Sacichawasihc Relationship Agreement
Signing ceremony of the « Sacichawasihc » relationship agreement. This agreement recently won first place at the Saskatchewan Municipal Awards, which recognize innovative communities. « It`s not the First Nations that make First Nations better, or Battleford or North Battleford that make their cities better, it`s all of us working together, » he said, adding that the agreement brings a renewed sense of hope and will truly benefit those who need help. Mayor Ryan Bater, the deal is one of the city`s top priorities and the key vessel to ensure neighbors work together to address similar challenges. Bater hopes the award will give the groups the wind in their sails and attract the attention of federal and state politicians for support in developing framework conditions. « The agreement is one of our highest priorities, if not our highest priority, » Bater said. Sweetgrass First Nation Chief Laurence Paskemin hopes the agreement will allow signatories to pool resources and address negative and positive issues in their communities, such as employment and economic opportunities. The towns of North Battleford and Battleford, as well as some surrounding First Nations, came together to form a large community at their Sacichawasihc Relationship Agreement signing ceremony. According to a Saskatchewan Municipal Awards press release, the winning practice was to « develop an agreement that gives municipal and Indigenous governments the opportunity to work together in a spirit of reconciliation and cooperation through the establishment of relationships between governments. » This agreement, signed by Battleford, North Battleford, Sweetgrass First Nation, Saulteaux First Nation, Little Pine First Nation and Lucky Man First Nation, aims to address everything from respect for crime to health care and everything in between. Kenny Moccasin called the deal unique in Saskatchewan, but said he shouldn`t have needed a deal to get everyone to work together, and said it should have started years and years ago.
Nevertheless, the Chief of the Saulteaux First Nation is eager to see how the group can spur economic development and work together for the betterment of all. During his speech, Mayor Ames Leslie highlighted the Historic Past of the City of Battleford, saying no one is proud of it when it comes to Indigenous relations and the treatment of Indigenous peoples. A regional Community framework has been developed to ensure continuity and sustainability of relations in the future. Come celebrate with us. When: Friday, June 21, 2019 « After signing the agreement, we knew that once we had our local partners gathered in the framework, we wanted to attract the attention of the highest levels of government. I hope that this award will achieve that. On February 15, 2019, the group agreed that it was time to promote the idea of a jointly developed regional community framework that would serve to ensure the continuity and sustainability of relationships. The agreement does not state that it can be interpreted as removing the treaty or the rights of participating First Nations or limiting the responsibilities and laws of local governments.
The framework calls on governments to form a working committee to work together to build intergovernmental relations, cultural and historical prosperity and engagement, collaborative land use planning, social improvement, environmental responsibility and shared advocacy, among other things. The Chief of Little Pine First Nation spoke at the first meeting of the group, which signed in June, which was announced as « a step forward in reconciliation. » The agreement commits the City of North Battleford, the City of Battleford, Moosomin, Sweetgrass, Saulteaux and Little Pine First Nation and the Lucky Man Cree Nation to work together for the socio-economic benefits and vibrancy of the region. The agreement, signed earlier this year between North Battleford, Battleford and five First Nations, earned them all a first place at the Saskatchewan Municipal Award. « Our ancestors agreed to divide the earth and work with everyone, and it is a similar agreement that we are signing again today, » he said. In June 2018, several leaders from the region came together and decided it was time to find better ways to work together. In the months that followed, the leaders of the surrounding communities and the two mayors of Battleford continued to meet. « This is no longer an urban initiative. It`s a regional initiative, and we`re here together, » Bater said. Second place was given to support for emergency medical services (City of Radville and MR. of Laurier, The Gap, Lake Alma, Souris Valley, Surprise Valley and Lomond). Third place went to the drain pollution prevention program « Beware of the Beast of Fat » (City of Lloydminster). The Regional Cooperation Award was given to regional asset management and group learning (villages of Broderick, Conquest, Elbow, Glenside, Kenaston, Loreburn, Strongfield and Beechy, resort village of Mistusinne, towns of Central Butte, Dundurn, Hanley and Craik, and MR of Loreburn and Fertile Valley).
« This coalition, this framework will not change anything that happened hundreds of years ago in the city of Battleford, » he said. « But this is the first step in showing that this council, myself as Mayor and the City of Battleford are doing what we can to make a difference and make sure the story is known. » Lucky Man Cree Nation Chief Crystal Okemow said a lot of work is on the horizon to stem the tide of challenges facing nearby communities. She said it was encouraging to get involved in something innovative and unique in the province. Location: 102nd Street and 12th Avenue, North Battleford (weather permitting) Alternative location: Agriplex – North Battleford Exhibition Centre « The work we are doing here is a recognition that what we have done so far to address the issues facing all of our communities is not working, » said Wayne Semaganis, CEO of Little Pine. But as a leader, the chief said they are the ones who have to correct mistakes and correct things on behalf of everyone who lives in the area. « We`re trying to do something different because I think our goal at the end of the day is the well-being of our people, » she said. « When you have the well-being of your employees at your fingertips, difficult discussions need to take place and you need to work together to achieve long-term goals. » He said the division of the country comes with a common future, and in it common enemies seen in issues such as poverty, drug addiction, food security and homelessness. « We realized that we have a variety of challenges as a region. and in order to respond appropriately, we must coordinate the four government decrees that are present here.
So this is the beginning that we are aligning the ordinances of municipal and Indigenous governments, hoping to get the provincial and federal levels of government to work with us as well, » said Bater. The ceremony took place on June 21 in North Battleford during the pancake breakfast at the Battle River Treated 6 Health Centre. Bater believes that many problems cannot be dealt with properly without the help of other branches of government. The awards will be presented to the winning rural communities at the MRSA mid-term conference on November 13 at the Queensbury Convention Centre in Regina and to the winning urban communities at the SUMA Annual Conference in Regina in February 2020. « It`s designed so that we can bring together not only First Nations and local leaders, but also provinces and federals, because we often need the provincial and federal levels when you`re working on something, » Paskemin said. First place went to the Sacichawasihc Relations Agreement, signed by the City of North Battleford, the City of Battleford, Moosomin, Sweetgrass, Saulteaux, Little Pine First Nations and Lucky Man Cree Nation. This is how the chiefs described the signing of the Sacichawasihc Relationship Agreement. Little Pine First Nation Chief Wayne Semaganis said the first meetings between the groups were a struggle because everyone approached with a different mindset. He said it was emblematic of the history of the territory.
A year ago, the city hoisted the Treaty 6 flag in front of City Hall. Mayor Ryan Bater said it was done to remind everyone who lives and visits the Battlefords that the only reason everything is here is because the Aborigines have agreed to divide the land. Laurence Paskemin, Chief of sweetgrass First Nation, says this is a good first step in getting leaders to work together. « These enemies are strong, » Bater said. « If we fight them alone, we fail. When we think about the future, I don`t think we would be able to look our children and grandchildren in the eye if we knew we could have done things differently if we had known we could have come together and worked together to find solutions. He said the country`s eyes are already on the Battlefords and will continue to be so, but « we will show them how to do it right. » But he and his colleagues at the table admit that they must use the help of high levels of government to solve a number of problems that plague their communities. The winning projects were selected by the Saskatchewan Municipal Awards Committee, which combed through 17 nominations from 51 communities. .