By Bryan Eneas

PAGC Conference: The code of silence

Jan 17, 2017 | 3:54 PM

During a gathering hosted at the Senator Allen Bird Memorial Centre, Indigenous leaders and youth are learning about the treaties their ancestors signed into and the effect they have today.

Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Senator Sol Sanderson says some of these documents enforce “the code of silence” among First Nations in Canada. Sanderson said it’s time to break the code of silence and take back the sovereignty of Indigenous peoples.

“We need to implement our sovereignty. We have inherent rights and inherent sovereignty as granted to us by the Creator,” Sanderson said.

When Sanderson talks about sovereignty, he speaks about it on a large scale. From an Indigenous justice system to Indigenous driven education systems and economic relations, Sanderson said its time to take back every sector of governance.

Sanderson said such a goal could be accomplished with the right supports in place.

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“How do we do that?” Sanderson asked. “We need the financing, we need our own budgets but we need matching dollars like the non-Indians get. The feds are prorating matching dollars to the provinces, territorial government and municipalities but we’re not included in that.”

What is the Code of Silence?

The code of silence, as Sanderson sees it, consists of documents dating back to the Doctrine of Discovery. The Doctrine of Discovery was used by the colonial powers of England, Spain, Portugal and France to divide the “new world” they were discovering.

Following the Doctrine of Discovery, came the 1830 Detribalization policies of the same colonial powers.

The detribalization policies address “civilization, integration, Christianization and liquidation” of Indigenous peoples according to Sanderson.

Sanderson said these two documents led to the issuing of a Papal Bull by a Pope in the 14th century. The issue gave colonizers the ability to carry out actions as if it were “God’s Will.”

“The Papal Bull said Indigenous people are not human or Christian. Because Indigenous people are not human, they don’t have sovereignty in government; they don’t have title to land and resources,” Sanderson said.

He said the Doctrine of Discovery and the 1830 Detribalization policies are the foundation of many policies, legislation and laws in Canada today. He said many of the social issues such as addictions, gangs and poverty which exist on reserves, in one way or another, can be traced back to these policies.

Sanderson said the themes of his presentations throughout 2017 will be “our way for the next seven generations.” He said he will continue to look at what he sees as the code of silence throughout Canada’s 150th anniversary celebrations.

Bryan Eneas is paNow’s Indigenous reporter. He can be reached at Bryan.Eneas@jpbg.ca or on Twitter: @BryanEneas.