in Context the SCotian Shelf - COINAtlantic

Aboriginal Fisheries
In 1990, the Supreme Court of Canada’s Sparrow
decision upheld the Aboriginal right to fish for
food, social and ceremonial purposes. In response
to this decision, DFO initiated the Aboriginal
Fisheries Strategy (DFO 2003). This strategy
provided a framework for the management of
fisheries for food, social and ceremonial purposes.
In 1999, the Supreme Court of Canada’s
Marshall decision affirmed a treaty right to hunt,
fish and gather in pursuit of a “moderate livelihood”
arising out of Peace and Friendship Treaties
of 1760 and 1761 (R v Marshall 1999). Since
that time DFO has implemented a number of
programs to facilitate the integration of Aboriginal
communities affected by the decision into Atlantic
Canadian fisheries. The Marshall Response Initiative
(MRI) was created to provide the 34 Mi’kmaq
and Maliseet First Nations with increased access
to the commercial fishery through the provision
of licenses, vessels and gear. The Aboriginal
Aquatic Resource and Oceans Management
(AAROM) program was instituted to facilitate the
participation of Aboriginal groups in advisory and
decision-making processes for oceans and fisheries
resource management (DFO 2008c). The
Atlantic Integrated Commercial Fisheries Initiative
(AICFI) was developed to build upon the accomplishments
of the MRI by increasing the capacity
of Aboriginal commercial fishing enterprises and
supporting their participation in the co-management
of the integrated commercial fisheries along
with other commercial harvesters (DFO 2010e).
In the decade since the Marshall decision, Aboriginals
throughout the Maritimes have participated
in training, established administration, governance
and business infrastructure, and have substantially
increased their involvement in Atlantic commercial
fisheries and in the integrated management
of ocean resources (Atlantic Policy Congress of
First Nations Chiefs 2009).
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