academic, business and resource sectors and other Aboriginal groups. Both the LIA and the Province have also conducted considerable consultation with interested parties.

A. Benefits will flow to the Inuit on the effective date of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement. This date will be established by Governor in Council, as provided in the federal implementing legislation.

Canada paid $5 million to the Labrador Inuit Association when the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement was signed. This amount is to the fund the many pre-implementation activities that the LIA will have to undertake in order to be ready for the effective date of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement.

A. The total amount of the loans will be repaid by the Inuit and the amount is projected to be approximately $50 million. The amount will be repaid over 15 years.

A. The Province has already enacted provincial implementing legislation. Now that Parliament has passed this legislation, the Governor in Council will set the date for its coming into force.