Just Because Bill C-5 Passed Doesn’t Mean Canada Can Criminalize Treaty Signatories and Inherent Indigenous Rights Holders

Passing Bill C-5 into law does not grant Canada the right to disregard, criminalize, or silence Numbered Treaty signatories and inherent Indigenous rights holders who will, if necessary, stand against governmental overreach.

If Canada pushes through actions that violate nation-shaping Treaty agreements, it is not merely a political misstep—it is a human rights violation and a breach of Treaty and inherent Indigenous rights.

The government remains obligated to seek free, prior, and informed consent from Indigenous nations under both domestic and international law. Ignoring that obligation exposes Canada to constitutional challenges, international scrutiny, and lawful resistance from the very nations that hold inherent title and land rights to these Indigenous lands.

Treaties are not optional. They are not erased by federal or provincial legislation, and that's been successfully tested time and again. If Canada seeks a future of stability and mutual respect, it must honour its agreements—not test the limits of its own laws against the very people whose lands it stands upon. Come on Canada. What's wrong with you?

Carney’s caucus, like many before, will pass and promise legislation to keep constituents subdued, only to shelve those laws when accountability approaches. It wouldn’t be the first time a government has spoken one way and acted another—or failed to act at all.

In the end, this moment is an opportunity. It will either shift the government’s approach from overreach to respect, or it will remind Canada that Indigenous nations have a lawful say in this country’s direction. One way or another, Canada will hear the voices of the local nations—and hear them it will..