What I'm thinking is that the concept of reconciliation has to have some real substance. One cannot look at these rights reconciliation agreements that were reasonably put forward in 2007, which are essentially, “Here's some money; you're going to be under our rules, and by the way, your treaty rights are going to be on hold for 10 years.”
True reconciliation is recognizing Mi'kmaq law. We have a constitutional base, and that has to be reconciled with federal law within the Fisheries Act. It has to do with more than just saying there's access. It has to provide an element of self-governance. What our people, our fishers, our community members are looking for is something that reflects the true nature of the treaty relationship that exists—something different.