“Before Alberta was Alberta in 1905, we signed treaties in 1899,” says Loon River First Nation Chief Ivan Sawan.
The treaties are nation-to-nation agreements between First Nations and the Crown and Canada, he adds.
“We never ceded or surrendered our land,” says Sawan.
Sawan was responding to the Government of Alberta’s proposed Bill 54, part of which makes citizen referendums easier. It’s expected – according to many reports – to result in a referendum on Alberta separating from Canada.
Loon River is in Treaty 8 territory, as are the other First Nations within the region covered by the Lakeside Leader. This treaty includes portions of Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories. The southern border in Alberta is the Athabasca River.
Sawan has written a letter to Premier Danielle Smith highlighting that the Government of Alberta has no rights over treaty land and has a legal obligation to consult prior to any decisions regarding traditional territory within its borders. He is also a member of Kee Tas Kee Now Tribal Council, (KTC) which is publicly standing against the changes in Bill 54 to lower the threshold for referendums. (These and other letters are on the Letters to the Editor pages in this week’s paper, Pages 10 and 11).
Asked why he wrote the letter, Sawan says, “it’s important to assert your jurisdiction, to inform people … protecting our sovereignty, that’s why I put out a letter.”
The Government of Alberta has no authority over First Nations, says Sawan. “We have partnerships and agreements with them.”
Before the Government of Alberta could hold a referendum on separation, says Sawan, they need to receive “free, prior, and informed consent” from all First Nations within the boundaries of the province.
Consultation with Indigenous people prior to any large project on their land is a right won through the courts, says Sawan. The provincial, federal government, and industry must do this prior to any major project that affects traditional lands.
“All they’ve done is announce their big dreams in the legislature,” says Sawan.
Sawan is one of many First Nations chiefs who have stood up against the idea of separation and asserted the treaty rights of First Nations.
Bigstone Cree Nation Chief Andy Alook calls on Premier Smith to “cease and desist – separatist threats” in a letter on Page 10 and 11.
He says, “We write to you today to express our unequivocal opposition to the dangerous rhetoric and actions your office is engaging in by entertaining a referendum on separatism in Alberta. This effort is not only reckless—it is an attempt to destabilize national unity at a time when Canada must remain steadfast, especially in the face of global uncertainty and extremism.”
Mentioning the three treaties that Alberta sits on, he adds, “these treaties are sacred and binding. They are not subject to provincial whims, political ideologies, or referenda. The authority to share and coexist on this land was extended by our ancestors through treaty—not surrendered.”
Alook concludes with, “Bigstone Cree Nation stands firmly in defence of treaty and the sovereignty of our people.”
The KTC letter is on Page 10. It is signed by KTC Grand Chief Gilbert Okemow.
“The chiefs of Kee Tas Kee Now Tribal Council (KTC) are strongly denouncing the Government of Alberta’s Bill 54 – the Election Statutes Amendment Act – calling it a direct threat to the treaty relationship between First Nations and the Crown.”
In the news release Grand Chief Okemow says, “our treaty was made with the Crown, not with Alberta. Alberta cannot make decisions about separation without treaty First Nations at the table, doing so is both unconstitutional and disrespectful.”
In the news release Grand Chief Okemow adds, “This bill is more than a legislative change – it’s an attack on our sovereignty, our land, and our future as First Nations people. Our position is firm: no decision about these lands can be made without our full participation and agreement.”
In his letter, Sawan says, “Loon River First Nation will never support Alberta’s separation. Our treaties bind us to Canada, not Alberta. We will not stand by while our lands and rights are treated as political leverage.
We are not guests – we are the original nations.”
The KTC letter mentions a May 2 statement by Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta also opposing the bill.
Bill 54
Alberta Bill 54 was introduced by the government on April 29, 2025. It includes changes to the Citizen Initiative Act, which proposes to lower the number of people required to start a referendum. The bill is available online at assembly.ab.ca/assembly-business/bills.
The bill says the current law says 20 per cent of registered voters must sign up, for a petition on a constitutional question to be accepted, and 10 per cent of registered voters for a legislative or policy change. The proposed threshold in Bill 54 is 10 per cent of people who voted in the last election, for all types.
The letters from the chiefs are in response to comments made by Premier Smith after the Liberals won the federal election on April 28. On May 6, in a news conference she said she does not support separation.
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