Pursuing justice for Aboriginals

National Post ^ | 2007-06-11 | Jim Prentice (Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs)

[Clive]

In recent weeks, Canadians have had occasion to reflect on the historic relationship between Canada and its First Nations. Canada's aboriginal leadership has announced that June 29 will be a "National Day of Action." The recent report of Justice Sidney Linden, Commissioner of the Ipperwash Inquiry, has highlighted once again that remedying historic injustices is crucial to improving the relationship between aboriginal Canadians and their governments.

I wish to be very clear about the approach of the Government of Canada to dealing with the concerns of aboriginal Canadians across the country.

We are blessed to live in a country which holds dear the rights of free expression and association, and as a result recognizes the importance of the right to peaceful protest. To the extent that June 29 helps Canadians understand issues affecting aboriginals, I welcome it.

I have been troubled, however, by the suggestion of a small minority that a perfectly legitimate opportunity to voice concern could instead be used to engage in illegal acts with the aim of disrupting the lives of innocent Canadians. As I have said repeatedly, such actions would be both unfair and counter-productive. Illegal acts not only affect those who are blameless, they risk sapping the goodwill that exists among Canadians toward aboriginal programs and expenditures.

The Supreme Court of Canada has called the rule of law "a fundamental postulate of our constitutional structure." The rights we enjoy in our democratic society are balanced by a commitment to this principle. Those who act outside the law must bear the consequences of their actions.

Just as rule of law imposes an obligation upon each of us to govern our actions according to the law, it also imposes an obligation on those who govern to produce workable alternatives to civil disobedience and disorder. The resolution of historic injustices with respect to Canada's aboriginal peoples is a priority for this government.

That is why, in May of last year, our government concluded the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement to provide fair and final compensation to victims of the residential school system. It is why we have struck the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to establish new relationships embedded in mutual recognition and respect. It is why we will spend in excess of $1.9-billion to ensure that the sad legacy of residential schools is redressed and remembered.

Perhaps the most pressing injustice is the failure of the government of Canada over the last 60 years to provide a legitimate, fair and independent process to resolve First Nations' specific claims, which now number 793.

In 1947, a special joint committee of Parliament recommended the establishment of a claims commission "to appraise and settle in a just and equitable manner any claims or grievances arising" under Indian treaties. Sixty years later, First Nations have still not had access to an empowered, independent process for the resolution of claims.

That is why putting in place an independent process with adequate resources for the resolution of claims has been a priority for the government. We have been waiting for the recommendations of Justice Linden, and are now ready to proceed with reforms that will ensure faster resolution of claims and remove the government from the conflict of interest in which it finds itself as both defendant and judge under the current system.

I am confident that our reforms, which the government will announce very shortly, will go a long way to addressing the concerns and frustrations of First Nations. The process these reforms establish will be built upon respect for the rule of law. So, too, must be the conduct of all Canadians, aboriginal and non-aboriginal alike.

"Let's face it, we are all here to stay," Chief Justice Antonio Lamer observed frankly in the Delgamuukw case. But more than that, we are all here to stay in a stable, democratic Canada, which means finding workable solutions through negotiation and accommodation. Where we cannot agree, there is recourse to mediation, to the courts, and soon, to an improved claims process -- but never to violence or illegality. It is not the Canadian way.

- Jim Prentice is the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and Federal Interlocutor for Metis and Non-status Indians.

[Clive]

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[Red Badger]

"Let's face it, we are all here to stay,"

That's your first mistake...........

[Clive]

The author said, quoting Lamer CJ: "Let's face it, we are all here to stay," Red Badger said: "That's your first mistake..........." Here is the full final paragraph from the reasons of Lamer CJ:

Moreover, the Crown is under a moral, if not a legal, duty to enter into and conduct those negotiations in good faith. Ultimately, it is through negotiated settlements, with good faith and give and take on all sides, reinforced by the judgments of this Court, that we will achieve what I stated in Van der Peet, supra, at para. 31, to be a basic purpose of s. 35(1) -- “the reconciliation of the pre-existence of aboriginal societies with the sovereignty of the Crown”. Let us face it, we are all here to stay.

[-=SoylentSquirrel=-]

There was a war. They lost.

And they should thank their lucky stars for the outcome.

Only in the west does the natives' quality of life skyrocket after being defeated.

[Jedi Master Pikachu]

There weren't many de jure wars.

And the Amerindians do not 'owe' much to the European colonists beyond bring the Gospel (in that, Europeans owe Middle Easterners).

Amerindians should assimilate into mainstream Canadian (and here, American) society, where they can make their own contributions to making this culture less European and more American over time.

It's just that comments such as yours (comments, not you yourself) seem so full of it, and so immensely arrogant, that it is difficult to straight-out agree with, almost only because of the wording.

[Jedi Master Pikachu]

.....bringing.....