King Charles has expressed concern about a simmering separatist movement in western Canada, according to Indigenous leaders who met the head of state at Buckingham Palace.
Members of the Confederation of Treaty Six First Nations traveled to London from their territories in the province of Alberta to raise the alarm about the secessionist movement, arguing that it ignores key agreements signed between First Nations and the crown nearly 150 years ago.
Joey Pete, grand chief of the Sunchild First Nation, said the delegation “made (Charles) aware of the problem of separatism in Alberta and the threat to the Treaty it represents,” adding in a statement that the monarch seemed “concerned and committed to learning more.”
A minority of residents of the oil-rich province in western Canada have long argued that the province’s perceived problems are due to the structure of payments to the federal government and a perceived inability to bring its vast fossil fuel reserves to market. Alberta typically has the highest GDP per capita and the highest median income in the country.
Organizers of Alberta’s independence movement are collecting signatures to start a referendum there and have tried to enlist the help of officials in Washington. The independence campaign has been traveling throughout the province as organizers attempt to collect almost 178,000 signatures in the coming months. The group has said publicly that it wants a $500 billion line of credit from the U.S. Treasury to help finance the creation of a new country if its referendum is successful.
Prominent Indigenous leaders in the province have warned that secession is not possible without consulting with treaty holders, whose agreement predates the creation of Alberta as a province within Canada.
The relationship between Indigenous peoples and the British royal family is nuanced: Canadian history is rife with broken promises, dispossession, and overt attempts to erase Indigenous cultures. But the connection has its roots in treaties signed in the 18th century, before Canada itself existed.
The Sixth Treaty, which governs relations between First Nations and the Crown on lands within the present-day province of Alberta, was signed in 1876. Alberta became a province in 1905.
Pete says he asked Charles to issue a royal proclamation “reaffirming our sacred treaty relationship and sovereign rights” following a meeting of “treaty partners and equals.”
Danielle Smith, the Alberta premier who rejected the idea of separation and said she “supports a strong, sovereign Alberta within a united Canada,” is facing growing criticism that her government recently made it easier for residents to petition for a referendum.
Chief Desmond Bull, who also attended the meeting with the king, said the leaders spoke “directly” with Charles about the “international implications of the threats facing our treaties” as well as Canada’s continued failure to comply with its treaty obligations.
Bull, a member of the Louis Bull tribe, said the king took the matter “very seriously.”
Both leaders formally invited Charles to attend the 150th commemoration of Treaty Six during August in Edmonton, saying the king’s attendance “would be a powerful symbol of the Crown’s commitment to the Treaty relationship.”
Mark Carney will meet Charles on Monday and told reporters before the visit that bosses had “quite an intense discussion” with the monarch.
“His Majesty, from all my experience, has a great interest in the rights of indigenous peoples,” the prime minister said.
