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Results: 1 - 15 of 207
Coralee McGuire-Cyrette
View Coralee McGuire-Cyrette Profile
Coralee McGuire-Cyrette
2021-06-17 11:07
Good morning, Chair and committee members. My name is Coralee McGuire-Cyrette. I am the executive director of the Ontario Native Women's Association.
This year marks ONWA's 50th anniversary, making us the oldest and largest indigenous women's organization in Canada. With a mandate to address violence against indigenous women, ONWA works on such key safety issues as human trafficking, missing and murdered indigenous women and girls, and child welfare.
Before I begin, I want to acknowledge the bravery, wisdom and leadership of all survivors on this issue, as they are the experts. ONWA has been working with survivors for many years. This experience forms the basis of our recommendations. Survivors and knowledge-holders have reminded us that motherhood is the oldest profession, and this is what we must reclaim in our work.
I'll be framing my presentation today based on three key points. While I do not have the time today to explore them in depth, it's imperative that they are kept in mind while we continue.
First, in 2019 the United Nations released guidelines on combatting child sexual exploitation. They state that a child under the age of 18 can never consent to any form of their own sale, sexual exploitation or sexual abuse, and any presumed consent of a child to exploitative or sexual acts should be considered “null and void”. Additionally, article 35 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child states that the government has a responsibility to ensure that children are not abducted, sold or trafficked. ONWA advocates that both principles must, without exception, be adhered to.
Second, the impact of colonization has caused the fabric of strong, self-sustaining indigenous communities to be eroded. Indigenous trauma, together with more recent constructs, has fostered conditions of normalized violence towards indigenous women and girls. Direct links have been drawn between the rates of violence that indigenous women continue to face today and the paternalistic policies emerging from colonization. This systemic discrimination has not been addressed adequately in Canada. This leaves indigenous women and girls at a heightened vulnerability to experience victimization, including human trafficking.
Article 18 of the UNDRIP affirms that “Indigenous peoples have the right to participate in decision-making in matters...through representatives chosen by themselves” and to “maintain and develop their own...institutions”. From this, ONWA asserts that it is fundamental that indigenous women have the capacity to participate in a wide range of leadership efforts to support our communities, including leading the prevention, intervention and response to issues that we face.
Third, the COVID-19 pandemic has deepened pre-existing inequalities. By virtue of our gender and our race, we are, as indigenous women and girls, disproportionately experiencing the consequences of COVID-19. This results in an increased risk of indigenous women and girls being targeted for human trafficking, as well as worsening the situation for those already in trafficking situations. The pandemic has underscored that solutions to human trafficking must be part of an equitable COVID-19 recovery plan.
In 2017 we engaged with over 3,360 community members and service providers, including 250 indigenous human trafficking survivors. The storytelling that was heard resulted in the creation of a strategy, titled “Journey to Safe Spaces”, to address this issue.
Survivors taught us what trauma-informed care is and what systems need to be changed. Their intentions were clear. They wanted to protect other indigenous women and girls from trafficking. We also learned that there are often systemic failures that subject indigenous women and children to risk. The relationship between child welfare and human trafficking is complex. In our engagements with survivors, we heard many stories. In some instances, the abuse was not identified by any service provider, and children experienced horrific childhood exploitation. In other instances, sexual exploitation began after child welfare became involved.
Children must be protected from exploitation—period. This will involve systems working together to protect and ensure the safety of our children.
Our report provides clear recommendations for change. All changes must be underpinned by the fact that indigenous women have human rights. The recommendations from survivors provided the basis for our courage for change program, which provides the only long-term, intensive case management and support. Our program supported 176 indigenous women and girls to safely exit human trafficking from 2017 to 2019. Last year, in 2020, we saw a 37% increase in exits.
Before I conclude, I'll highlight five essential recommendations, many of which can be found in ONWA's “Reconciliation with Indigenous Women”. In this report, we recommend actions that are very specific and targeted to end human trafficking while supporting survivors. The missing and murdered indigenous women and girls national action plan does not include our report's recommendations sufficiently.
First, collaborative mechanisms must be put in place to allow for provincial and national data collection on the human trafficking of indigenous women that protects the privacy of survivors who access services with data collected by the legal reform.
Second, sustainable programs and services that address human trafficking survivor-specific needs, including wraparound support and 24-hour services for human trafficking in cities all across the country, must be implemented.
Third, specialized trauma-informed services for survivors who appear in court must be created. When charges are laid against a trafficker, survivor safety must be prioritized throughout the legal process.
Fourth, the federal government needs to clear the records of survivors of any criminal offences for prostitution-related offences and with debt forgiveness for student loans.
Fifth, additional funding is urgently required to address human trafficking well beyond the provision of funds for education-related activities only. This is to include comprehensive human trafficking exiting supports, such as mental health and addictions services, housing, specialized long-term healing and supportive services.
In closing, I encourage the committee to review our “Reconciliation with Indigenous Women” report and our “Journey to Safe Spaces” strategy in full, as they provide a road map to keep indigenous women and girls safe from human trafficking and to the supports needed to rebuild their lives.
Meegwetch.
Garrison Settee
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Garrison Settee
2021-06-15 11:17
Thank you for the opportunity to present to the standing committee.
I wish to acknowledge the land of the people of Treaty 1 and Treaty 5 territory.
My name is Garrison Settee. I am the grand chief of the Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak.
As the grand chief, I am committed to working towards ending all forms of gender and race-based violence that impacts indigenous women and girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people. We must look at the root causes of sex trafficking through the impacts of colonization.
The events that have occurred over the last two weeks have dominated headlines on the impacts of past, present and ongoing colonial violence in Canada against indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.
On May 27, the remains of 215 children at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School were announced. On June 3, 2021, the final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and the national action plan for ending violence against 2SLGBTQQIA+ people, along with other companion documents, were released.
I want to highlight some of the realities faced in the north, according to [Technical difficulty—Editor] 2017, rates of violent crimes against young women and girls are five to six times higher than those living in southern Manitoba, and in northern Manitoba it's worse. Predators are targeting indigenous girls at bus depots and airports to take advantage of their vulnerability during periods of transition, such as coming out of child and family services care to obtain medical care or educational opportunities not available in their own home community. MKO has observed that this also occurs when entire communities are evacuated to an urban centre due to fires and floods.
There exists an important opportunity to prevent violence and trafficking by intervening at these points of transition. Winnipeg, along with Regina and Saskatoon, are known as a city triangle where victims are shipped between these cities and different provinces. For instance, Thompson is the largest city in northern Manitoba. It has the highest number of missing youth in the province. It has been identified as a critical point of intervention to reduce the likelihood of their moving or being trafficked to Winnipeg.
MKO is concerned that there is insufficient policing and resources to combat human trafficking in northern and remote communities. Policing agencies across all jurisdictions are not mandated to report to the Human Trafficking National Coordination Centre. This results in the denial of the basic human and indigenous rights as related to culture, health, security and justice.
Education and employment gaps are major contributing factors to indigenous women's economic marginalization, which in turn makes them more dependent on others, leaving them more vulnerable to violence and less able to leave violent circumstances.
There is a need for safe housing, including increased housing on reserve and access to shelters; for culturally responsible health care services; and for laws, policies and practices of the Canadian state to adequately recognize, respect and make space for the inherent right of indigenous self-governance and self-determination.
Hilda.
View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Yes, and I'll be quite frank: It's slow. Certainly, the pandemic, where people have focused on their health and safety of the communities has resulted in a slowdown. This is a revolutionary piece of legislation that lifts up inherent rights of indigenous peoples. We have dozens and dozens of communities across Canada that have expressed interest. There was about $500 million or more in the fall economic statement that was dedicated to working on capacity, to putting those laws forward and entrenching them.
We want to make sure that we have proper coordination agreements in place with provinces that hold the bulk of that responsibility. There's a relationship aspect there with the provinces, including your home province, that we can't discount in all of this, but there are many more.... There are some that have lifted up their own legislation and have said, “We're not necessarily interested in Bill C-92, but this is how we're going to protect our children.” That has some validity as well.
We're very cautious in those estimates, but I would say for the benefit of this committee that there are dozens and dozens that have done good work along the way. There are some difficult challenges ahead in and around capacity, so I won't hide that from you, but it is a long road, and it is part and parcel of everything we've seen in the last week.
View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
What we've seen throughout, and particularly what has become quite poignant and top of mind over the last week, is that Canada and the provinces have been administering a broken system for some time. We can talk about compensation, which is very important. When we talk about transformation, that's when we have to talk about the legislation that was passed just before the prior election. It's shifting, in the spirit of self-determination, a system that was focused on prevention, and not culturally appropriate, to one that is...or rather, from intervention to prevention. When it's embodied and ensconced in the language of self-determination, it is an effort to lift up communities in how they protect their own—again, something we've taken for granted.
It is long work. It requires an intense amount of consultation. There was about $500 million in the fall economic statement dedicated to building capacity. That's something that will be deployed over five years. Additional investments will be required as communities bring home their children and pass their legislation to lift it up.
When I said to Gary that it was slow, an important principle was embodied when the law came into force—the minimum standard of the child. It is a signal to all of Canada and to courts that they can no longer sanction practices that removed disproportionately indigenous children from their families based on such issues as poverty. That is still the challenge for every single government in the future, to keep combatting a poverty discrimination that is the legacy of our colonial past.
Leroy Daniel Denny
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Leroy Daniel Denny
2021-05-25 11:18
Good morning. It is my pleasure to join you here from the Eskasoni First Nation community. It's a sunny day here in the beautiful territory of Unama'ki, located on the east coast of Canada. Eskasoni is the largest Mi'kmaq community, with a population of almost 4,700 people.
My name is Chief Leroy Denny, and I am the chief of the community of Eskasoni. I thank you for the invitation to appear before your committee on the motion to study enforcement on first nation reserves.
I was born and raised in Eskasoni, here in my community. My grandfather was also chief of my community. Also, my godfather was a Vietnam vet and a police chief for Eskasoni for many years, and one of the key people who started a police department, the Unama'ki Tribal Police, which I'm going to talk about.
I'm here to address the current policing practices and enforcement in first nation communities.
There is no denying that the impacts of colonialism continue to reverberate in all of our indigenous communities across the country. The costs of policing on reserve remain a source of conflict requiring resolution. Canada's position to hold policing on reserve as a joint responsibility with the provinces has created a jurisdictional confusion that results in inefficient and under-resourced policing, and our community members are the ones who suffer at the end of the day. A special constable program continued on the first nation communities throughout Nova Scotia in the seventies, a program that was underfunded and under-resourced. Since this time, because of these issues, the Mi'kmaq lobby for control over policing in their communities.
As a response to the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples and the Donald Marshall inquiry, the Unama'ki Tribal Police was created in 1994, under the umbrella of the federal first nation policing policy, to provide policing to all five Mi'kmaq communities in Cape Breton, which are Eskasoni, Membertou, Potlotek, Wh'koqma'q and Wagmatcook. I was formerly a employee as a jail guard, and also as a part-time dispatcher at the time, which was one of my first jobs when I was really young.
Attaining control over our policing was a key component in achieving self-determination and enhancing control of enforcement in our communities. This was a decolonized method of offering police services. In it, cultural methodology was used and implemented in community police methods to resolve problems and promote community healing and trust, using our language. In the late nineties and early 2000s, this essential program was defunded, and the RCMP established the Community Aboriginal Diversity Policing Service to serve first nation communities.
Presently, we have RCMP serving our community. I commend their efforts in policing our community, because we have some Mi'kmaq police who are on the force. My own brother served both in the Unama'ki police and the RCMP for our community, and he retired a couple of months ago.
However, as a leader and a community member, I cannot help but see the injustices that we continue to face, not only in becoming self-determined but also in our health and safety on reserve.
When the global pandemic hit last year, there was a directive that the police in indigenous communities and the judiciary would assist indigenous communities to enforce their COVID bylaws, which are the lockdowns we have. However, the reality was not this. What happened was that they didn't respect our bylaws. We had our own curfews, our own lockdowns, and they weren't respected. We had our own restrictions, and we had issues with the police. I ended up calling my MP, to the top office, to make sure our bylaws were respected, but it was very difficult for us for our security and to make sure that the lockdown to keep COVID out was respected.
This issue also hinders our ability to enforce laws made on reserve. Bylaws are not respected and are not honoured by current policing authorities. It makes becoming self-determined within our communities difficult. It was very difficult.
Before I end my submission to the committee today, I would like to discuss the issue of health and safety on reserve in policing. Due to personal experience, I can attest to the issue we face regarding this issue.
At the end of February, February 28, one of my directors, the CEO for Crane Cove Seafoods, was shot. He's my neighbour and also my family member, my first cousin. He was shot next door. To this day, we don't know who shot him.
The first person he called was me because I was next door, down the road. He called me, and I called 911. There was a sound of distress on the phone. He had been shot; there had been two shots.
My family and I all heard gunshots here. I was on 911 for at least a good four minutes. When I got there, 911 told me not to go in, but my family member was in distress, so I had to go in. It had already been 10 minutes, and we were still waiting for the police and still waiting for the paramedics. I had to go in. God knows, I didn't know if there was a shooter there, but I had to sacrifice my own life to save my family member.
After 20 minutes, I had to take him to my vehicle and drive him to the ambulance station. There were no police yet. To this day, I don't know why. I'm still dealing with the trauma. There was a lot of blood I had to deal with. Luckily, he survived. He's recovering.
After 30 minutes—I counted the minutes when I made my statement—the police ended up going to the house to start an investigation. It was poorly done.
He relied on the police and the paramedics. He relied on me. I was the first person to get there. I took him to the ambulance. That shouldn't be. Community members shouldn't be doing that, saving lives in the line of fire. It's the police. We rely on our police and we trust them. That's in the agreements. I shouldn't be doing it; it should be them. I still have a lot of questions about that, and it's not the end of it.
I'll end right there.
Doris Bill
View Doris Bill Profile
Doris Bill
2021-05-25 11:54
It starts by building those partnerships and really creating space for the program.
For example, our traditional territory spreads throughout the city, and we talked with and sat down with the City of Whitehorse. We created an intergovernmental forum and we meet formally with the City of Whitehorse. We also sit down with the Yukon government. We have those conversations and work out any problems or issues that we have. Because of our successes here in Whitehorse, we have the City of Whitehorse, the larger City of Whitehorse, asking us to extend our program within the city, and I—
Robert Louie
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Robert Louie
2021-05-25 12:11
Thank you very much, Ms. Blaney, for your question.
We do have some things happening that are positive. I think the positiveness is the willingness by provinces, territorial governments and the federal government to listen and to want to work on some solutions. We've started that situation with MKO in Manitoba. The attorney general and those who are in charge of the various ministries have been active.
We have a pilot project taking place in Saskatchewan with the Muskoday community and Whitecap. They are working now with the Saskatchewan attorney general's office to look at how there can be better enforcement. We are hoping that these discussions will lead to an understanding by the Province of Saskatchewan that it will recognize first nations land code laws and that enforcement is a joint process, and that there needs to be collaboration and support of that.
If we can do that there, we can do it in Manitoba, in Alberta, in British Columbia, right through the country. I think this is where we need to be. The discussions are happening right now. This committee and the recommendations you make are hopefully going to be pressing. The recommendations will say, and hopefully support, that this has to be done now. We cannot afford to wait. The laws that are taking place are being done now. We have laws in force. We are a government. We are recognized as a government. We have the authorities and the powers of government, yet the laws are not being recognized and enforced. We cannot wait for this.
We have matrimonial issues. We have trespass issues. We have pollution, contaminants, and matters of such great importance that they have to be dealt with now. The more that this is understood, the more the collaboration that takes place, and the more direction that this committee can give towards the various provinces—to all the ministries—that this is an important matter, the more quickly we're going to find solutions.
I much appreciate your question and this committee's work. Thank you.
Robert Louie
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Robert Louie
2021-05-25 12:44
Mr. Powlowski, if I may, it's Robert Louie.
I want to just refresh people's thoughts here with regard to the force of law with regard to land codes.
We represent our constituents, who are self-governing. To look at the Indian Act, to rely on the Indian Act.... Any of the sections for governance are quite offensive.
With regard to our land codes and the way the legislation was set up by Parliament to recognize our communities as self-governing first nations, I remind you of subsection 15(1) of the land code, which says that a land code has a force of law, and judicial notice shall be taken of the land code in any proceedings from the date the land code comes into effect. That's very significant.
Also, it's coupled with subsection 20(3) of the land code legislation, which says that it “may provide for enforcement measures, consistent with federal laws...such as the power to inspect, search and seize and to order compulsory sampling, testing and the production of information.” Of course, the justices of the peace section, subsection 24(1), says that we “may appoint justices of the peace to ensure the enforcement of First Nation laws including the adjudication of offences for contraventions of First Nation laws.”
My point is that we have the authority. It was recognized by Parliament. What is lacking is the direction to all of the various ministries and to the provincial governments and so forth that these laws are valid and that they must be recognized, so that when laws are put in place, it's a matter of education and simply, in many respects, informing the policing authorities that they must respect them. There's paramountcy in the federal law, which this now has, so I think this is very important.
For us to rely on something that we do not have to rely on, especially under the Indian Act, is not acceptable to our land code self-governing communities.
Murray Browne
View Murray Browne Profile
Murray Browne
2021-05-13 11:56
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, and thank you to the honourable member for the question. I know the chiefs and representatives will have many suggestions. It's an interesting question.
The first part is the funding. If we had the funding and if the government stepped out of the way, that would get us a large percentage of the way there. However, we also need the legal authority.
In terms of the legal authority, we either need to find it under the Indian Act, the First Nations Land Management Act, a treaty or other arrangements. We have proposed, and probably Mr. Arcand-Paul and his group have proposed amendments to legislation. The federal offence acts could be amended to include all first nations as governments able to pass and enforce laws. We could get directives to the courts from the chief justices to enforce those laws. There are some technical steps, but as you say, most of what is needed is to provide the funding and step out of the way.
I'll stop there. Thank you for the question.
Reginald Bellerose
View Reginald Bellerose Profile
Reginald Bellerose
2021-05-13 11:57
Yes. It's Reg Bellerose of the Muskowekwan First Nation speaking. Thank you for the question.
I think what we all have to realize is that this has been going on for us since treaty-making in 1874, so if this control comes back to us, it's not going to be perfect on day one. There needs to be a strategy not to say, “Okay, Indians, you have this now, and you've failed in the first day.” There has to be some patience. There has to be a timeline put forward and an understanding that we're not going to be perfect right out of the gate.
Thank you.
Brooks Arcand-Paul
View Brooks Arcand-Paul Profile
Brooks Arcand-Paul
2021-05-13 11:58
Yes. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you for the question, MP Schmale.
What we're looking at is that the Criminal Code isn't disappearing either. The Criminal Code has equal application on first nations reserves. What we're looking for is getting the ability to deal with our band resources, which are our homes, to be able to try to deal with and curb this activity. Chief Bellerose has the same situation as some of my clients, and certainly my client now has the same issue. It is a concern about having individuals who are effectively breaking the law but are not able to be dealt with appropriately on the nation.
When we're looking at solutions, we have to empower first nations to be able to do these types of things and to recognize that we have our resources, our inventories of band housing, that we have to deal with as well. It's not just that there is absence of the law on first nations; we just need to be empowered to be able to exercise it.
Connie Lazore
View Connie Lazore Profile
Connie Lazore
2021-05-13 12:00
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I could probably comment on both questions.
I agree that we all need the funding, but it was stated earlier that all first nations are not at the same level of capacity in their communities and in their districts.
Here in Akwesasne, we've had a police force. We've had a compliance program. We have our own court. We develop our own laws. I don't see Canada as being able to hear and decide on our laws when they're not developed for them to hear. They're developed for our community. They should be heard by our justices in our court and adjudicated in the area that the law was developed for.
In my mind, funding is always going to be an issue until it starts to come to us. For us, we have a plan in place. We want to develop the compliance program—much as the safety officer title that was used earlier—to serve our community. When we can build trust within, these services will go a lot more smoothly, but right now Canada pushes their laws and Canada tells us in our self-government agreement that we must negotiate self-government. That's not the best place to do that.
Reginald Bellerose
View Reginald Bellerose Profile
Reginald Bellerose
2021-05-13 12:06
I think one of the first things we need is community engagement.
I've been a chief for about 830 weeks. That's a little more than 16 years. It comes from the people. I can't come here and say, “This is what to do.” That capacity is definitely needed, but what we need to do is go back to the root, to the power, which is the people. The people have the power in treaty territories and Indian country.
What we need to know is how to go and talk to them. Right now I will tell you, because of the colonial system and what's imposed, there's a lack of trust, especially toward first nation leadership. For us, we need to also regain that trust, because we're the ones answering for you guys. It's not government—
Connie Lazore
View Connie Lazore Profile
Connie Lazore
2021-05-13 12:09
Was that on my first answer? When I spoke earlier, I believe I was speaking about the enforcement of our laws and the restrictions of Canada.
As mentioned, we have to deal with two provinces when we talk about Canada laws. When we're talking about the jurisdiction of our court, we have to sit and negotiate with the province. I don't think we should be negotiating with the province.
I find it difficult when you talk about a self-government agreement for us to govern ourselves. With every issue we have, the provinces come in to negotiate, not the federal, yet it's the federal department that is responsible to us. We struggle with trying to get our self-government agreement, because there are so many mechanisms in there. Even education became the province. Justice is the province, and it's two provinces, not one.
We're fortunate that the ministries have come together to talk about an agreement that sees us coming together and recognizing our court. We talked earlier about the reciprocity of our orders. Just the way the provinces respect the orders of each other, our indigenous courts' orders should also be respected and allowed to happen.
Community development laws are for our community, not for the rest of Canada, so they should be heard in our courts, and Canada should not have any authority over how we develop them, if we develop them, and if they are sanctioned and approved. It belongs to each community to do that and to enforce them as well.
Today we look for the funding to pull all this justice system together to work for us—not for Canada but for us, for each respective community.
Thank you. I hope that answers the question you wanted me to elaborate on.
Connie Lazore
View Connie Lazore Profile
Connie Lazore
2021-05-13 12:21
Thank you, honourable MP.
What happened was that Indigenous Services had decided they were no longer going to appoint justices of the peace. With that moratorium put in place, we did have, I believe, four. We were down to two, and we have one left. We required justices to sit in our court. We decided to take the inherent right component, as we did with the development and approval of our laws, because, again, Indigenous Services stopped approving bylaws. We needed laws to govern ourselves.
With that said, we decided to appoint justices of the peace. We put them through the training that, at the time, was available for them. We've had two sitting inherit right justices since then who have been hearing cases in our court. Today we have 10 in training to be justices of the peace.
We have been continually moving forward. We've been continually exercising our self-government and our inherent right.
We have heard in our court the four offences in the Indian Act that I identified earlier, but today we sit and negotiate that with part of our self-government agreement, because it's in the Indian Act.
If we have to negotiate that, to my mind that doesn't make sense, because we already have it. We're doing it. The provinces turn around and tell us we can't do that either, but it's in the Indian Act. Are we not working to be more independent of the Indian Act?
For us, we have been hearing it. We want to continue hearing it. We've had some cases very recently that probably should have gone to our court, but we sit here negotiating that, and it becomes very difficult.
We have to keep moving forward. We have justices in training and we have justices sitting in our court. As everyone else has said today, we require the funding. We've been carrying this court and all the needs of it for almost 60 years. For 57 or 58 years we've been carrying that.
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