Tłı̨chǫ annual gathering, assembly begins in Behchokọ̀

This week’s Tłı̨chǫ annual gathering and assembly is celebrating two decades since the Tłı̨chǫ Agreement came into effect.

“This is just a remarkable event. I see it as a historical event 20 years in the making,” Tłı̨chǫ Grand Chief Jackson Lafferty told Cabin Radio.

“[There’s] just a lot of excitement here, a lot of happy faces from Tłı̨chǫ Nation and even from the public.”

The first comprehensive land claim and self-government agreement in the NWT, the Tłı̨chǫ Agreement secured Tłı̨chǫ ownership of 39,000 square kilometres of land surrounding Behchokọ̀, Whatì, Gamètì and Wekweètì.

It also provided the Tłı̨chǫ Government with law-making authority over Tłı̨chǫ citizens and lands in areas including education, child and family services, social housing, and Tłı̨chǫ language and culture.

The agreement was signed on August 25, 2003 and came into effect on August 4, 2005.

The first session of the sixth Tłı̨chǫ Assembly began on Monday morning in Behchokọ̀ with the swearing-in of assembly members and a prayer song by Tłı̨chǫ drummers.

Lafferty noted that some of the new assembly members are youths, adding it’s “very remarkable” to see young people getting involved in politics.

“We’ve always said – and our Elders have always said – they’re our future leaders,” he said. “They’re stepping in the right direction and we’re going to guide them.”

Lafferty said the assembly has “a lot of work ahead of them” and he’s “looking forward to a positive outcome” over the next four years. An election for the role of grand chief will be held on September 29.

Former Tłı̨chǫ chief negotiator John B Zoe said more youth are involved in this assembly than ever before.

“The Tłı̨chǫ Agreement is something that they’ve grown up under,” he said. “We don’t really know anything else in the last 20 years.”

Zoe said involving people is the most important thing when it comes to the Tłı̨chǫ Agreement.

“If you have something that you have ownership of, then you can become part of it, especially through representation and through employment or through leadership or through mentorship. And so it’s ours and we can make it what it is,” he said.

Asked about his hopes for the future of the Tłı̨chǫ Nation, Zoe highlighted the continuation of land, language and cultural programs to ensure the Tłı̨chǫ way of life is practised.

“Those are the strengths that we had before colonization and so we’re just getting back to our base of strength, and the rest is experimenting with that strength and what we can do with it,” he said.

The 21st Tłı̨chǫ Annual Gathering kicked off on Sunday with the arrival of paddlers taking part in Trails of Our Ancestors. They travelled by canoe over the past two weeks from Whatì, Gamètì and Wekweètì.

A group of paddlers from Gamètì were rescued by helicopter during their initial journey due to a nearby wildfire.

All of the paddlers were greeted at the end of their trip on Sunday afternoon with handshakes, hugs and smiles from a large crowd gathered on the shore of Behchokọ̀.

Zoe said the arrival “set the tone” for the Tłı̨chǫ gathering and assembly, describing the mood on Monday as good.

Trails of Our Ancestors is an annual canoe trip to the Tłı̨chǫ gathering that retraces traditional travel routes and brings together Tłı̨chǫ citizens of all ages. According to the Tłı̨chǫ Government, this year’s journey included a record 160 paddlers in 28 canoes.

NWT MP and Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Rebecca Alty joined Grand Chief Lafferty, Tłı̨chǫ chiefs and other paddlers on the final stretch of the trip to Behchokọ̀.

The Tłı̨chǫ Assembly reconvenes at 10am on Tuesday and runs through Thursday.

Events scheduled throughout the week include bingo, a crib tournament and checkers tournament.

Friday’s events will include a feeding of the fire ceremony, nominations for grand chief, a drum dance, fireworks, and the start of a hand games tournament that runs until Sunday afternoon.

The assembly is being broadcast live on Zoom, Vimeo, CKLB radio and through video conferencing in Whatì, Gamètì and Wekweètì at Tłı̨chǫ Government presence offices.