Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government will continue to stand up for aboriginal treaty rights, but will not fight with provinces such as Alberta and Saskatchewan that are promoting controversial sovereignty laws.
The prime minister heard from chiefs and delegates at the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) annual conference in Ottawa on Thursday, where he was immediately pressed on how to square his promises of reconciliation with his hands-on approach to Alberta’s Bill 1 and Saskatchewan’s Bill 88. , which the AFN and Treaty Chiefs believe infringes on their rights and should be repealed.
“We are extremely concerned about what the sovereignty act in Alberta and Bill 88 in Saskatchewan represent in terms of challenges to treaty rights that are fundamental in Canada and must be respected,” Trudeau said.
“As we have seen, properly elected provincial governments can move forward with laws that we as a federal government disagree with. And the solution to that is through the court system.”
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Treaty chiefs demand withdrawal of sovereignty bills by Alta, Sask. governments
Trudeau added that the federal government will continue to support court challenges to provincial laws that Ottawa believes are not in the national interest, as it did with lawsuits against Quebec’s secularism law Bill 21.
His response was different from the tone he struck earlier in the day, when he said the federal government was going to work as constructively as possible with Alberta.
On Wednesday, Treaty 6, 7 and the AFN presented an emergency resolution at the Special General Meetings to reject the Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act and the Saskatchewan First Act.
The Alberta bill passed along party lines late Wednesday night, giving the government the power to challenge federal laws deemed harmful to the province’s interests. The bill was amended to remove a provision that gave the cabinet the power to rewrite laws without legislative approval.
The opposition New Democrats described the bill as “a hot mess expression” and said the final bill as passed was still too ambiguous when defining federal damages.
The Saskatchewan First Act, which would give the province independent powers over its natural resources, passed second reading in late November and is currently before committee before returning to assembly for final passage.
Indigenous leaders in those provinces say First Nations were not consulted and that the bills would set a dangerous precedent for other governments across Canada to ignore treaty rights.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who has made the sovereignty act a centerpiece of her leadership campaign, has promised to arrange meetings with chiefs from Treaties 6, 7 and 8 who have expressed concerns.
Trudeau said his government is focused on working with provinces and territories on issues that matter most to First Nations, including housing, jobs, the fight against climate change and public safety.
“We will continue to work with you, but we will not engage in the kind of political battle that the Alberta government is looking for,” he said.
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The conference gave First Nations leaders the opportunity to confront Trudeau on a host of issues, including the ongoing path to justice for residential school survivors and the continuing impact of Canada’s colonial past.
Sylvia Koostachin-Metatawabin, a chief of the Attawapiskat First Nation who led a hunger strike after a state of emergency was declared over the reserve’s water supply in 2019, lamented the slow progress of government aid for struggling communities.
“Why should we come to these forums just to meet the basic needs of our people?” she asked. “I don’t want to come back to another forum and say it again.”
Trudeau acknowledged there are “far too many” communities still struggling, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, but pledged to continue working to end boil water advisories and help address other basic services. He emphasized the need to work with First Nations to fully meet their needs.
“I absolutely agree it’s taking too long, but we have to get it right and it’s taking years,” he said. “But we have to do it now because now is when the kids need it.”
Trudeau has also been asked once again to release all records held by the government and the Catholic Church related to the residential school system, which has dragged on for nearly a year since the government’s most recent promise to do so.
The prime minister responded that Ottawa is “trying” to release everything it can find, but noted privacy concerns for some of the documents while also “pressing” the Church and other groups for items they possess.
He did not provide a timeline for when those processes will resolve.
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