Rights of Members on the Land

Rights of Members on the Land

INITIATION DRAFT — Ayaawx teaching page clarifying the inherent rights of Tsm̱syen members to access, use, harvest, and protect their traditional territories through wilp identity and ancestral law.

Overview

Every Tsm̱syen person inherits certain rights on the land through:

• lineage,
• wilp membership,
• crest identity,
• and ancestral agreements.

These rights do not come from the Indian Act, from band councils, from provincial permits, or from Canadian legislation.

They come from **ayaawx** — the oldest legal system on these lands.

Rights Through Wilp Membership

A person’s first land right is their membership in a wilp.

Membership provides:

• access to harvesting sites,
• access to smokehouses and camps,
• protection under the House name,
• a place to stand in feast law,
• the right to speak on matters affecting their territory.

These rights cannot be removed by:

• elections,
• politics,
• councils,
• colonial processes.

They are inherited, not granted.

Rights of Access

Members of a wilp have the right to:

• enter their traditional territory,
• travel seasonal routes,
• visit named places,
• use House canoe landings,
• gather medicines and roots,
• fish, hunt, berry-pick, or harvest according to season.

Access is governed by:

• respect,
• permission within the House,
• harvest cycles,
• and the responsibility to avoid waste.

No colonial government can extinguish this right.

Rights of Harvesting

Wilp members have the right to:

• fish on their traditional river systems,
• harvest salmon, oolichan, halibut, cod, shellfish,
• gather berries, seaweed, roots, teas, and medicines,
• hunt within House territories,
• build racks, smokehouses, and temporary shelters.

Harvesting must follow Ayaawx:

• do not take excessively,
• protect spawning grounds,
• rotate harvesting areas,
• teach youth every part of the cycle,
• honour sacred places.

Harvesting is not a hobby — it is the core of Tsm̱syen governance.

Rights to Participate in Land Decisions

Members have the right to:

• speak in their wilp about land matters,
• challenge decisions that harm the territory,
• call for witnesses (ha’lidzap) when a leader oversteps,
• seek clarity from matriarchs (sigyidm hana̱’a̱),
• and request that external agreements be reviewed.

Land agreements require:

• matrilineal approval,
• House-level decision-making,
• and public acknowledgement in feast law.

A member may question any decision that threatens the land.

Rights to Protection

Wilp members have the right to be protected from:

• industrial harm,
• external trespass,
• environmental contamination,
• unsafe harvesting areas,
• blocked access routes.

The wilp must:

• defend its members,
• speak on their behalf,
• intervene when danger arises,
• and challenge harmful activity through feast or legal action.

Rights to Teach and Be Taught

Members have the right to:

• learn their harvesting places,
• know House stories (adaawx),
• understand territorial markers,
• participate in feast duties,
• be taught by elders and matriarchs.

This includes the right to pass knowledge forward:

• teaching children,
• leading youth on the land,
• maintaining camps,
• sharing food.

Teaching preserves sovereignty.

Rights to Food Security

Every member has the right to:

• access their House food systems,
• take part in grease-making and fish-drying,
• receive food during hardship,
• and contribute to feast distribution (gwiikxw).

Food security is a legal right under Ayaawx — not charity and not welfare.

Rights Against Harmful Industry

Members have the right to:

• oppose harmful industrial activity,
• demand environmental monitoring,
• receive full information,
• expect wilp leaders to act on contamination,
• challenge any agreement made without collective consent.

On unceded land, industry requires:

• wilp-level permission,
• matriarch approval,
• witnesses,
• clear terms of access.

Without these, industry is in violation of Ayaawx.

Limits and Responsibilities

These rights come with reciprocal obligations:

• show respect (łoomsk) to the land,
• avoid overharvesting,
• clean campsites,
• protect spawning grounds,
• notify the House of major activities,
• aid fellow members during emergencies,
• act with humility,
• uphold Ayaawx.

Rights and responsibilities cannot be separated.

Summary

Members of a Tsm̱syen wilp hold:

• inherent access rights,
• harvesting rights,
• decision-making rights,
• teaching and learning rights,
• food-security rights,
• and the right to protection from harm.

These rights are not dependent on:

• colonial recognition,
• permits,
• reserves,
• elections,
• or administrative structures.

They come from Ayaawx, from ancestors, and from the land itself.

Notes

INITIATION DRAFT — Will expand with wilp-specific examples, watershed rights, and teachings from matriarchs on access and harvesting protocols.