Yesterday in the house Jim Prentice (the CPoC Minister of Indian and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians) made the following statement.
Mr. Speaker, on this the 10th anniversary of the royal commission I am pleased to announce that the new Government of Canada is making progress in improving the lives of aboriginal Canadians, unlike the former government.
Frankly, I agree with the AFN, the Auditor General, and virtually every other independent commentator who has remarked on the terrible Liberal grade of F for its failure and disgraceful, shameful abandonment of aboriginal Canadians. Aboriginal Canadians now know they have a government that delivers. No more ducking, dodging, dithering or delaying.
(emphasis mine)
A little later on, during question period in an exchange with the Liberal Member for Winnipeg South Centre, he said
Mr. Speaker, this is a serious matter. We have a remarkable history in the country of signing treaties. Five hundred treaties have been signed over the past 250 years. They sit on a table in this chamber.
The government does not support the declaration because that declaration jeopardizes those treaties, the enforceability and the meaning of them.
No former government in the country has ever taken a different position. To suggest the contrary is pure bunkum.
Further on in the proceedings, during an exchange with the Member for Nanaimo-Cowichan, Minister Prentice states
As I said earlier in my comments, we have a tradition in our country, some 500 treaties signed over 250 years. They are very important to the country.
(emphasis mine)
Quite frankly I am heartened to hear this sort of talk from our government in the house,
- the Minister has acknowledged that the 500 treaties signed over 250 years are “very important to the country”
- the Minister has stated in clear terms that nothing should jeopardize those treaties; and
- the minister has stated that there will be “no more ducking, dodging, dithering or delaying” on Aboriginal matters
At this point Aboriginal leaders across this great nation should also take heart, for as Minister Jim Prentice has stated, the days of ducking, dodging, dithering, with regard to Aboriginal treaties that are important to the country are over.
Excellent!
I guess that means that he’s changed his mind about NOT acting on Justice Berger’s two volumes of recommendations regarding the Government’s failure to implement the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement. He held off on that for “further study” (funny, I thought the Berger investigation WAS the further study.)
And I guess he’s going to go ahead with the recommendations of the Federally appointed Kashechewan investigation (the one he refused to comment on because it needed more “consultation”.)
Incidentally, to any of our Conservative friends with access to the Party flaks… this business of launching EVERY FUCKING SPEECH IN THE HOUSE with a refernce to how naughty the “former Liberal Government” was is really, REALLY starting to grate on my nerves. And I don’t even like the Liberals.