Alberta Justice Minister and Solicitor General Tyler Shandro and Siksika Nation Chief Ouray Crowfoot come to an agreement on a self-administered Siksika police service. (Photo taken July 18, 2022: Government of Alberta)

By Cathy Gibson

Siksika Nation to establish its own police service

Sep 23, 2022 | 3:26 PM

SIKSIKA NATION, AB – The Siksika Nation east of Calgary will soon have its own self-administered First Nation police force.

The Siksika Nation has reached agreements with the governments of Alberta and Canada that allow the nation to take over policing responsibilities from the RCMP.

The province of Alberta and the Siksika Nation signed a memorandum of understanding in July 2022, where they agreed to work toward establishing a self-administered police force.

Siksika Nation Chief Ouray Crowfoot worked alongside Alberta Minister of Justice and Solicitor General Tyler Shandro and federal Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino to broker the deal at all levels of government.

Chief Crowfoot says, “The recent tragic events in Saskatchewan have underscored the importance of First Nations policing. Every individual has the inherent right to safety and security, and establishing a Siksika-administered police force will help secure this right. This announcement is a huge step forward toward obtaining a Siksika-administered police force.”

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The idea of a self-administered police force in the Siksika Nation has been in the works for quite some time. In 2018, the Alberta government provided $30,000 to the Siksika Nation for a feasibility study, which led to a memorandum of understanding earlier this year. That agreement focused on developing the funding framework for a new police service for the Siksika Nation.

“Alberta’s government unequivocally supports self-administered First Nations policing,” says Justice Minister Shandro. “With nearly 8,000 residents and one of the largest geographic footprints of any First Nation in Canada, the Siksika Nation is ready and prepared to take this critical step and become the fourth self-administered First Nation police service in Alberta.”

The other self-administered First Nation police forces in Alberta include the Blood Tribe Police Service, the Lakeshore Regional Police Service, and the Tsuut’ina Nation Police Service.

Chief Crowfoot says this is just the beginning of the Siksika Nation’s self-administering law enforcement initiatives.

“Siksika has also established a bylaw prosecutor and we are developing a prosecutor office, which to my knowledge is the first of its kind in Canada,” says Crowfoot. “Siksika police and prosecutor services are foundational building blocks for a safe Siksika. It’s these kinds of partnerships that make me proud to represent Siksika and call myself an Albertan and a Canadian.”

In the coming months, Siksika Nation will work with the provincial and federal governments to negotiate a transition agreement and develop a clear timeline for the changeover from RCMP to self-administered policing in the Siksika Nation community.

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