The Grand Rapids Press has come out in favor of the inland treaty rights settlement. Hat tip to Indianz.com.

Here’s the text of yesterday’s editorial:

Michigan natural resources must be conscientiously respected and carefully managed. The same is true of the government’s promises to the first people of this region, American Indians. A hunting and fishing agreement among five tribes, Michigan and the United States would protect property rights, allow the state to manage fish and game and honor long-standing treaty agreements with native people.

Considering the volatile history of relationships between American Indians and the state when it comes to tribal hunting and fishing, that’s a major accomplishment. The consent decree deserves quick approval from U.S. District Judge Richard Enslen, who will have final say.

The agreement traces back to an 1836 treaty between the U.S. government and five tribes: the Grand Traverse Band; the Bay Mills Indian Community; the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians; the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians; and the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. In the treaty, the tribes ceded to the federal government land that became the western half of the Lower Peninsula and the eastern half of the Upper Peninsula.

The disputed part of the treaty gave the tribes the “right to hunt and the usual privileges of occupancy until the land is required for settlement.” The bitter controversy surrounding gill netting on the Great Lakes during the last few decades attests to how contentious such conflicts can become. That dispute involved hard feelings, vandalism, even occasional gunshots.

The decree recognizes that tribal rights under the treaty remain in tact, a fundamental point that had previously been in dispute. The agreement, which covers land and inland water in the treaty area, prohibits the tribes from hunting or

fishing on private property without permission. Hunting and fishing for commercial gain would be prohibited, too, except in very restricted instances.

The tribes would be allowed to write their own rules and issue licenses for hunting seasons that, in some cases, differ from the state’s. Nevertheless, the tribes and the Department of Natural Resources would share information and coordinate, to make consistent game management possible. Four of the tribes have ratified the settlement. The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa, by far the largest of the five, is conducting a referendum of its 23,870 members. A final decision is expected from Judge Enslen, likely later this month.

Judge Enslen should see the decree for what it is: a fair deal. American Indian tribes were in Michigan thousands of years before European settlers arrived. The 1836 treaty recognizes that history by granting special standing and privilege to the tribes. This consent decree recognizes that the best way to honor those obligations is to work together to manage the amazing resources we all share.