Tribe wants to give up 'Indian' status

TORONTO, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- A Canadian Indian tribe has made a groundbreaking proposal to the national government to exchange tribal status for resources, officials say.

Some of the 13,000-member Gitxsan tribe in British Columbia say they are willing to give up reserves, tax exemptions, government housing and financial support in exchange for a share of natural resources taken from 12,000 square miles of tribal lands, The Globe and Mail reported Monday.

A tribal delegation will meet Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl next month, the newspaper said.

Under the proposal, the Gitxsan would become regular, enfranchised Canadian citizens, governed by municipal, provincial and federal governments. That goes against the standard treaty model and raises constitutional questions about taking away, even with consent, rights accorded to status Indians, a Ministry official said.

Not all Gitxsan people back the proposal, which has created a power struggle between the hereditary rulers who trace their authority back thousands of years and elected tribal officials who have earned their power through a system created by an Indian Act, the Globe and Mail reports.