By Bryan Eneas

RCAP made strides, but much work remains: commissioner

Nov 30, 2016 | 1:00 PM

Twenty years later, the Royal Commission of Aboriginal Peoples has made some strides for Indigenous peoples, but many issues from those days still exist today.

Mary Sillett, the youngest commissioner of seven, called her participation the highlight of her career and said it was an honour to be selected. She said her age was a reflection of the status of the Inuit population.

“That’s the story of us all. Many of us that were young at the time had the academic and other skills that were necessary to aspire to those positions,” Sillett said. “Yes, I was the youngest one, but I was the youngest one for a long time, not only with the royal commission but within my own circles as well.”

After leading several different Inuit organizations, and working with Inuit peoples at the community, provincial and federal levels, Sillett brought a wealth of experience and knowledge to the commission.

Sillett sees the investigations into the High Arctic Exiles as a win brought about by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.

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The High Arctic Exiles saw the relocation of Inuit from Northern Quebec to the North West Territories in the 1950s as a method of establishing “human flag poles” to declare northern sovereignty. The federal government argued these people were relocated by their own choice, and they were provided adequate means for survival.

“I’m glad that this file was successful. I’m glad that the federal government provided them an apology and provided them with compensation for the survivors,” Sillett said. “There were [also] monies dedicated to healing.”

She also praised the Liberal government of the day for bolstering Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada programing through Gathering the Strength.

Despite these wins, she said many of the issues which the commission dealt with, still exist today.

“I think there is a collective conclusion that more has to be done,” Sillett said. “We knew that some of these recommendations could be implemented easily, but that there were more difficult recommendations that would require negotiations that would require changing of laws; that would require a long time.”

Sillett said the commission left a legacy of research which can be used by future generations.

“Of course they have much more technology now to distribute that [information],” Sillett said. “That can be used for example in the schools, in the research field, in the libraries.”

Sillett called for all Canadians to put pressure on politicians to implement positive changes for the Indigenous community.

Bryan.Eneas@jpbg.ca

On twitter: @BryanEneas