Nunavik’s ‘political dissidents’ remain opposed to JBNQA

Puvirnituq is Nunavik’s only community that has not signed the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement that some consider Canada’s first modern treaty. And the political group behind the dissidence lives on, remaining at the forefront of the village’s mindset, 50 years after the treaty.

Puvirnituq elder Harry Tulugak has been a consistent voice, advocating for the ideals promoted by Inuit Tungavingat Nunamini, the political group that refused to sign the JBNQA.

Former general manager Harry Tulugak stands in front of Puvirnituq’s Co-op store. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)

ITN’s dissidence stems from provision 2.1 in the treaty, which states that the Inuit of Quebec “cede, release, surrender” their Native claims, rights, and interests to the land.

“That is the meat of the JBNQA,” said Tulugak, in his Puvirnituq home, which sits near the shore with a panoramic view of the bay. “Anything else after [the provision] is just gibberish, niceties, and condescending language.”

Tulugak recalled that the work of the Northern Quebec Inuit Association, which signed the treaty, interfered with the work of the co-operative movement that was vying for self-governance in Nunavik nearly 10 years before.

The first co-ops were established in 1959. The Fédération des Coopératives du Nouveau-Québec, now named Ilagiisaq, was incorporated in 1967, with six active co-operatives in Kangiqsualujjuaq, Kuujjuaq, Kangirsuk, Puvirnituq, and two in Kuujjuaraapik.

During FCNQ’s first board meeting in Lévis, discussions were held about the lack of socio-economic development in the region, and the lower standard of living Inuit had compared to people living in southern Canada. It became their objective to fix that reality by uniting all communities in this movement.

The foundations were “of the people, by the people,” said Tulugak. Anyone could partake in the co-op movement; it was not a question of ethnicity. If you lived in town, you could become a member of the co-op and contribute to its future.

When NQIA came about, Tulugak said they interfered in the self-governance process that was going on at the time, quoting the former ITN leader, Taamusi Qumaq.

Nunavik shifted its focus from the co-operative movement and focused on NQIA. At that point, “it flatlined,” said Tulugak. The movement found momentum again in 1983

“The co-op movement and the JBNQA are intertwined stories, in a manner of how water and oil cannot mix,” he said, creating a political fracture within Nunavik.

In 2018, Makivvik officially acknowledged the existence of Inuit Tungavingat Nunamini in an attempt to quell the rift.

Tulugak is critical of what came of the JBNQA, saying that the systems in place for the public services, such as the Kativik Regional Government, Nunavik Police Service, or Kativik Ilisarniliriniq “don’t click” with Nunavik’s reality.

“Health services are in shambles, education is completely in shambles, policing is no good, municipal affairs don’t work, but at least they are treaty rights,” he said sarcastically.

“It is a complete and utter failure of a project that was supposed to improve the lives and the people of Nunavik,” he added.

He argued that if Nunavimmiut want to change the JBNQA for the better and attain self-determination, there is “absolutely no way” for them to open the treaty and rework it.

He uses the biblical story of Jacob and Esau to describe his argument. Esau came home famished from hunting in open country, and Jacob was cooking a stew at home.

Esau asked to have some of the stew, but Jacob said, “First, sell me your birthright.” Esau took the offer, and so, “Esau despised his birthright.”

“Esau considered his birthright inheritance worthless,” said Tulugak. “That is what NQIA has done,” adding that they had sold that birthright for $90 million. “[Nunavimmiut] have no more dominion over the resources.”

But the people of Puvirnituq have not signed the JBNQA. “We have retained our dominion, we have retained our birthright,” added Tulugak. “The government has a serious situation in its hands called ITN.”

Tulugak said that the treaty spells out exactly what NQIA sold out, but also spells out exactly what Puvirnituq and ITN kept.

He believes that since Puvirnituq has not legally surrendered its Native claims to the land, it still has a claim over it. “That is the way out,” he said. Not out of the JBNQA, because “it stands as it is, and those under it have agreed to its terms and conditions and must live by them,” but “we are not touched by it at all.”

Tulugak said that ITN’s future is ripe with goals. “We are going to be our own separate entity that has authority over our dominion, our resources, and the birthright inheritance from our forefathers.”

He wants this movement to be similar to the co-operative movement, with core Inuit values and principles, while knowing that their ancestral lands belong to them.

“ We are light at the end of the tunnel,” he said. “We’re very willing to provide that platform for Nunavik to establish a form of governance over our resources and over our ancestral lands.”

This article is part of Nunatsiaq News’ commemoration of the 50^th anniversary of the signing of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement in 1975.

This project has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada.