Council of the Haida Nation

The Mandate is an order for the Council of the Haida Nation. The Council follows the Mandate to the best of their abilities. The Mandate acknowledges the following: • The Council shall strive for full independence, sovereignty and self-sufficiency of the Haida Nation. • The Council must care for the lands and waters of the Nation area. • The Council must preserve the language and culture of the Haida people. • The Council must aim for independence of the Haida Nation. • The Council must serve the best interests of the Nation in ways that align with the Constitution. • The Council must encourage co-existence with other Nations, yet maintain the policies and interests of the Haida Nation. • The Council must aim to improve the rights of all Indigenous peoples. • The Council must create land policies which account for the resources available within the land. • The Council must regulate citizen access to land resources. • The Council must designate process for land use which account for the resources available within Haida Gwaii. • The Council must deal with any external affairs within the Haida Nation. • The Council must be the defence for the Haida Nation. • The Council must update Haida citizens quarterly at formal meetings. This excludes any necessarily confidential information. • The Vice President must advertise for the Council quarterly meetings at least seven days in advance to the meeting date. • The Council must record meetings. • The Council have the official publication as "Haida Laas". == Languages ==

The constitution acknowledges the Haida language (X̱aad Kil and X̱aayda Kil) and English as the official languages of the Haida Nation. == Governance ==

The House of Assembly is a legal form of Haida National government. This group has the right to pass laws which align with the Constitution of the Haida Nation. The House of Assembly meets yearly with the Council of the Haida Nation. These meetings occur in October during the third week of the month. Each yearly meeting alternates between G̱aaw (Old Masset) and Hlg̱aagilda (Skidegate). In addition to the House of Assembly meetings, the Council of the Haida Nation meet quarterly with Haida citizens. The Vice President calls the House of Assembly meeting twenty days before the meeting date. They may also call other meeting dates if required, again, at least twenty days before the scheduled date. All motions placed through the House of Assembly can only be approved by a vote of three-quarter approval or more. == Secretariat ==

The Council of the Haida Nation sustains a Secretariat. The duties of the Secretariat are as follows: the Secretariat answers to both the House of Assembly and the Council of the Haida Nation, the Secretariat acts as Treasurer and will manage the staff of the Council of the Haida Nation, and the Secretariat has multiple rights to the credit of the Council of the Haida Nation. == Subsidiary bodies (Village Councils) ==

The Village Councils are concerned with the well-being of the communities and Band members. The Village Councils may initiate laws. Skidegate Band Council Chief Councillor: Billy Yovanovich Old Masset Village Council Chief Councillor: Donald (Duffy) Edgars Councillors: Brodie Swanson (Deputy), Lisa White, Cecil Brown, Ashley Jacobson, Robert Brown, Brodie Swanson, Benjamin Edgars == Citizenship ==

The Haida citizenship act was approved on 31 May 2017. When accepted as a Haida Nation citizen, one receives both a Card and a Certificate. The card is used for identification purposes, and the certificate is the official citizenship document. The Constitution of the Haida Nation states that the title of Haida Gwaii Citizen may be given to an individual who does not have Haida ancestry. This title does not include receiving Haida indigenous rights or Haida heritage claims. == References ==