Unceded Territory
![British Columbian Siwashes. Lilloett, [Lillooett] B.C., unceded territory to this day.](https://education.afn.ca/afntoolkit/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/book_4_1_1_siwashes-1024x768.jpg)
British Columbian Siwashes. Lilloett, [Lillooett] B.C., unceded territory to this day.
British Columbian Siwashes. Lilloett, [Lillooett] B.C., unceded territory to this day.
![British Columbian Siwashes. Lilloett, [Lillooett] B.C., unceded territory to this day.](https://education.afn.ca/afntoolkit/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/book_4_1_1_siwashes.jpg)
The last of the historical treaties were signed in 1923. Government policy moved increasingly towards enfranchisement and laws that would prohibit First Nations sovereignty, including making it a criminal offence for a First Nation to hire a lawyer to pursue land claims settlements.
Consequently, treaties were never concluded with First Nations in some parts of Canada, including most of British Columbia. First Nations without treaties assert their rights to their lands as the land was not ceded to the government.
