Letters Jan. 27: Trump creating chaos; Burnside Gorge carrying burden – Times Colonist
January 27, 2026
Impact of title decision has been overstated
Re: “Failure to protect private property will lead to crisis,” commentary, Jan. 24.
This commentary overstates both the novelty and the legal effect of the Cowichan Tribes decision.
The application of Aboriginal title to lands held in fee simple does not flow from any recent political choice by the provincial government, nor from UNDRIP, but from decades of judicial interpretation of section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. That constitutional framework cannot be altered by provincial legislation.
