First Nations Challenge Alberta Separation Referendum

0:00A judge in Alberta kicks off hearings Tuesday on the first of three lawsuits from first nations trying to block a separation referendum. Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation sued the province back in January, saying the government's changes to the Citizen Initiative Act mess with their treaty. Rights under Treaty 8, that act had a key section, repealed by the United Conservative Party's Bill 14 last year, that blocked petitions clashing with charter. Protections for treaties Now, the nation wants that safeguard back to pause the separatist push, arguing it could wreck their deals with Canada. Meanwhile, two other groups, Athabasca Chippewaian First Nation and the Blackfoot Confederacy, have similar cases up this week before the same judge. Separatists claim they've hit the needed 177,732 signatures for the October ballot, and there, 360 kilometers northwest of Edmonton. The Alberta government fires back, asking the court to toss the suit entirely. They say there's no proof of real harm from the referendum or any foreign meddling, like rumors of U.S. interest and suspending the new law would.

1:08Hurt Public Interest All this unfolds as Premier Daniel Smith slams federal judges and pushes for more provincial say and appointments with these rulings set to shape. Whether the referendum rolls forward or hits a treaty-sized roadblock, that's the story for today. Calgary News Today, Driven by AI