Call #106 is part of the NIES Finance pathway, under the Trade section, which focuses on three goals: establishing Indigenous free trade zones, supporting Indigenous-to-Indigenous trade agreements, and honouring existing Aboriginal and Treaty rights. This Call is broad and has multiple parts. It asks not only that Treaty rights to trade and commerce be recognized, but that they be fulfilled in practice. It also applies both within Canada and internationally. The strongest evidence of direct activity is in Atlantic treaty fisheries. The Supreme Court’s Marshall decisions recognized a Peace and Friendship Treaty right to earn a moderate livelihood through trading products of hunting, fishing, and gathering. Fisheries and Oceans Canada also reports ongoing rights-implementation work with Treaty Nations, including funding, agreements, and access acquisition. The international trade evidence is more limited. Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) and Canada’s broader trade-policy approach preserve space for Canada to meet legal obligations to Indigenous Peoples, but they do not themselves fulfill a specific Treaty right to trade and commerce.
For that reason, the status is Active (Partial) as Canada has identified, recognized, funded, and implemented some elements of treaty-based trade and commerce rights in specific regions and sectors. Still, no Canada-wide or international Treaty-specific fulfillment framework was identified.
