The chief of Membertou First Nation says a band resolution banning RCMP and Nova Scotia tobacco enforcement officers from the reserve will not likely lead to roadblocks.
"I don't want to speculate on things, but I don't feel that that would be to our advantage," Chief Terry Paul said in an interview Tuesday.
"We have a lot of customers that come to our community and .... it would be blocking ourselves in."
Paul said the band hopes the resolution will encourage the provincial government to negotiate a deal on the regulation and sale of cannabis.
"This is what we would want and I'm sure the police forces would want that, too," he said.
"They have assisted in trying to get a meeting with the province through the attorney general to sit down and discuss and come up with an agreement where we are both satisfied."
Membertou First Nation Chief Terry Paul says the band does not want to see anyone hurt over actions it's taking to assert the band's treaty right to trade in commercial goods. (Kyle Moore/CBC)In December, the provincial justice minister issued a directive to police agencies to crackdown on illegal cannabis outlets.
On Friday, Membertou passed its resolution banning RCMP and provincial alcohol, gaming, fuel and tobacco officers from enforcement activities on the reserve.
On the weekend, in response to Membertou's band resolution, the provincial government maintained its position that cannabis sales are not a treaty right and insisted enforcement will continue.
Other bands, including Sipekne'katik and Millbrook, have been asserting what they say is their right to regulate sales of cannabis products, with Sipekne'katik enacting its own cannabis control law, although no details have been made public.
The band has also set up checkpoints to keep police out.
RCMP say they are continuing to raid cannabis outlets across the province, except storefronts like this one in Membertou, where Cape Breton Regional Police have jurisdiction. (Tom Ayers/CBC)Membertou has been drafting its own cannabis law and the Assembly of Nova Scotia Chiefs has even discussed having one common law.
Despite all that, RCMP said this week they are continuing to enforce the provincial cannabis law, pointing to raids on outlets in Whycocomagh and Eskasoni last week.
The Mounties also said they visited several storefronts in Potlotek, Paqtnkek and Pictou Landing and found they were closed, which they called evidence of successful enforcement.
Cpl. Carlie McCann said officers are confiscating unlicensed cannabis products with safety in mind.
Cannabis raids a matter of safety: RCMP"A lot of the items that were seized are coming in packaging that [is] intended to make the items appear like regular items, like cookies ... candy or chocolate bars," she said.
"This is a problem because it can lead to people, especially children, consuming these items without recognizing that it is a cannabis product."
McCann said store owners have co-operated with police, which Membertou's chief said he is grateful for.
Paul said the band resolution is intended to send a political message, not to spark confrontation.
Seeking rights recognition: chief"We certainly don't want anybody hurt because of us trying to exercise our right," he said.
"I hope it's not the calm before the storm, but we're prepared to take this as far as we have to, for us to be able to have our rights recognized."
The province's alcohol, gaming, fuel and tobacco division said its officers do not enforce the cannabis law, but they will continue to enforce the laws in their jurisdiction across the province, including on reserve lands.
However, RCMP said Membertou's enforcement ban does not affect the Mounties, because the First Nation's policing contract is with Cape Breton Regional Police.
There haven't been any raids in Membertou since the crackdown in December, but Cape Breton Regional Police say they are continuing to investigate illegal and unlicensed cannabis dispensaries. (George Mortimer/CBC)There haven't been any raids on cannabis outlets in Membertou since the provincial crackdown started in December.
In an email, spokesperson Desiree Magnus said Cape Breton Regional Police are continuing to investigate illegal and unlicensed cannabis dispensaries in their jurisdiction, including Membertou, and cannot comment on ongoing enforcement.
Marc Gibson, an Indigenous rights lawyer in Toronto, told CBC Radio's Information Morning Cape Breton that courts would likely disagree with Membertou's enforcement ban, because according to the Constitution, Indigenous lands fall under federal law and the Indian Act also places those lands under provincial law.
"It can be pretty powerful to tell the police in that way that they're not wanted, but that said, a court is not likely to recognize a First Nation ban on police or law enforcement officers," he said.
Gibson said the dispute is not really about police jurisdiction, but the "relatively benign regulatory issue" of who controls the sale of cannabis products.
Retired Dalhousie University law professor Wayne MacKay says the issue of cannabis regulation and sale will likely have to be settled by the Supreme Court of Canada. (Kyle Moore/CBC)He said those things are usually better off negotiated between governments rather than litigated in court.
"This, I think at its core, is a political issue and so hopefully there can be a political solution."
Wayne MacKay, a retired Dalhousie University law professor, said there's no clear answer on whether Membertou can keep police from enforcing cannabis law, because the Constitution recognizes and affirms Indigenous rights.
He said the issue of whether First Nations can control cannabis sales will probably have to go to the Supreme Court of Canada for a ruling, which could take years.
"If [Membertou officials] are correct in their interpretation, and they're simply acting on that, then they do have a right to do what they're doing, it just hasn't been officially recognized and affirmed at the court level yet."
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