Editorial

First Nations Governance Act - Further Entrenching Colonialism

On June 14, Minister of Indian Affairs Robert Nault introduced the First Nations Governance Act to the House of Commons. The minister claimed that the Act, which is the first major revision of the Indian Act since the 1982 adoption of the Constitution Act, was necessary in order to bring to an end the colonial relationship of Canada to the First Nations peoples. Both the content of the Act and the manner in which it was drafted suggests something entirely different.

One would expect that someone interested in eliminating the legacy of colonialism would begin the process on a new basis, on the basis of accepting the First Nations peoples as equals and negotiating in good faith. Nault, on the other hand, began the process with a ready-made document drafted by department bureaucrats at Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. When the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) objected, Nault simply cut the national organization out of the process. He also bypassed any local chiefs who opposed his unilateralist approach, organizing direct "community consultations" with various First Nations peoples. He then ignoring their opinions; a year of such "consultations" did not produce any significant changes in the final draft of the legislation. In addition, Nault withdrew funding from the newly-established First Nations Governance Institute, which would have given the First Nations the capacity to study the consequences of the minister's proposals, as well as various alternatives, in a great deal of depth.

So Nault's "consultations" with First Nations peoples began with his exclusion of the entire First Nations leadership from the process and the closing of the sole First Nations institution devoted to studying the issue of governance. Hardly an auspicious start towards eliminating a colonial relationship.

The content of the new Act also fails to inspire confidence in the Minister's "anti-colonial" agenda. Nowhere does it address the problems which Aboriginal peoples face as a result of the destruction of their traditional economies, the suppression of their cultures and the theft of their lands by the Anglo-Canadian state. One would expect this to be the logical starting point in rectifying Canada's colonial legacy. Instead, the legislation suggests that the problems of Aboriginal peoples stem from anti-democratic models of governance and the lack of accountability of the chiefs. There is a certain irony in a minister in Jean Chretien's Liberal cabinet purporting to instruct First Nations peoples on democratic and accountable government. In fact, given the list of Liberal scandals revealed in recent weeks, it would be safe to label it as sheer hypocrisy.

The essence of the governance model being imposed on First Nations people by this Act is the system of representative democracy, which has already proven itself incapable of providing the Canadian people with either representation or democracy. It is also the same system which the Department of Indian Affairs has already imposed on most First Nations communities during the past century of attempts at assimilation and there is no evidence that this model has any better track record than traditional forms of First Nations governance based on a consensus model.

"Accountability" will supposedly be achieved by increasing the powers of the Minister of Indian Affairs to intervene in the business of band councils and by converting bands into the equivalent of municipal governments. Meanwhile, the Chretien Liberals have raised non-accountability to new levels and the neo-liberal policies they are pursuing will ensure that corporations operating in Canada are cannot be held accountable to the Canadian people.

Attempting to impose any model of governance on First Nations peoples is simply a continuation of the centuries-old colonial relationship. Attempting to impose a bureaucratic, obsolete and unworkable model of governance borders on the criminal.

If the Liberals were serious about eliminating Canada's colonial legacy, they would begin by apologizing for the countless injustices suffered by the Aboriginal peoples at the hands of the Canadian state. They would also provide the Aboriginal peoples with the resources they need to develop the capacity not only to govern themselves, but also to enter into negotiations with Canada as equals, not as subordinates. Only on this basis can a new relationship of respect and solidarity be forged between the Aboriginal peoples and the rest of the Canadian people.