AFN Assembly to feature election for National Chief

Incumbent Perry Bellegarde, from the Little Black Bear First Nation in the Treaty 4 territory is seeking re-election as national chief. Should he be re-elected, he will see his second term as the head of the organization.

With the Trudeau Liberal government promising change, Bellegarde said no matter what happens, Indigenous people will always have inherent and treaty rights.

“As treaty people, we say they’ve never been honoured and implemented and enforced according to their spirit and intent,” Bellegarde said. “For us, we say, we need to move beyond the Indian Act; as an advocate, we see some progress being made on certain fronts.”

Bellegarde noted the gaps which exist between Indigenous and non-Indigenous education and healthcare need to close, which would in turn, reflect the government’s commitment to honouring and implementing the treaty rights promised in the numbered treaty agreements.

He said as an advocate in the National Chief’s position, the implementation of treaty rights are discussions best held at the national and even international levels by looking at treaty tribunals.

“Our treaties are with Crown of Great Britain not with Canada, so these are nation-to-nation agreements and so we have to look at the international aspect from these treaties as well,” Bellegarde said, noting the international community needs to put pressure on the nation-state of Canada for treaty implementation.

Moving forward, various officials in the federal government have discussed the possibility of moving beyond the Indian Act, which has dictated Indigenous people’s lives since it was implemented in 1857.

Bellegarde said one-size will not fit all when it comes to moving beyond the legislation and a flexible approach needs to be taken by all parties involved in those discussions.

The incumbent candidate said mental health and the suicide crisis being faced by Indigenous communities in Saskatchewan and across the country is something which needs to be recognized on a global scale.

He said the short-term and immediate needs of communities dealing with the crisis have to be addressed.

“That’s where you need a two-pronged strategy with the federal government and the provincial governments, and I hope they break down the jurisdiction [dispute],” Bellegarde said. “Resources are needed immediately.”

On the subject of housing, Bellegarde said Indigenous communities need good, quality, affordable housing. He noted the conditions many Indigenous people face is terrible.

He said the AFN is working to apply pressure to the appropriate ministers to ensure the proper measures are in place to fix the housing conditions on reserves.

“You’ve got to have an affordable, accessible housing strategy on the reserve, but as well, off the reserve in urban centres as well,” Bellegarde said. “Work is being done to see that happen.”

Diabo on Treaty rights, moving beyond Indian Act, Mental Wellness and Housing

Russell Diabo, a Mohawk policy analyst, is one of four opponents Bellegarde is facing in his bid for re-election.

Diabo said he feels the incumbent candidate has not been working to uphold the promises of the numbered treaties, something Diabo identified as Bellegarde’s job in the national chief position.

“I would say the incumbent hasn’t been doing his job because the Trudeau government has basically been ignoring the treaties and pushing legislation instead, which is being unilaterally developed, not mutually developed,” Diabo said.

He noted as the national chief, he would push the Trudeau government to focus on upholding the terms of the numbered treaties as opposed to pushing towards modern treaty agreements.

When moving beyond the Indian Act, Diabo said the process needs to be slowed down to allow bands across the country to catch up with the government’s quick pace in developing inherent rights policies and framework.

“The breaks need to be put on that, because our communities and Indigenous nations haven’t been involved and know very little about what’s going on with that legislation,” Diabo said, noting any legislation which passes will affect generations to come.

Diabo said as the national chief is an advocacy position, he would advocate on behalf of Indigenous people when it comes to finding an end to the national suicide crisis plaguing reserves.

He said the issue can be tracked back to the poverty Indigenous people face, along with what he called the historical denial of rights which has occurred in Canada.

Diabo noted the mental health issues and the poor quality of housing on reserves track back to systemic neglect by the federal government over the years.

Addressing jurisdictional disputes between provinces and the federal government is also something Diabo hopes to achieve, should he be elected as the AFN’s National Chief.

“The government is not recognizing First Nations jurisdiction, they’re trying to impose a municipal model of government,” Diabo said. “For many communities, they’re just not economically viable on the existing land base that they were forced under.”

In an attempt for balance, paNOW reached out to all five candidates for the National Chief position within the Assembly of First Nations (AFN). Representatives from Shelia North and Miles Richardson’s campaigns did not respond to a list of specific questions; Katharine Whitecloud did not respond to a request for comment.

Bryan.Eneas@jpbg.ca
On Twitter: @BryanEneas

by Bryan Eneas

AFN Assembly to feature election for National Chief

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