Tensions are again ratcheting up between Mi’kmaq and non-Indigenous fishers over the issue of what should be a moderate livelihood.
It’s an annual battle involving officers from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) who are seizing Mi’kmaq lobster traps.
The 1999 Supreme Court of Canada ruling known as the Marshall Decision affirms the treaty right to hunt, fish and gather to earn a moderate livelihood, but the term has not been defined, and that has led to tensions all around.
