Alberta MPs issue Buffalo Declaration to call on Ottawa to address western alienation

Four Conservative MPs have published an online manifesto decrying what they call the unfair treatment of Alberta within Confederation and a lack of acknowledgement in Canada that the province is a “culturally distinct region.”

On Thursday afternoon, Calgary-Nose Hill MP Michelle Rempel Garner tweeted a link to the Buffalo Declaration, a name that pays homage to a former premier of the Northwest Territories’ vision for a province called Buffalo, which would encompass a large territory including an area that is now Alberta and Saskatchewan.

“Alberta is not, and never has been, an equal partner in Confederation,” her Tweet reads. “The people of my province are suffering and need real, structural change.

“A line in the sand must be drawn. Here it is.”

The proclamation is signed by Rempel Garner as well as three of her fellow caucus members: Banff-Airdrie MP Blake Richards, Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner MP Glen Motz and Peace River-Westlock MP Arnold Viersen.

“Canada is in crisis,” the document begins with.

“Our federation has reached a crossroads at which Canada must decide to move forward in equality and respect, or people in our region will look at independence from Confederation as the solution,” the 13-page document reads in part.

“We believe a Canada united in equity is in the best interests of its inhabitants. However, that is not the current state of Canadian federation.

“No longer can the fate of our people be determined by a class of politicians, bureaucrats, lobbyists, academics, journalists, or business leaders who have no real connection to, or understanding of, our land or our culture.”

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