SIOUX VALLEY DAKOTA NATION OPPOSES BILL C-21 AND RED RIVER MÉTIS TREATY IMPLEMENTATION
Canada’s Failure to Consult SVDN Constitutes a Direct Breach of the Honour of the Crown
SIOUX VALLEY DAKOTA NATION, Traditional Territory of the Oceti Sakowin, Manitoba —
Sioux Valley Dakota Nation (SVDN) is issuing this formal public statement in direct opposition to the federal government’s advancement of Bill C-21 and the implementation of the Red River Métis Treaty within the ancestral and unceded Oceti Sakowin Territory without the free, prior, and informed consent of, or complete consultation with, Sioux Valley Dakota Nation as a recognized, rights-bearing, self-governing Dakota Nation.
SVDN holds an inherent and constitutionally recognized jurisdictional interest across its ancestral Dakota homeland, the Oceti Sakowin. Canada’s unilateral actions in advancing both pieces of legislation without full, Nation-to-Nation engagement with SVDN represents a serious failure of the Crown’s constitutional and fiduciary obligations.
CHIEF JENNIFER BONE, SIOUX VALLEY DAKOTA NATION
“The Government of Canada’s decision to pause discussions on section 35 rights and compensation with Sioux Valley Dakota Nation is deeply concerning. After more than 20 years of negotiations culminating in our 2014 Self-Government Agreement, this delay undermines the spirit of reconciliation and raises serious concerns regarding the Honour of the Crown. While we acknowledge that implementation tables will continue, meaningful progress cannot occur if critical issues such as rights recognition and compensation are set aside. Canada must uphold its commitments and ensure that Sioux Valley Dakota Nation is treated with the same urgency, respect, and fairness as the Red River Métis”
SVDN’S OPPOSITION: KEY GROUNDS
SVDN is formally placing Canada on notice that the advancement of these legislative and treaty instruments within the broader Dakota ancestral region footprint, particularly across the Oceti Sakowin Territory, cannot proceed without direct, substantive, and Nation-to-Nation consultation with Sioux Valley Dakota Nation.
Unlike treaty based First Nations, SVDN’s rights are grounded in pre-contact Dakota
sovereignty, the governance systems of the Oceti Sakowin, and Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. Dakota title was never surrendered, ceded, or extinguished. Any legislative or treaty action affecting this territory requires Dakota consent, not notification after the fact.
Canada signed the SVDN Self-Government Agreement in July 2014. Over twelve years later, full implementation remains incomplete. SVDN views Canada’s aggressive advancement of other Indigenous agreements while delaying SVDN’s own self-government implementation as a discriminatory and constitutionally untenable double standard.
Any instrument, legislative or treaty, that purports to define rights, governance, or land use within the Oceti Sakowin Territory without SVDN’s consent creates a direct conflict with SVDN’s Consultation Protocol, its FPIC process, and its Self-Government Agreement.
COUNCILLOR BILL MCKAY, SIOUX VALLEY DAKOTA NATION
“Sioux Valley Dakota Nation affirms that our lands remain unceded Dakota territory, with title still held by our Oyate as the same Nation that entered into agreements with the Crown in the 1700s. Our relationship is not based on numbered treaties, but on historic agreements recognized in the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which affirmed that lands not ceded remain with the original Nation. The Dakota have never surrendered our lands. Our relationship with the Crown has always been grounded in economic partnership, trade, and military alliance. Dakota people have long stood as allies, from 1776 to the War of 1812 and through to World War II. Sioux Valley Dakota Nation holds a distinct legal and historical position. We are not a numbered treaty Nation, and we expect Canada to engage with us in a way that reflects our unceded land title and the true nature of our Nation-to-Crown relationship.”
SVDN’S RESPONSE: RIGHTS ASSERTION IN ACTION
Sioux Valley Dakota Nation has not waited for Canada to act. SVDN has proactively
implemented a comprehensive governance framework to enforce its rights and address Canada’s ongoing failures of consultation:
• A formal governance instrument that defines mandatory engagement standards, information disclosure requirements, and decision-making processes for all governments and industry operating within or affecting the Oceti Sakowin Territory.
•. Fully operational and serving as the primary interface between SVDN and external
governments and industry, including Canada, Manitoba, and private sector.
CALL ON CANADA
Sioux Valley Dakota Nation calls on the Government of Canada, Manitoba and the Private Sector.
1. Immediately pause the advancement of any legislative or treaty instruments affecting the Oceti Sakowin Territory until full, substantive Nation-to-Nation consultation with SVDN has been completed;
2. Accelerate full implementation of the SVDN Self-Government Agreement signed in July 2014, consistent with Canada’s constitutional, fiduciary, and treaty obligations;
3. Recognize SVDN as a self-governing rights-holder, not a stakeholder, in all regulatory, legislative, and treaty processes within its ancestral territory;
4. Engage directly with the SVDN Consultation Office to establish a structured, respectful, and constitutionally compliant government-to-government consultation process.
MEDIA & CONSULTATION CONTACT
SVDN Consultation Office
Email: consultation@svdngovernance.com
All media inquiries, consultation requests, and government correspondence must be directed to the SVDN Consultation Office.
ABOUT SIOUX VALLEY DAKOTA NATION
Sioux Valley Dakota Nation (SVDN) is a self-governing Dakota Nation with recognized jurisdiction in over 50 areas under its 2014 Self-Government Agreement, establishing a Nation-to-Nation and Government-to-Government relationship with Canada and Manitoba. As a self-governing Dakota Nation in Canada, SVDN exercises authority over its laws, programs, and governance systems, grounded in the values of the Oceti Sakowin and a commitment to transparency, accountability, and service to its citizens.
Sioux Valley Dakota Nation | http://www.svdngovernance.com | consultation@svdngovernance.com
