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Results: 1 - 15 of 78
View Gary Vidal Profile
CPC (SK)
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Anandasangaree said this morning that a number of the people sitting on this committee today are members of INAN. Over the last several months, we've been doing a study on the government's response to COVID-19, and one of the things we've talked about is the supports for indigenous people who do not live on reserves, those who live in urban centres. We've done a bunch of discussion around the work of the National Association of Friendship Centres and some other groups that serve urban indigenous populations.
In that context, my question is for Madame Michel.
Would you agree that, in the context of that percentage of indigenous people living off reserve in urban centres, declaring first nation policing as an essential service may not represent the needs of that population as well as it would for some of the people who live out in the reserve settings?
Viviane Michel
View Viviane Michel Profile
Viviane Michel
2020-07-24 14:27
Look, I totally agree, but we still need to improve the judicial system. Police forces play a key role in racial profiling, in arresting people, in abusing their authority.
The police are doing things that are truly unacceptable. For example, in Montreal, after a long negotiation with a counsellor on site, a woman in psychological distress finally agreed to call an ambulance because she was in the midst of a suicidal crisis. So we called 911. However, 17 police officers and the dog squad were sent. That is crazy! That is really crazy! It was a woman in psychological distress; it was not a woman threatening to kill someone. I think this situation is really a concrete example of racism, discrimination and racial profiling.
There is much to be done to improve the police system, especially in cases like this. The Armony report says that in big cities, aboriginal women are stopped 11 times more often than white women. For no reason, just because they have the profile of aboriginal women. Is that not systemic discrimination and racism? It is blatant.
We can train these people, but I think that if we do not want to be a good police officer and protect citizens, we have to do something else for a living. Our aboriginal women need protection. Our women need to be safe, to be able to walk around in safety, which is not the case, all around, whether inside or outside.
I think Mr. Picard is going to talk to you about the differences between aboriginal police officers and city police officers, because there’s a big gap in funding. So I’m not going to talk about that; rather, I’m going to talk about the impact this has on aboriginal women.
View Gary Vidal Profile
CPC (SK)
Thank you, Madame Michel.
I'm going to follow up with another question for you. I think there's a great difference as well between the needs of indigenous women in very large centres and those in some of the small and medium-sized communities throughout Quebec, and also Canada. Sometimes we forget the realities of some of the smaller urban centres. Again, they don't fall in that on-reserve category, but they're not in the large cities either.
Would you speak to some of the solutions that you maybe would suggest for people who live in those small and medium-sized communities as well?
Viviane Michel
View Viviane Michel Profile
Viviane Michel
2020-07-24 14:30
I’d be happy to tell you about it. You may know that at Quebec Native Women, we do a lot of public education. For example, the word "reserve" has not been around for decades; we now talk about the "community,” and I am simply telling you this to give you this wonderful lesson. It is a community.
Within the communities, there is obviously a great deal to be done. In cases of conjugal violence, for example, we are very much being asked to denounce it. One of the problems we can encounter in cases of conjugal violence or family violence is that there are times when the aboriginal police officer is the aggressor’s brother. We all know each other in a community. You can see where that can lead us.
We don’t have a lot of police officers. I know Mr. Picard will tell you all about it. At the same time, the ties of kinship and acquaintance are very strong. Everybody knows each other, and sometimes, the victim doesn’t even want to file a complaint because the police officer is the brother of her attacker, of her husband and so on. These are difficulties that are found within communities. Moreover, in Quebec, we have 54 communities, and not all of them have their own aboriginal police force.
Recently, I saw a report from a Mohawk nation that had a Mohawk police force. According to that report, for years, there were no deaths, no killings committed by them in their community. I think that’s a good example that shows—
View Gary Vidal Profile
CPC (SK)
Thank you for that, Minister.
I would just comment that, from many of the people I've talked to, it seems that some of the support for indigenous businesses came almost as an afterthought and wasn't part of the original consultation. That's just some criticism I'm hearing from people on the ground. I pass that on.
I'm going to move on to my second question, also for Minister Miller. As you're well aware, northern Saskatchewan is home to many friendship centres that offer essential programs to urban indigenous people. In March, the government announced the application-based program for urban indigenous organizations to receive funding, which you referred to in your comments today.
The concern I heard from friendship centres was that it was weeks before they heard from the government, and then they received a small fraction of what they'd asked for. On May 21, you did announce some additional funding for urban indigenous organizations, but again, I'm hearing from these people on the ground, who could potentially be recipients and who have great work to do, but they've heard nothing from the government since the announcement. There's no idea of the timing or the outcome of this.
Can you clarify for us and for these organizations when they might actually get answers and when they might see some of this additional funding to support the urban indigenous people in their communities?
View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Gary, this is very important. We made this $15-million commitment in an area of jurisdiction that is shared among municipalities, provinces and the federal government, and we realized quite quickly that the federal government had to step up, so in addition to the $15 million we announced an additional $75 million going into urban indigenous centres, serving people who need to be served by all members in all jurisdictions, provinces and territories.
It is a gap that we have tried to fill as quickly as possible. It doesn't necessarily fall under the mandate of Indigenous Services Canada, but it is something we have to reflect on. It hasn't prevented us from moving, and it hasn't prevented us from investing. If you have a particular case that you would like to address, I would be glad to get back to you. We will be deploying—
Marlene Poitras
View Marlene Poitras Profile
Marlene Poitras
2020-06-12 11:08
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Good morning.
[Witness spoke in Cree as follows:]
????????? ?????
[Cree text translated as follows:]
I thank you all.
[English]
I thank you for the opportunity to address you from the heart of Treaty 6 territory. I represent a region fully encompassed by treaty numbers 6, 7 and 8.
These treaties are more than just agreements between our nations to share the land and live in peaceful co-existence. They are living, breathing relationships that form the basis of your Constitution to this day.
I raise this because many nations are the beneficiaries of the clauses in their treaties, including for the provision of medicine and assistance in times of pestilence. While financial aid and resources have moved quickly to first nations and the collaboration and communication of our regional office have been commendable, Canada continues to fail to meet its commitments and obligations to our treaty relationship, even during a specific circumstance when the Crown promised to support us in a way that we needed.
First nations are being recognized for how they have addressed this crisis. By setting up borders, curfews and other security measures, first nations have fared better statistically speaking than Canadians, but, as one of my colleagues recently said at a meeting, this is not only because of an overabundance of caution, but in fact that the response that so many have celebrated was also born out of necessity.
Our leaders put those extraordinary measures in place because we still have homes that house upwards of 15 people. We have elders who could perish from this disease, and there is never enough time to transmit the knowledge they carry. We have a disproportionate number of people who suffer from chronic illnesses, and we have communities where people can't even properly wash their hands. The list goes on and on.
If it's not a clear sign that systemic racism is alive and well in Canada, I don't know what else this country needs to hear to finally take action on the gross inequality that exists between Canada and first nations.
The fact is that when the indigenous community support fund was rolled out, Canada used a funding formula that only accounted for first nations on-reserve members when it very well has the ability to account for all first nations members both on and off reserve. This is proof that Canada is only willing to recognize our nationhood within the confines of a reserve. How can a government purport to support nation rebuilding when it intentionally finds ways to limit our authority and jurisdiction to borders it determines?
To make matters worse, our leaders scrambled to pass public health orders and laws to safeguard communities from this virus. Some of them in Alberta had to expend exorbitant amounts of own-source revenue to hire security teams to protect their communities. When law enforcement agencies were called to support these public health measures, some refused and said our laws weren't enforceable or, worse, were unconstitutional.
How can we ever be true nation-to-nation partners if Canada is unwilling to accept our laws as equal to its own? This country already recognizes two legal systems, civil and common. It is not unreasonable to expect the same for ours. Let me remind you that if Canada didn't recognize our treaties, you wouldn't have a Constitution.
As we begin the phased reopening of our societies and start working toward economic recovery, we recommend that there be increased availability of testing for first nations people; that first nations-specific assessment guidelines for testing, contact tracing, treatment and vaccinations be designed with first nations technicians, leaders and knowledge keepers; that first nations be able to determine their data needs and that those be responded to appropriately for planning subsequent health crises.
This latter point is critical to self-determination because first nations have not been the first to find out when a confirmed case is in their community. The province continues to hold that information, which then goes to Canada, and finally to the first nation.
Moreover, tracking of cases by Alberta Health reflects first nations on and off reserve, yet the source of information is outdated and is still based on the old Alberta health care data arrangement. Similarly, census data from 2016 is still used as the base number of our populations. Those numbers aren't accurate because many first nations don't actively participate in the census.
Last, distinct funding must be provided to support first nations businesses with the recovery, and we must be active participants in the rebuilding of our economies. I say this because I keep hearing that people can’t wait until things get back to normal, but there’s a part of me that says normal didn’t do us justice. Normal meant injustices for our people; it meant underinvestment in our communities; it meant the exploitation of our lands without our consent.
We now have an opportunity to work together to make things better: to develop our solutions, to develop our laws and to develop whatever it is we need to ensure our people can benefit and thrive. The only way that is going to happen is if our treaty partners come to the table and we work together effectively and efficiently in true partnership.
Thank you. Ay Hiy. Nanaskomin.
View Bill Morneau Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Before I begin, I'd like to once again thank the members of the committee for their continued work during this particularly challenging period for all of us.
The pandemic continues, obviously, to have serious economic impacts across Canada. For many Canadians, the pandemic has brought about unprecedented uncertainty: uncertainty about their jobs and their financial security and uncertainty about making ends meet.
Today marks three months since the Prime Minister announced the first elements of Canada's COVID-19 response plan. From the very beginning, we've maintained an unwavering commitment to supporting Canadian households and businesses. We've rolled out measures for workers and businesses across all sectors and for employers of all sizes. We've worked and are continuing to work closely with local, provincial, territorial and indigenous partners to minimize the health, economic and social impacts of COVID-19.
Now, three months into the crisis, there are some encouraging signs in Canada that the spread of the virus is slowing down. Many provinces and territories in Canada are beginning to cautiously reopen their economies, something that the finance ministers are telling me in my weekly calls is really beginning across the country, but we're not out of the woods yet. COVID-19 continues to pose significant risks to Canadians and, of course, to our economy.
That is why our government continues to take action to reduce the impact of COVID-19. Our goals remain the same: to protect Canadians, support Canadian workers and businesses, and support our communities to ensure that Canada is ready to bounce back when we emerge from this crisis.
I'd like to highlight some of the measures we've recently announced.
Earlier this month, the Prime Minister announced that funding for the federal gas tax fund has been brought forward this year. The gas tax fund is a permanent source of funding that is provided to the provinces and territories. The provinces and territories then disburse the money to municipalities to support various local priorities.
Usually, the federal government transfers the money in two instalments, one during the summer and the other a few months later. We know that this year the municipalities need the money now so that they can deal with the crisis caused by COVID-19.
In the next few weeks, $2.2 billion from the federal gas tax fund will go to Canadian municipalities: money that will help municipalities move forward with infrastructure projects that will improve quality of life, help restart local economies and create good jobs. We understand that more will be needed to help municipalities, as many are facing significant COVID-19-related financial pressures, but we know that this is an important first step. We'll keep working with provinces and territories in order to help support municipalities.
As the provinces and territories gradually get their economies back on track, our top priority remains protecting the health of Canadians. That is why we have begun negotiations with our provincial and territorial counterparts to ensure that any reopening takes place while protecting the health of Canadians and minimizing the risk of transmission of the virus.
In particular, we are working with the provinces and territories to ensure that all Canadians can have paid sick days. People need to be able to stay home if they have symptoms of COVID-19 without worrying about how they're going to pay their bills.
We also continue to ship equipment across the country, such as surgical masks and gloves, and provide support to the provinces and territories in testing for COVID-19.
As we continue our discussions with our provincial counterparts to make sure Canadians can get back to work safely, we'll also be focused on the following areas: testing and contact tracing; making sure there is personal protective equipment, so Canadians are safe on the job; support for child care; support for vulnerable people, like those in long-term care facilities; and support for cities and municipalities. We know we all need to work together.
Throughout the pandemic, one thing has been clear: we've all been touched by this crisis.
Last week, the Prime Minister announced that seniors eligible for old-age security in the guaranteed income supplement will receive their special one-time tax-free payment during the week of July 6. Seniors eligible for the OAS pension will receive a payment of $300. Those eligible for the GIS, who are the most vulnerable, will receive an additional $200.
The pandemic has also heightened and highlighted the additional challenges already facing indigenous peoples in our country. We're working with first nations, Inuit and Métis communities to address their specific needs. Since we last met, our government has announced additional funding to support indigenous peoples. This includes an additional $75 million in supports for organizations that provide services to indigenous people in urban centres and off reserve, and an additional $650 million to support communities on health care, income support and new shelters for women.
This builds on measures already announced to support the public health response in indigenous communities, as well as the support to indigenous businesses and aboriginal financial institutions.
The measures to help Canadians that were recently announced, and which I just mentioned, are in addition to the measures that were previously put in place. These are measures that we continue to improve. For example, we continue to improve the Canada emergency wage subsidy. Last month, we proposed that the program be extended to August 29.
In recent weeks, the government has also held consultations with representatives of business, labour, non-profit organizations and charities. We want to see what improvements can be made to the program. The Canada emergency wage subsidy has already helped more than 2.6 million Canadians keep or return to their jobs.
The key objectives of any potential changes to the Canada emergency wage subsidy would be to maximize employment to ensure that the program reflects the immediate needs of employers and to support the post-crisis economic recovery.
Overall, our government's swift and comprehensive actions through the COVID-19 economic response plan are providing more than $150 billion in direct support to Canadians. This, coupled with liquidity support of $85 billion through tax and duty deferrals, represents support equivalent to more than 10% of our GDP. This has put Canada at the forefront of our international peers in the robustness of our response. We've done this because we believe that, by investing in Canadians now, we stand well prepared for success in the economic recovery to come.
While there is reason to be optimistic, we must all continue to take precautions to control the spread of the virus. As provinces, territories, municipalities and businesses begin to gradually reopen, we'll stand ready to support them to make sure Canadians remain safe and supported. Our government will be there with Canadians every step of the way.
I would now be pleased to take questions from the members.
View Kristina Michaud Profile
BQ (QC)
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
First, I would like to thank the witnesses.
My question is for Mr. Cardinal.
Mr. Cardinal, I would like to say a few words about the divide in the regions. You touched briefly on this subject earlier when you brought up the third example. You said that members not living on a reserve do not have access to federal support, and that this particularly affects them in times of crisis.
Could you tell us more about that?
Éric Cardinal
View Éric Cardinal Profile
Éric Cardinal
2020-06-09 18:33
Everywhere, but especially in the regions, First Nations people live either in communities—on reserve, as they say—or outside of them. They receive services from either the provincial or federal government. So there is already some confusion, sometimes, as to who should provide services to members of certain First Nations. With the current crisis, members are looking to their government, which in most cases is the First Nations council. The council has to ensure the health and safety of its members, which creates competition of sorts between governments. Ultimately, it is a question of resources, especially financial resources.
The people of La Nation Micmac de Gespeg, as I mentioned, do not live on a reserve because they do not meet the criteria of the Indian Act and that means they do not receive the financial support that other First Nations receive. Therefore, the council cannot help its own members. These First Nations members are then referred to other forms of government support—provincial, municipal or federal. This is a major challenge right now, in my opinion.
View Kristina Michaud Profile
BQ (QC)
How can we rectify this problem? We talk about recognizing the council and that form of government. Of course, the crisis underscores this difficulty, but it was there long before the crisis.
What should the government do to help these people who are not sure where to turn at this point?
Éric Cardinal
View Éric Cardinal Profile
Éric Cardinal
2020-06-09 18:34
To the question of recognition we must add the question of concrete resources.
It is a pervasive issue: because of the way government works, it is very difficult to recognize First Nations self-government. Not only do we have to look beyond the Indian Act, but we also have to go even further. It takes a truly political relationship between federal officials, governments, and First Nations representatives.
Your role as a committee is very important, and I thank you for the work that you do. It is useful right now.
View Pam Damoff Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Chair, since the pandemic began, I've been working with urban indigenous organizations to ensure that they have the support they need to deliver their services. The majority of indigenous people in Canada live in urban areas or off reserve, and we know that they're facing unique challenges. Organizations like the Toronto Aboriginal Support Services Council have had to change their service delivery models to provide food, shelter and culturally appropriate services.
Recently the Prime Minister announced $75 million to support indigenous peoples living in urban centres and off reserve. This funding is in addition to the $15 million allocated in March to urban indigenous organizations.
June is National Indigenous History Month, and on June 18 I will be hosting author Jesse Thistle to talk about his memoir From the Ashes, which highlights many of the issues that indigenous peoples face in urban centres.
I'm proud of what our government is doing and I know there is still more work to do.
Amanda Meawasige
View Amanda Meawasige Profile
Amanda Meawasige
2020-05-26 17:31
That's a really great question.
I think one of the underserved populations is our off-reserve first nation membership. That's a gap in terms of.... A lot of pressure is faced at the first nation community level to respond from reserve, even though there isn't the adequate funding there to provide on-reserve residents with adequate assistance.
That's one of the vulnerable populations we're hearing about.
Our data collection process, in collaboration with the provincial government, is to try to accurately track those types of people. The data-sharing agreement we've created with the province allows us to know all first nations, whether they're on reserve or off reserve, and that will allow us to tailor a better response and have better surveillance, and appropriate health services will be provided.
View Pam Damoff Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you, Chair.
Thank you to all our witnesses for being here.
I want to start by acknowledging that I'm on the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.
I want to begin by talking a little about jurisdiction. Last week we had the B.C. First Nations Health Authority with us, and Ms. Meawasige, as Mr. Viersen mentioned, you sit on the First Nations Health and Social Secretariat in Manitoba, and you've talked about collaboration there. From Chief Mckenzie's remarks, I don't think they're having the same kind of collaboration in Quebec that we've seen in B.C. and in Manitoba.
Something that has come up repeatedly from witnesses is the ability to determine the impact off-reserve for indigenous peoples in Canada. You mentioned that data is being collected in Manitoba. How did that data collection come about, and how well is that going?
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