Winnipeg News: Dakota Tipi Files Lawsuit Over The Forks Land

A Manitoba First Nation is suing the city of Winnipeg, the province of Manitoba and the federal government, claiming that a piece of land, including The Forks, is unceded land of their country.

The Dakota Tipi First Nation filed a lawsuit in the Court of King’s Bench on Friday, naming the city of Winnipeg, the province of Manitoba, the Attorney General of Canada and the North Portage Development Corporation, which oversees the Forks region, as defendants.

The claim is that the Dakota Tipi Nation are the original inhabitants of the land and should be involved in any future development.

“The Dakota Tipi Nation claims that the land is part of its unceded traditional territory in Manitoba and is held in trust for the benefit of the Dakota Tipi Nation, so that they should share in the profits resulting from the use of the land,” the claim states.

The Dakota and Lakota peoples of Canada were historically not recognized as Canadian citizens at the time of European contact and were excluded from Canada’s treaty process and other key agreements.

On July 15, Canada apologized to the two countries and recognized them as Canadian citizens.

The claim states that Dakota Tipi used the land where the Forks development now stands solely for trade, farming, hunting and fishing. They claim that they never transferred their land rights to the Crown because Canada did not recognize them.

The Dakota Tipi claim Aboriginal title to the land.

They are demanding reparations, which include the return of legal ownership of the land to the nation, compensation for past use of the land, and consultation on future use and development.

The claim also includes aggravated and punitive damages. None of the claims have been proven in court.

Both the Manitoba government and the City of Winnipeg said they could not comment as the matter is before the courts.

CTV News Winnipeg has also reached out to the federal government and North Portage Development Corporation for comment.