Opponents of Alberta separation referendum rally outside Edmonton City Hall, express support for First Nations

Edmontonians rallied outside city hall Wednesday to show their support for the First Nations that want the Alberta government to stop a separation referendum petition.

“Respect Treaties” and “This is Treaty Land” were just some of the messages from demonstrators in Churchill Square.

They argue the use of Alberta’s citizen-initiated referendum process by separatists would violate treaty rights protected by the constitution.

Some Alberta First Nations are asking the courts for an injunction, arguing there is no rush to hold a vote, nor is there an “unbridled right to petition to break up Canada.” The hearings, which began Tuesday, are scheduled to last multiple days.

Stay Free Alberta, the group behind the separation referendum campaign, said last week that it has already collected more than the 178,000 signatures required to trigger a vote, although it has until May to submit its petition sheets to Elections Alberta.

Premier Danielle Smith has said that should the campaign get the required signatures, their referendum question would be put on a ballot this fall.

Indigenous leaders have been outspoken critics of the separatist movement.

Last year, the province drastically reduced the signature threshold needed for referendum petitions and extending the time frame allowed to campaign.

Through another bill in December, the government also cleared legal hurdles for the separation movement by removing the requirement that questions put forward through the act be constitutional.

That bill also removed the ability of the province’s chief electoral officer to refer proposed questions to the court for an opinion, which was done the first time the separatist group applied for a petition.

More coming.

–With files from The Canadian Press