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Results: 1 - 15 of 22
View Gordon O'Connor Profile
CPC (ON)
Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I move:
That, notwithstanding any Standing or Special Order or usual practice of the House, the deferred recorded division on Motion M-432, standing in the name of the Member for Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte, scheduled to take place today, immediately before the time provided for Private Member's Business, be deferred anew until today, at the expiry of the time provided for Oral Questions, immediately after the vote on the second reading stage of Bill C-49, Canadian Museum of History Act.
View Andrew Scheer Profile
CPC (SK)
View Andrew Scheer Profile
2013-05-29 15:05 [p.17244]
Does the hon. Chief Government Whip have the unanimous consent of the House to propose the motion?
Some hon. members: Agreed.
The Speaker: The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?
Some hon. members: Agreed.
View Andrew Scheer Profile
CPC (SK)
View Andrew Scheer Profile
2013-05-29 15:49 [p.17251]
I declare the motion defeated.
I wish to inform the House that because of the deferred recorded divisions, government orders will be extended by 43 minutes.
I understand there has been an agreement to allow the hon. member for Bourassa to say a few words.
View Jonathan Genest-Jourdain Profile
NDP (QC)
View Jonathan Genest-Jourdain Profile
2013-05-22 18:20 [p.16818]
Mr. Speaker, the substance of the motion before us in the House allows me to focus on concepts related to belonging to a clan as a bastion of aboriginal identity.
My speech today in this House will be consistent with what I said yesterday when I was teaching in Wendake. I am occasionally called upon to travel in order to meet with communities that are sometimes rather isolated. Although in this case Wendake is peri-urban, I was asked to go there.
The concepts I will be going over today will be consistent with what I was teaching yesterday, about the bastions of aboriginal identity and the economic growth that certain communities in the country have been enjoying. This will come into play and I will include it all in my argument.
For many generations, Indian identity had a certain negative connotation. It was not that being Indian was intrinsically bad, but members of Canada's aboriginal communities were perceived as second-class citizens for many generations, if not hundreds of years. It was only recently that economics entered into the Indian identity and way of life. When I say economics, I am referring to the results of land claims and the agreements associated with the impact and benefits of natural resource development.
In 2013, this has become a full-fledged industry. These matters are often handed over to law firms that can afford to have just one client because this generates substantial revenues. Sometimes these law firms charge both a percentage and a flat rate. This can be quite lucrative. That is why there has been such enthusiasm, such a keen interest by a segment of the Canadian public in reconnecting with its aboriginal roots in 2013. My speech here today will be from that perspective.
This was brought to my attention when I was preparing my speech, not that I want to jump to any negative conclusions. I was just asked about my position on this.
Development and opportunities related to major economic and regional issues often fuel an upsurge in assertive measures taken by citizens in relation to the specific status that members of first nations in Canada enjoy.
Economic growth and economic issues are creating somewhat of a stir in my home community. Over the past few years, a generation of Indians has appeared out of nowhere in my riding. If we take this new generation or group that has appeared in my riding and compare it with our Ekuanitshit or Unamen Shipu neighbours, it is clear that there is a fairly weak link with Mongolia, if I may say so.
In short, this new band appeared in my riding in a very specific location that was targeted for hydro development, major work sites and natural resource extraction initiatives. Once again, I am not trying to draw negative inferences, but people can make the necessary connections and figure it out for themselves.
It is conceivable that greedy people stand ready to pounce in regions where a socio-economic boom has been observed. The specific measures set out in land claims, the compensation associated with natural resource extraction and the encroachment on a band's traditional lands are incentive enough for people to claim that they have an aboriginal heritage, which is why bands need to set out principles that define and control who can be a band member.
Now, with regard to the issue at hand, the information that has been brought to my attention indicates that there are 100,000 new applicants for the band in question in today's motion.
Since there is a rather limited number of first nations members across the country, we have reason to wonder how likely it would be to suddenly have 100,000 new applicants or 100,000 people applying—or at least hoping—to be on the Indian Register.
That is why it is up to the band to define and establish criteria for membership and for determining whether a person is eligible to be a member of the band. That already happens, and customary law most often applies. In my home community and other communities, customary law is what ultimately determines who is a member.
Some decisions have been brought to my attention when the community's hands were tied and an individual's name had to be added to the list. These issues are generally dealt with within the clan, and that is unheard of. Based on my own perception and my own analysis, 100,000 new applicants is a significant number. That is why things are stalled and the Canadian government is being called on to take a stand and process each of these files fairly.
That is what this motion says. Each application must be examined on a case-by-case basis, and the supporting documentation must be taken into consideration. However, we could very well end up with a backlog in this type of situation, especially with the high number of applicants.
We agree that all applications must be treated the same way. This means that the validity of documents will be called into question and that decisions regarding enrolment will be challenged.
In light of the limited number of people in the region in question, the figure of 100,000 applicants will have to be reviewed in light of aboriginal identity, to avoid applications for purely monetary reasons. Aboriginal people in Canada share some strong values. There must be no detracting from “Indianness” or Indian identity and serious identity issues for purely political or economic reasons.
I submit this respectfully.
View Carolyn Bennett Profile
Lib. (ON)
View Carolyn Bennett Profile
2013-05-22 18:28 [p.16819]
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to speak this evening in favour of my colleague's motion, which seeks to clarify the ongoing confusion regarding the registration process for members of the recently created Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band in Newfoundland.
We must remember that these criteria are the culmination of a process that has extended back, through various phases, for decades. The most recent phase began in 2002, when the previous Liberal government initiated renewed, good faith negotiations with the Federation of Newfoundland Indians to redress the historic exclusion of status for Newfoundland's Mi'kmaq people.
The talks focused on the recognition of the Mi'kmaq people in Newfoundland under the Indian Act. After constructive discussions, an agreement in principle was signed in 2007.
We cannot lose sight of what these negotiations were attempting to redress. Generations of prejudice and marginalization induced many to hide their indigenous heritage, and as a result, whole family histories have been buried.
Exclusion from status under the Indian Act not only denied Newfoundland's Mi'kmaq people access to supports available to other first nations but robbed them of recognition of their identity and cultural heritage.
The ongoing process is an attempt to reverse centuries of damage, but the current government's mismanagement has left many Qalipu feeling victimized yet again.
The 2007 agreement in principle proposed specific terms for the recognition of membership in, and operation of, the soon to be created Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band. Canada ratified the agreement in principle in 2008 and made a commitment to the Qalipu that the federal government would honour the terms of that agreement. However, it has been brought to the attention of our caucus that a number of applicants are concerned that despite the fact that their membership application was submitted within the prescribed time period, their application has not yet been reviewed under the processes established within the 2008 agreement.
Given that the 2008 agreement expired on March 21, 2013, there are serious concerns about membership applications that may be excluded from the process, especially as the number of applications is higher than expected.
The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development added to the concern of many applicants when he spoke in this House, on March 28, and referred to the application numbers as “questionable”.
The criteria for enrolment were arrived at through consultation and negotiation. The government must work in co-operation with, not dictate to, the Qalipu to sort out any legitimate registration issues.
However, let me be absolutely clear. The Liberals believe that the federal government must ensure that legitimate applicants are not excluded from the membership process. If the process is flawed, if the criteria are problematic, then the fault lies with the Conservative government, not the applicants, under the current process. It was the current government that negotiated the criteria for enrolment, and now, at the end of the process, has suggested that it wants to change the rules. It is not the fault of the applicants that the number of membership applications exceeded expectations.
The parliamentary secretary also spoke in this House about ensuring “the integrity of the enrolment process”, but this is an agreement the government signed, in good faith, only five years ago.
Indeed, the Prime Minister himself signed the agreement on behalf of the Government of Canada and publicly announced the creation of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation in November 2007.
When we talk about the integrity of the enrolment process, we also have to consider the honour of the Crown, which requires the government to keep its word. How will the integrity of the process be upheld for the remaining unprocessed applicants who applied under the same criteria as the more than 20,000 applicants who have already received status under the existing criteria? How could it be fair to process the rest under different criteria, or worse, to change the rules for individuals who have already been accepted?
Instead of calling applications made in good faith into question, perhaps the government should work with the Qalipu to ensure that all applications are processed according to criteria already agreed to by the federal government.
The Conservative government must honour its commitment to complete the enrolment and registration of all eligible members of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation by extending the process under the agreement.
Chief Brendan Sheppard has asked the federal government for an extension of the 2008 agreement to ensure that the remaining applications are assessed and processed. The motion being debated today calls upon the government to do just that and to extend the 2008 agreement until all applicants who applied on or before November 30, 2012, are processed.
In addition to the extension of that agreement, basic procedural fairness dictates that the current rules of eligibility for membership be followed by all government decision-makers in any continuation of the enrolment process.
I note that this year marks the 250th anniversary of the Royal Proclamation. In that context, it is important to honour the original foundation of that relationship based upon partnership, respect and co-operation for mutual benefit. If, in the 21st century, first nations cannot take the Crown at its word, we will never achieve the reconciliation and trust that is so crucial to moving forward toward a more prosperous common future.
I urge all members of this House to support the motion, which would bring clarity to the government's commitment that no eligible members of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation Band will be excluded from this important recognition of their proud heritage.
View Ryan Cleary Profile
NDP (NL)
Mr. Speaker, when it comes to our Indian ancestry, the people of Newfoundland, and Newfoundland, in particular, not so much Labrador, have not been overly proud. We are not proud because the aboriginal people of the island of Newfoundland, the Beothuk, have been officially extinct for nearly two centuries. Known as the lost people of Newfoundland, the Beothuk were ravaged by massacres, epidemics and territorial losses, until, by the early 19th century, the group is said to have been completely wiped out.
Some first nations would dispute the claim that the Beothuk are extinct. There is a belief in Mi'kmaq oral history that as white incomers tightened their control of Newfoundland, the Beothuk fled to the mainland and integrated with neighbouring groups. In other words, among us all there is Beothuk blood somewhere in our genes through the marriages that took place. That is the theory and I think it holds weight. One thing is absolutely certain, beyond the shadow of a doubt, the Mi'kmaq bloodline runs through the veins of generations of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, tens of thousands of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, and that is what this motion is about.
In the fall of 2011, in what a government release deemed an historic occasion, the Department of Aboriginal Affairs granted official Indian status to the Newfoundland Mi'kmaq. The Newfoundland Mi'kmaq had been denied any claim to aboriginal title ever since 1949 when Newfoundland joined Canada. Why is that? Joey Smallwood, who brought us kicking and screaming into Confederation, did not bother to mention the Indian Act and the Terms of Union. Talk about a monumental oversight. There is no mention of aboriginal peoples within the Terms of Union that brought Newfoundland and Labrador, or Newfoundland as it was called then, into Confederation.
Aboriginal Affairs granted official Indian status to the Newfoundland Mi'kmaq finally. They finally got it. It was originally anticipated that fewer than 10,000 people would step forward and apply for aboriginal status. That number has since ballooned to 10 times that. More than 100,000 people have applied. Some of those 100,000 people live in Newfoundland, more live on mainland Canada, and more still live all around the world. The huge number, 100,000, has created a problem in terms of processing applications. There are 70,000 applications that have yet to be processed.
The deadline for applying to become a member of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation Band was November 30, 2012. The agreement for the recognition of membership in the Qalipu First Nation Band expired this past March 21. This motion calls on the Conservative government to extend that agreement for the recognition process of the Qalipu First Nation Band until all applications are processed and to ensure that the rules of eligibility for membership are followed by all government decision makers in any continuation of the enrolment process.
Further, all previous interpretations, precedents and rulings on matters affecting enrolment that were not specifically addressed within the agreement for the recognition of the Qalipu First Nation Band but were established through the records of decisions made by the enrolment committee and the appeals process should be made known to all participants in all future enrolment processes. In other words, make the process fair and above board so everyone knows the rules of the game. Spell them out, do not change eligibility requirements because more people applied than expected. Do not do that. That is not the right thing to do. All applications received before the original deadline should be processed in a fair and timely manner. That is not the case.
The total number of enrolment clerks hired and trained by the Government of Canada, by the Conservative government, to help with applications is three. There were more than 100,000 applications and we have three enrolment clerks.
Why did so many more Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in the province, in the country and around the world apply for status than had been anticipated? Why did the numbers go through the roof?
For generations, aboriginal roots were often hidden in Newfoundland and Labrador by those who preferred to pass as non-aboriginals because of discrimination. People now, finally, are coming forward. They are admitting and embracing their aboriginal heritage and history. Sheilagh O'Leary, a councillor with the city of St. John's who has also applied for status, said, “It's about reclaiming identity and understanding where you came from.” In many ways, people embracing their aboriginal heritage should be a cause of celebration. Instead, the Conservative government is treating it as a cause of concern. The Conservatives are telling them that the rules may now change because too many people are applying.
In the lead-up to the 2006 Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, federal officials estimated that a maximum of 12,000 former students would step forward. By last July, the secretariat handling the agreement had processed more than 30,000 claimants, driving up costs by more than $2 billion.
What does that tell us? It goes to show that the Conservative government has a history of underestimating aboriginal populations and ancestry in this country. Once again we see that the Conservative government has not provided the necessary resources to deal with a greater than expected number of applicants. The right thing to do is to provide the necessary resources to finish the job and make sure the job is done right.
Although this application opportunity is no longer available for people, the application process for that membership was lengthy. It certainly was not easy. It involved geological research and compiling all necessary documentation.
However, there is still an opportunity for people to apply for membership through Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, but that is an even lengthier process that can take years.
It is unfair to force these applicants to wait that long when the delay in processing the applications was the fault of the Conservative government that was due, again, to a lack of resources. People whose applications are in limbo are concerned that the government never intended to create a landless band with nearly 100,000 members. They are concerned that the government is going to alter the terms of the agreement and the enrolment process to deny the applicants or apply more stringent means of determining whether they are eligible for membership.
The government's decision to hire a special representative to review the enrolment process and investigate possible measures to address the situation while maintaining the integrity of the process and the spirit of the goals of the agreement only adds to people's concerns. Both the enrolment committee and the people who judge the appeals set up the recognition order that created the Qalipu, and they have had to judge a number of membership applications. During that time, a number of precedents and interpretations were made of documents.
To sum up, this motion calls upon the government to ensure that all of those previous precedents during any extension of the registration process be applied, be above board and be made public so that everybody knows the rules of the game.
New Democrats agree that all applicants should be treated the same way. Let us hope that happens.
View Geoff Regan Profile
Lib. (NS)
View Geoff Regan Profile
2013-05-22 18:45 [p.16821]
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise and participate in the discussion brought forward by my friend, the hon. member for Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte concerning what appears to be the very arbitrary and secretive way in which the Conservative government is attempting to alter a formal agreement signed by the Government of Canada and a first nation.
Motion No. 432 addresses concerns about the deregistration of thousands of current members of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band who have already been recognized by The Indian Registrar as status Indians just a few short years ago.
This motion is also about thousands of applicants throughout Canada who have applied in good faith under the existing rules that were established after a lengthy negotiation between the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and the Government of Canada. Under these rules, people throughout Newfoundland and Canada who maintained a connection to the many Mi’kmaq communities of the island were deemed eligible for membership in a newly created first nation band.
These are not rules that were written in haste or on the back of an envelope, as our colleagues on the other side sometimes like to say. In 2007, the Prime Minister personally approved the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation ratification agreement and personally endorsed the criteria for membership in the band when he signed the agreement.
Simply put, the motion brought forth by my colleague from Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte asked that the Prime Minister of Canada fulfill the promise he made to thousands of members of this first nation who have already been accepted and to thousands of applicants to the band who are waiting for their applications to be processed.
Unfortunately, it appears that the Government of Canada has signalled it will break its promise. It has announced that it intends to change the rules midway through the process. This is not the first time we have seen the government break a promise. It is not the first time that we have seen the Conservative government betray Atlantic Canadians or our first nations. We all know that the Prime Minister broke his promise to honour the Atlantic accord. Of course it cost Bill Casey his caucus membership over there.
Ironically, the Prime Minister carried out his betrayal after quoting a Gaelic proverb that states, “there is no greater fraud than a promise not kept”. That seems to be applicable here. I suspect he may have learned that from Senator Duffy, but I digress.
Earlier this year, we witnessed the deep distrust the first nations have with the government. Idle No More was a sign of the growing frustration among aboriginal communities, leaders and indeed all Canadians over the litany of broken promises and the complete lack of progress from the government on issues affecting indigenous people in Canada. The government's refusal to consult first nations on matters that may impact their inherent rights or treaty rights gave rise to the Idle No More protest movement.
The Liberal Party of Canada has stood against the cynical actions of the government in Parliament and worked to highlight its short-sighted approach for all Canadians, just like we are standing here today.
In relation to this motion and what happened here, in a nutshell the government is suggesting that the number of members and applicants who presented themselves for recognition is too many and that this situation could not have been foreseen. Standing today at 24,000 members and at 75,000 applicants, the government is suggesting that this is far beyond the intended 8,000 to 12,000 members that the Department of Aboriginal and Northern Affairs originally projected when the Prime Minister ratified this agreement in 2007.
The record is clear. In 2009, the number of members in the band stood at 10,000 and the number of applicants waiting to be processed stood at 20,000, with three years left in the enrolment process. Therefore, if the expectation was that only 8,000 to 12,000 members would be assumed to be eligible for membership in the band, that forecast was proven totally inaccurate almost four years ago. Any belief that those numbers would not grow the way they have is just not credible. What would be the basis for it in view of these facts?
Furthermore, the government has raised no concern in the four years that the agreement has been in effect. Meanwhile, the number of applications and the number of members enrolled have been steadily increasing. Now, after four years of executing the agreement, the government is trying to create a story that there is a problem with the high numbers and that the problem is not its doing, that it is the doing of the applicants. What a silly thing to say. The government is suggesting that people who are applying for membership are doing so without proper entitlement to do so. That is what the process is all about.
It is typical of the government to point fingers. What did the Prime Minister do, even last week, when he had the problems with Senator Duffy? He pointed the finger at his own office. For some reason, he never points it at himself, which is most unfortunate. The Conservatives ought to look at themselves in this case. They were part of the design of the rules. The Prime Minister signed off on these rules that he now does not like.
The agreement spelled out the enrolment criteria for the band in plain language. The agreement stated that to become a member an applicant would have to demonstrate that they or one of their ancestors was of Canadian aboriginal descent. The applicant would not have to show that they were necessarily of Newfoundland Mi'kmaq descent. They would simply have to show that they were of any aboriginal heritage from anywhere in Canada and that would be sufficient.
That is what the Prime Minister signed off on. Those are the rules he agreed to. Now he wants to change the rules. He effectively wants to change horses in midstream. Furthermore, as specifically stated in the agreement, “no minimum blood quantum” or fraction of Indian ancestry was relevant for membership in this band either.
By pointing out these two rules for membership, it might make it easier for people to understand why such a relatively high number of applicants have come forward. It is not surprising. Those are the rules that were set up after the negotiations and these are the rules that the Prime Minister signed onto. If anyone is responsible for the rules that he now does not like, he should look in the mirror. Pointing out that this is exactly what the federal government negotiated, and obviously intended in forming the agreement, is also relevant.
The next criteria for enrolment was that the applicant or their aboriginal ancestor would have to be either (a) a resident of, or (b) connected to the Newfoundland Mi'kmaq community, as listed within the agreement.
The rules were clearly spelled out in the agreement. They were clearly spelled out for people who are no longer a resident of such a community in Newfoundland. They would have to demonstrate an ongoing connection to that community by way of regular telephone calls or visits to such a community. The requirement is spelled out in plain language within both the agreement and the application guides produced by the federal government and Newfoundland authorities for the applicants.
If I have time, I would like to highlight a couple of key elements in what the government signed as part of the agreement with the Mi'kmaq.
Part 13 of annex A specifically states, “The applicant must provide evidence that he is of Canadian Indian ancestry. There is no minimum blood quantum”. The Prime Minister signed onto that. To reinforce that, both the government and the first nation were fully aware of the criteria that they agreed to. The documents produced to assist applicants in preparing their applications, as well as the information found on the government website, specifically stated that residency was not a requirement for enrolment as long as a connection to a Mi'kmaq community can be established, and a connection is described as “visits or communication”.
The government has only itself to blame if it does not like these rules. It ought not to be breaking its promise. It ought to be in this case, unlike so many others, keeping its word to these people, following the process, letting people apply if they wish, and letting the process decide whether or not they qualify under the rules that the Prime Minister signed on to.
View Gerry Byrne Profile
Lib. (NL)
Mr. Speaker, it is disappointing, to say the least, that an opportunity was held here tonight for all members of this House to speak, to express their points of view and to establish a discussion about the Conservatives' concerns about the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation agreement that they signed.
The House of Commons is the place where these issues can get resolved, if there is a discussion. Not one member of the government took the opportunity tonight to present an argument to the people of Canada, and especially to the applicants and members of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation. The Conservatives had that opportunity, but they declined. Secrecy seems to be the issue of the day for the current government. They had an opportunity to express, in very clear language, what exactly they were concerned about. Let us be clear. It is the Conservatives who are saying they are concerned about something. However, will they express that on the floor of the House of Commons, the forum for the people's business? No. They are holding these discussions exclusively in secret. Is that the right way to do business? I will let them answer that.
Let us talk about what they will not talk about. Let us talk about their agreement, the agreement that was negotiated in good faith, not in the course of a day, a week, or a month, not even in the course of a year, but over the course of several years. It was signed and sanctioned by the Prime Minister of Canada, and every word of that agreement was taken as if it were his very own. That agreement held the very substance of the enrolment criteria which the Conservatives now say they have a problem with. However, do they say they have the problem? No. They will never admit that the agreement is what they are now taking issue with, the agreement that the Prime Minister of Canada personally sanctioned. No. The fault, according to the Conservatives, is with those darn applicants, those people who are coming forward now who should never be coming forward and applying the rules to them that they negotiated in good faith.
The Conservatives will not talk about the agreement. In order to talk about it, they would have to express why they find fault in their own agreement and promises. If they talked about the agreement, they would have to admit that they no longer support their own agreement, the one they negotiated with the Federation of Newfoundland Indians, the agreement that was ratified through a referendum by every member of the Federation of Newfoundland Indians after a five-month referendum campaign. It was the agreement that was ratified by the cabinet and then ratified in a signing ceremony.
Then, over a four-year period, an enrolment committee, comprised of a majority of members of the federal government's Department of Aboriginal Affairs, and appointed by that department and by the Federation of Newfoundland Indians, then had the opportunity to say who was in and who was out. It was the members of that enrolment committee who actually said that 24,000 individuals would now become members. That enrolment committee had an opportunity to use various means and mechanisms to say there was a problem. Did the members of that committee ever do that? No. In fact, not only did the enrolment committee keep processing applications for the four years that it sat, it actually accelerated the enrolment process, in response to a motion to slow it down by one of the Mi’kmaq elders.
What they are now suggesting, which is really charming, is not to look at the agreement but to look at the census records from 2006. In 2006, only 24,000 Newfoundland and Labradorians self-declared that they were of aboriginal ancestry. That apparently is clear evidence that it would be totally ridiculous that anyone should suggest having anything more than 24,000 members. Well, guess what? That would be the same census that the same Conservative government said was an outrageous invasion of the rights of personal privacy and that no Canadian citizen should ever be forced to fill out. That is the long form census. They are using the long form census, the one they abolished in 2011, as the entire basis of argument to shut down the agreement that the Prime Minister of Canada personally signed off on.
If not even bothering to stand up in the House of Commons is a matter of principle, the members of that party and government should stay sitting down and abide by their agreement.
View Joe Comartin Profile
NDP (ON)
View Joe Comartin Profile
2013-05-22 19:00 [p.16823]
The time provided for debate has now expired.
The question is on the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?
Some hon. members: Agreed.
Some hon. members: No.
The Deputy Speaker: All those in favour of the motion will please say yea.
Some hon. members: Yea.
The Deputy Speaker: All those opposed will please say nay.
Some hon. members: Nay.
The Deputy Speaker: In my opinion the nays have it.
And five or more members having risen:
Pursuant to Standing Order 93, a recorded division stands deferred until Wednesday, May 29, 2013, immediately before the time provided for private members' business.
View Gerry Byrne Profile
Lib. (NL)
moved:
That, in the opinion of this House, in relation to the enrollment and registration process for the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band, the government should commit: (a) to completing the enrollment and registration process for all applicants who applied on or before November 30, 2012 by agreeing to extend the 2007 Agreement for the Recognition of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation Band beyond March 21, 2013 until all such applications are processed; (b) to ensuring that the rules of eligibility for membership are followed by all government decision makers in any continuation of the enrollment process; (c) that all previous interpretations, precedents and rulings on matters affecting enrollment that were not specifically addressed within the 2007 Agreement but were established instead through the records of decisions made by the Enrollment Committee and the Appeals Master be made known to all participants in any future enrollment process and that the decision makers in any future enrollment process be instructed to guide their decisions in a manner consistent with such previous interpretations, precedents and rulings; (d) to the same standard of evidence as well as the same thresholds for the quantity and quality of information that was previously deemed acceptable by the Enrollment Committee, for the remaining 75,000 unprocessed applications to the Band; (e) that an independent Appeals Master will continue to be employed in any future enrollment process for the assessment of the remaining 75,000 applicants and that this person will be drawn from outside of government, from outside of the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and from outside of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band and that this Appeal Master will be vested with the same powers and authority and be drawn from the same legal and administrative background as the previous Appeals Master to ensure consistency with the rules and standards established under the previous enrollment process; (f) to maintaining all existing memberships, except in cases where fraud can be established that is material to the application; and (g) to ensuring that no eligible applicant who submitted an application in good faith prior to the November 30, 2012 deadline is disenfranchised from enrollment.
He said: Mr. Speaker, thank you for giving leave to present my motion, Motion No. 432.
In 2007 the Prime Minister of Canada came to a small community on Newfoundland's west coast to personally announce that negotiations between the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and the Government of Canada had concluded in a workable arrangement that, once formally ratified by both parties, would see the formation and the recognition of a new first nation band and the recognition of all Newfoundland Mi'kmaq as Indians under Canadian law. On September 26, 2007, the Prime Minister said:
For more than half a century, the Mi'kmaq people of Newfoundland were among the 'Forgotten People,' as the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples calls its members...They never stopped fighting for recognition and now, at last, that title can be cast aside.
It was on that day that the Prime Minister of Canada personally authorized the agreement in principle to establish a modern day recognition of a very ancient people and he endorsed its every word as his own.
Unfortunately, time appears to have worn down, if not exhausted, the Prime Minister's enthusiasm toward his earlier promise and today, despite an assumption that all Mi'kmaq would be treated fairly and equally under the terms of an agreement that had the personal backing of a Prime Minister, tens of thousands of Mi'kmaq people have been left feeling abandoned and frustrated. They are concerned.
My motion today is not only about what was originally promised in the Prime Minister's agreement; it is about the work yet undone. It is about the task of completing the enrolment process of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band and for all of its deserving members, as promised. My motion is also about ensuring that those who have already been established as members of the Qalipu band do not lose that recognition from any arbitrary or unjust decision by their respective leaders.
My motion is based on, in part, the very words of the Chief of the Qalipu First Nation who has formally asked the Government of Canada to allow the enrolment process to continue beyond the agreement's scheduled expiry date of March 21, and that it continue under the same rules and practices established within the original agreement and through the same practices established within the first four years of its implementation.
The government contends that the issue for it is the unforeseen numbers of members and applicants who have presented themselves for recognition. The government contends that this issue was only recently identified and could only now be dealt with at a time coinciding with the expiry of the agreement.
For the record, in 2009, almost four years ago, the number of members to the band stood at 10,000 and the number of applicants awaiting processing stood at 20,000. If the expectation was ever that only 10,000 to 12,000 members would be targeted as being eligible for the band, that notion and that forecast was proven totally inaccurate almost four years ago.
Looking back at 2009, with several years still remaining in the intake and registration process, any belief that the numbers would not grow the way they have is totally disingenuous on the part of anyone who would suggest it. This is the focus of my argument.
Today, the band stands with an estimated membership of 24,000 Mi'kmaq. As of March 21, the number of Mi'kmaq whose applications for enrolment have been left unprocessed stands at roughly 75,000, and 75,000 non-status Mi'kmaq, who applied in good faith and within the time frame established within the agreement for recognition under the Indian Act, were left in limbo.
Concern erupted only after the government made a statement to the media on November 4, 2012, that it was, just now, identifying problems with either the membership criteria or the enrolment process and that one or both may be subject to being altered after the fact.
There were 24,000 existing members left not knowing whether they would retain their status should any change occur within the rules and prospective members would also have to consider their loss. So far, 75,000 applications have been left unprocessed. The situation is very serious and answers have not been provided by the government.
Instead of any discussions or consultations with the applicants, the government has woven a story to the public that the number of members and applicants to the band is far more than what should have been expected or considered to be reasonable. The suggestion is that the problem is not really of the government's doing, it is the doing of the applicants who are applying for membership without the proper entitlement to do so.
Nothing could be further from the truth, and I will deconstruct the government's argument.
Allow me to establish the baseline for a discussion on this issue by informing the House of the agreement and its implementation with a particular view to the enrolment criteria.
To try to find an out of court resolution to a motion filed in 1989 in the Federal Court of Canada by a representative group of Newfoundland Mi'kmaq seeking to have their rights under section 91 of the Constitution Act recognized under law, the federal cabinet took a decision in 2002 to enter into a discussion with the Federation of Newfoundland Indians to determine if there was a basis for a negotiated recognition of the Mi'kmaq of Newfoundland. For decades before that, the federal government had engaged in what can only be described as a totally incoherent, inconsistent and politically directed handling of the settlement issue, which in retrospect serves to define the true meaning of the phrase “bad faith negotiations”.
For three decades, talks with the Mi'kmaq were initiated, stopped and then restarted according to the changing political moods of provincial premiers and federal cabinet ministers and caused the 1989 motion to be filed. As it proceeded clumsily through the courts, it was obstructed by motions filed by the Department of Justice simply to effect delays to the hearing of the case. After years of this type of behaviour, time had caught up with the federal government and its tactics. Knowing that its past conduct would likely be highly prejudicial against it in trial, the Crown eventually took a more reasoned approach to settlement. The Mi'kmaq put their court case in abeyance and after four years of hard work, a draft agreement in principle was reached between the FNI and the government's negotiators in 2006.
Under its terms, formal ratification of the agreement was required by both parties before the agreement could take effect. For the FNI, this meant a vote by the full membership of the entire organization. Needless to say, the agreement was dissected clause by clause, word by word, by both the federal cabinet and by the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and its membership during a sometimes intense but civil nine-month-long ratification debate that was held in church basements, community halls and kitchen tables all over, just as it was at the cabinet table.
On May 30, 2008, the Federation of Newfoundland Indians voted 90% in favour of ratifying the agreement. Nothing in the agreement was misunderstood or could be considered to be unclear to any party to the process, and in June of the same year the Government of Canada signed the order in council to ratify the agreement, moving it into implementation phase.
That agreement spelled out in very plain language what the enrolment criteria for the founding members in the future band would be. The agreement stated the following: to become a member, applicants must demonstrate that one of their ancestors must be of Canadian aboriginal descent.
It was an intentional decision by both parties to the agreement to stipulate in plain language that individuals would not have to show that they were necessarily of Mi'kmaq descent, just that they were of Canadian Indian ancestry by birth or adoption. This ancestry could then be established by means of their descendant being referred to in historical records as, and I quote directly from the agreement:
Indian
French Indian
English Indian
Micmac or variations thereof
Montaignais or variations thereof
Abenaki or variations thereof
Naskapi
savage or variations thereof
aboriginal or of aboriginal descent.
No blood quantum or measurement of the degree of generational separation from a person and their Indian descendant was required or relevant under the agreement.
These open criteria alone would obviously have alerted the Department of Indian Affairs to understand that a relatively high number of prospective applicants might likely be eligible; yet this is what the Department of Indian Affairs negotiated over a four-year period and obviously intended.
The next criteria for enrolment required that the applicants or their descendants be either resident of or connected to a pre-Confederation Newfoundland Mi'kmaq community as listed within the agreement in 1949.
For non-residents, the applicants would show an ongoing connection to that community. This was achieved, as according to the document, by their self-identifying as members of the Mi'kmaq group of Indians, by demonstrating an ongoing connection to a Newfoundland Mi'kmaq community by way of regular telephone calls or travel to the community and by establishing that the applicants continued to live the Mi'kmaq way of life.
This is spelled out in plain language within the agreement and within the application guides that were produced for applicants by the federal government and by the Federation of Newfoundland Indians authorities. For instance, according to the agreement at paragraph 25(B)(ii) of annex A, the latter requirement could be established by way of the following: by demonstrating “knowledge of Mi’kmaq customs and beliefs...or pursuit of traditional activities” within Federation of Newfoundland Indians members, by hunting and fishing. That is what the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and the enrolment committee found would satisfy that particular test.
I will also highlight a couple of points as to what the government knew it signed as part of its agreement with the Mi’kmaq. Paragraph 13 of annex A specifically states:
The applicant must provide evidence that he is of Canadian Indian Ancestry. There is no minimum blood quantum.
To reinforce that both the government and the FNI were fully aware of the criteria that had been agreed to, documents produced to assist applicants in preparing their applications, as well as information found on the Government of Canada's own website, specifically state that residency is not a requirement of enrolment as long as a connection to a Mi’kmaq community can be established and maintained. A connection is described in those documents as visits and communication. Membership in the Federation of Newfoundland Indians was also specifically described in literature and in web portals as being of value but optional. That point is further proved by the history of decisions on membership. Literally thousands of out-of-province applicants who are not members of the FNI have been already approved for membership in Qalipu, with federal representatives and FNI member representatives on the enrolment committee making those decisions for the last four years.
Furthermore, during the course of the agreement's implementation, the government members had several mechanisms available to them to address any problems that they foresaw with the integrity of the membership through the enrolment committee, which they did not exercise. This circumstance is highly material to the discussion from an administrative fairness perspective. Federal government members sat on the enrolment committee and assessed every application for the last four years. They knew every detail of every application and the number of approvals and applications received. They could have asserted a concern and their position on matters at that table. They did not.
The federal government members could have also appealed any decision of the enrolment committee that they did not like to a former justice of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador who served as the appeals master for the process. As early as 2009, with three years left in the application intake process, and with the number of recognized members already standing at 10,000 and the number of applications awaiting review standing at 20,000 and growing on a day-to-day basis, not once did the government exercise this option. Only when the membership grew to 24,000, and only when 75,000 applications were awaiting processing, did it act.
If the original target was for a total membership of 8,000 to 12,000 members at the onset of the agreement, the government's inaction defies credibility. It should also be noted that the federal government had a unique authority within the process. It could veto any application on the basis of unfounded Indian ancestry. Further, the federal government had other means to identify and address issues. For instance, the federal government members could audit the enrolment process and that of the enrolment committee's decisions. They did so in 2010 and 2011, with no significant concerns being registered by the federal auditors. They audited to ensure the integrity of the process and the integrity of the enrolment. The audits found no problems.
My time is expiring, but I would like to conclude my first presentation to the House on this matter by saying the government cannot reasonably make any case that the situation surrounding the registration of the Mi'kmaq of Newfoundland is not anything but of their own hand. They established the rules, they enforced the rules for four years, and now they are suggesting that they do not like the rules that they established and they want to take them back.
The law does not work that way.
View Greg Rickford Profile
CPC (ON)
View Greg Rickford Profile
2013-03-28 13:48 [p.15370]
Mr. Speaker, I would be curious to know just what the member knows about the law, but we can talk about that some other day. The fact of the matter is that I have a couple of serious, substantive concerns with the motion.
In the first instance, it simply seeks to maintain the status quo. It completely ignores the fact that calls for greater rigour in the enrolment process came directly from the community. The fact that we are currently in negotiations with the first nation's leadership, which has addressed similar concerns about this very issue, is another important piece. It is absolutely critical that the criteria for membership be based upon input from the first nation leadership. Clearly, the member does not agree with that view.
The outcome of these discussions must also treat all applicants fairly and equally.
What I find interesting, then, is that the member who has put the motion forward is not listening to the concerns of first nations. Is it perhaps because he has a vested interest in the outcome of these negotiations?
View Gerry Byrne Profile
Lib. (NL)
Mr. Speaker, the community was involved in these negotiations and in these rules since 2002—in fact, since 1970. It is a fact that the negotiations occurred in good faith from 2002 to 2006.
I will also state for the record and table for the hon. member that the chief of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation has publicly asked for the Government of Canada to extend the enrolment process under the terms of the agreement and that it continue within the role.
I will answer the question of the hon. member. He would be aware, if he bothered to read the Journals, that there was an issue brought forward to the conflict of interest commissioner, and the conflict of interest commissioner ruled that any member of this House who is an applicant to this band who advocates for any continuation on the rules of the band based on the agreement is not acting in any conflict.
The Ethics Commissioner has decided that issue. It has been tabled and recorded within the Journals.
In fact, I actually presented a note to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development personally informing him of that decision of the Ethics Commissioner and telling him that in order to avoid the politicization of this issue, I wanted him to be aware of this so that he understood that the matter has been ruled on and that there is no conflict.
For the hon. member to raise this issue right now is pure politicization.
View Jean Crowder Profile
NDP (BC)
View Jean Crowder Profile
2013-03-28 13:51 [p.15370]
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for bringing the motion forward.
The question I have for him is really moving outside the numbers. We have seen this happen over and over again. In 1985, when women were able to regain status under Bill C-31, what we saw was the government underestimate the resources and the amount of time that were required in order to process those applications and the resources that needed to go back to communities.
We saw the residential schools system, where again there was an underestimation of the number of applicants and the amount of time that it was going to take to process them.
Now, of course, we have another situation in which the same kind of thing is playing out.
Moving beyond the numbers, I wonder if the member could talk about what being held up and not being able to get this settled would mean to people in their daily lives.
View Gerry Byrne Profile
Lib. (NL)
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for that very reasoned question based upon experience.
What this would mean for the personal lives of the Mi'kmaq of Newfoundland is that it would provide closure to an issue that has been ongoing since 1949, since the inception of Confederation. When Canada joined Newfoundland and Labrador in 1949 in Confederation, there was no recognition of aboriginal rights or existence after that time. It was not until 2002 that serious negotiation began. They were upfront about it: it would be based upon a landless band. There would be no reserve or land entitlement attached to this particular agreement.
The essence of this agreement is one of very pure fact. The Mi'kmaq people of our province and of Canada were denied for years. They were told by premiers and by governments that they did not exist. The recognition through this agreement was very important, because after decades of battling that notion, it was proven that they do exist and that they were to be recognized by the nation as a first nation.
Now, apparently, the government intends to take that back again. We have started all over again. We are going back to where we were.
View Greg Rickford Profile
CPC (ON)
View Greg Rickford Profile
2013-03-28 13:53 [p.15371]
Mr. Speaker, at the outset of my speech with respect to this motion, I certainly do not appreciate the accusation that I am politicizing this. I responded in my duties as parliamentary secretary on this matter to the media and I read with great disappointment the transcript of the interview. I do not know the member very well at all, but his attacks on my credibility were certainly unwarranted and not appreciated. I can assure him that whether it is this file or anything within aboriginal affairs, I remain on top of all of the files. Right back at you, of course through you, Mr. Speaker, on this whole notion of politicization.
Our government has significant concerns with respect to the motion put forward by the member opposite, as I had alluded to in my question. Motion No. 432 would foreclose options and undermine the current efforts of the chief federal negotiator to reach a negotiated solution to questions surrounding enrolment in the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation and that it would be a mistake because it would interfere with a productive process already under way to address the problems with a motion that purports to fix it.
Even more important, it would go against what the first nations want and unilaterally impose a course of action, which is what the first nations were complaining about last week with respect to some of the ideas the NDP had come up with for a number of first nation issues. It would undermine efforts to reach a lasting resolution to the current challenges facing that community. I remind the House that calls for greater rigour in the enrolment process came directly from the community. Therefore, if it is determined that any changes need to be made to the criteria or process to qualify for membership, these changes should be made in full co-operation with the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and the Qalipu band.
It is presumptuous, to say the least, for the opposition member from the third party to suggest that he knows what is best for band members. Perhaps it would be useful to review the initial agreement.
The original intent of the 2008 Agreement for the Recognition of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq Band was to address the fact that the Mi'kmaq communities in Newfoundland were not recognized when the province joined Confederation in 1949.
As members will recall, the agreement brought resolution to a court case initiated in 1989 by the Federation of Newfoundland Indians, seeking eligibility for registration under the Indian Act. At that time, the Federation of Newfoundland Indians represented approximately 7,800 members.
The agreement provided for two things: first, the creation of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation, a band without a land base whose members could obtain Indian status under the Indian Act; second, eligibility criteria that would be applied by an arm's-length enrolment committee led by an independent chair.
When the agreement was signed in 2008, both Canada and the federation estimated the new first nation would be comprised of approximately 8,700 to 12,000 members. That made sense in light of the fact that the 2006 census found there were approximately 23,450 residents of Newfoundland and Labrador who identified themselves as aboriginal. Of this number, 33%, or 7,765, identified themselves as first nations members. However, following the official creation of the band in September 2011, which included over 23,000 members, another 70,000 applications were received before the application deadline of November 30, 2012, and now it seems to be a matter of public record that includes the member putting this motion forward.
The Federation of Newfoundland Indians and the Government of Canada never anticipated that four times that, over 100,000 people, would sign up to attempt to become members of that first nation. It is simply not reasonable to expect that there would be more than 100,000 credible applications to be members of the Qalipu band. That would be over four times the original estimated number. These figures are all the more questionable since it has become clear that many of the late stage of applications appear to no longer reside in that province.
In fact, the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and the Government of Canada estimate that roughly two-thirds of the applicants do not live in one of the Mi'kmaq communities at the centre of this recognition process, but elsewhere in Canada.
That is precisely why it is essential to guarantee the credibility of the process and the integrity of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band. To ensure the reliability of the registration process and to protect the reputation of the First Nation, we are working closely with the directors of the Federation of Newfoundland Indians and the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band.
Together we are working on the application process and on implementing the agreement to recognize the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band. We are trying to determine the best way to address this very complex situation.
Last year, the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development appointed a chief federal negotiator, Mr. Fred Caron, to work with the first nations leadership toward a negotiated solution to address the issues connected to the enrolment process. They are meeting regularly to address the issues that have arisen in the enrolment process, including the unexpected large number of applications received and the fact that the deadline for dealing with applications has expired. The goal of the current negotiations is to find a solution that treats all applicants fairly and equally, reflects the original intent of the agreement and, of course, ensures the integrity of the enrolment process.
On this point, I want to reassure people that all applications received during the enrolment process are, and will continue to be, stored in an access-controlled and secure location. Canadians can be confident that the information provided is protected under, and will be treated in accordance with, the Privacy Act and the Access to Information Act. There is no question that many people have applied in good faith and wish to be advised of what is happening. Given the ongoing nature of the discussions and the complexity of the issues, it is not possible to predict what the results will be or when a final decision will be made.
However, the parties hope to be able to arrive at an agreement soon and then they will be in a position to provide further details. There is no question that the government is committed to working closely with the elected leadership of Qalipu First Nation, supporting them and exploring all avenues to resolve this situation.
When the band was created, we were committed to working in good faith with the Federation of Newfoundland Indians. We remain determined to address the lack of recognition of Mi’kmaq communities that existed when Newfoundland entered Confederation in 1949.
Settling this long-standing omission is good for the members of the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band, the residents, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and for Canada.
Once the membership list is finalized, eligible band members will be registered under the Indian Act and able to access the important federal programs and services to which they would be entitled. These include post-secondary education financial assistance and non-insured health benefits, things that we have been showcasing in the last couple of installations of Canada's economic action plan 2013.
This gives us all the more reason to ensure that the integrity of the agreement is upheld and that all applicants are treated fairly and equally. For these reasons I cannot question the unilateral nature of Motion No. 432 and urge my hon. colleagues to take note of the ongoing negotiations with the first nations on this very issue.
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