Walleye spearing on Portage Lake by K. Bay tribe

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I was coming home from looking for smelt last night and saw a bunch of vehicles parked at the Chassell Township park. I pulled in and asked what was going on. They told me that they were exercising treaty rights and fishing for walleye. Someone gave me a handout where it was explained that they were planning on taking 6% of the walleye population, or a little over 2000 fish. What can we sportsmen do about this?

[bigmike7272]

I don't know what we can do, they're doing it here on Huron Bay too.

[chasepalosaari]

Nothin we can do about it. I talked to a CO when i was smelting and he said you just gotta let them do it and thats that. He said its really not as bad for the fishery as most may think. He also said they took about 90% males when he checked with them.

[bigmike7272]

I want to know just how they figured 6% of the population. You can't count the fish that go in and out, to and from the big lake

[chasepalosaari]

Spoke to some indians last night as they were passing through the shallows as i was smelting, they said they've got about 1200 walleye so far and last night was most likely there last night because they are just about spawned out. They said there's about 36,000 walleye in portage. And as the CO told me 90% males, the indian said about 50/50 but slightly more males.

[maddog117]

I hate to say this but, They are Indians . And that is in the treaty . If you remember , they can do alot of different types of fishing too.

[huntermiwi]

It is a treaty - so John Q. Public don't complain/get mad at the tribe for spearing.  (don't be racist either.)

Don't get mad at the CO - he only enforces the law.

Don't get mad at the judge - they only interpreted the law (treaty agreement).

What to do?  Who to talk to???  Your elected officials.   

This is a treaty between the US government and the tribes that is long over due to be broken (abrogate all reserved treaty rights is the legal term as I understand it).  Sorry, we have made treaties in the past and broken them.  Treaties are agreements that serve a time and purpose.  It is time for this treaty to be ended. 

From a legal standpoint, we focus on equal rights in this country all the time - but how is it that a group within our country have special rights the rest of don't enjoy? 

The answer of course is the treaty.

I would argue that a requirement of US citizenship is you can only enjoy the same rights as all other US citizens.  I would argue that the equal rights protections trumps the treaty rights.

[bigmike7272]

They should have to fish like they fished back when the treaty was made. No boats and no metal spears. You can use a canoe and a wooden spear then you can go out and spear whatever you want but you gotta work for it.