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Guests and Links      Mail       Download mp3 (right click and choose 'Save Target As')    

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Introduction

The Idle No More demonstrations, and the protest of Chief Theresa Spence, both combined have brought the whole question of First Nations and aboriginal issues clearing to the front of the news and the attention of the government and citizens of Canada.

The factors underlying the great clash, and they are many, are emotional in part, historical in depth, invoke race and culture .. and, they have so long been unresolved - from the perspective of First Nations peoples and all Canadians -- no wonder then that the whole matter is so highly charged and sensitive.

Last week brought matters to something of a public climax - demostrations, negotiations over the shifting demnds of Chief Spence, division within First Nations - or a lack of symmetry between the goals of the protest and the goals of the First Nations and their chief, Shawn Atleo.

They also involve politics - the strained relations, apparently between the Stephen Harper government, and many in First Nations. Also the backdrop of some politics within First Nations themselves - who speaks for them? Perhaps some spillover from the election of Shawn Atleo a year of so ago.

With all these factors and the always somewhat untidy evolution of the issues and the demands being made for First Nations have made this matter difficult to follow, with an comphrensive understanding of all the forces and influences at play.

What is very clear, is that the issue is now clearly on the top of the agenda, and backed by a pressure and passion not seen over any other issue for some time. There may be opportunity here to break some of the old political patterns and see some new path to resolution. Or it may be that the combination of politics - the view of many towards Mr. Harper's government, and the changing undefined role of the protest may turn to something altogether different. The echo of threats to shut down the Canadian economy, and the frequent invocation of accusations and hard language is also giving a bleak colouring to some of the exchanges.

Today we'd like to speak to some people who know the moevement, some who have a long while participated in native government and its challenges, but most we would like to get some comment and observation from Canadians all over where this is going.

What do you think of the Idle No More protests?

What did you think of Shawn Atleo's meeting, along with some of the chiefs ...and the Prime Minister?

Do you think real change will follow this? What do you think of Mr. Harper's dealing with the protest and its demands ...of Friday's meeting? Who speaks for Idle No More?

What of Chief Spence's protest and her demand for the Governor-General to be a partner in matters of substance? There are so many questions: On the road to seeing justice done on the First Nations' file where are we in this country? Finally, what has government to change, and what do First Nations have to change - both parties owe something to this conflict ...before substantial improvement is seen.

Our question today: "Does the meeting between aboriginal leaders and the Prime Minister mark the start of a new relationship?"

I'm Rex Murphy ...On CBC Radio One and on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 159 ...this is Cross Country Checkup.

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Guests

• Rob Russo
  Ottawa Bureau Chief, Canadian Press
  
  
• Ernie Crey
  Former vice-president of the United Native Nations, veteran aboriginal fishing rights activist and co-author of the award-winning Stolen from Our Embrace: The Abduction of First Nations Children and the Restoration of Aboriginal Communities in Chilliwack, B.C.
  
  
• Robert Nault
  Former Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development under Jean Chretien, now consultant to Indian bands on development issues.
  
  
• Beverley Clifton-Percival
  Treaty negotiator and "gwaans" hereditary chief for the Gitsxan Nation in Hazelton, BC
  
  
• Jody Wilson-Raybould
  Regional Chief of the B.C. Assembly of First Nations. She is a member of the We Wai Kai Nation. She attended the Friday meeting with the Prime Minister.

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Links

CBC.ca

• Quebec Grand Chief calls on Spence to end hunger strike
• Idle No More protests continue, with larger events planned
• Read AFN executive's 8 points of consensus (pdf)
• Stephen Harper, First Nations and an opportunity lost, by Chris Hall
• First Nations meeting with PM thrown into disarray
• Native voices on the pressure to fix Canada's oldest relationship
• 9 questions about Idle No More
• 6 landmark rulings on native rights
• In Depth: The treaties - a summary
• Background: The Indian Act
• Federal Court grants rights to Métis, non-status Indians

National Post

• Harper's commitment to treaty talks will bring fundamental change, Atleo says
• Separate and equal nations: The academic theory behind Idle No More, by Joseph Brean
• Native dignity will come only from self-sufficiency, not grand gestures in Ottawa, by Jonathan Kay
• Harper's commitment to treaty talks will bring fundamental change, Atleo says
• Separate and equal nations: The academic theory behind Idle No More, by Joseph Brean
• Native dignity will come only from self-sufficiency, not grand gestures in Ottawa, by Jonathan Kay
• Fresh road and rail blockade threats as chaos and confusion mar First Nations meeting
• Paul Martin's First Nations hypocrisy, by Jonathan Kay
• Theresa Spence's hunger strike obscures the key First Nations issue: resource revenue sharing, by John Ivison
• Theresa Spence's carefully woven cause starts to unravel, by Kelly McParland
• Attawapiskat audit shows questionable spending practices
• Stephen Harper must bolster moderates as true voice of native Canadians, by Andrew Coyne
• Idle No More movement is a dispute between rival factions in the aboriginal community, by Andrew Coyne
• Chances of progress on native concerns appear slim amid chaos of competing factions, by Kelly McParland
• Harper's aboriginal challenge has just begun, by Michael Den Tandt
• Idle No More

Globe and Mail

• Governor-General offers chief 'special welcome' at ceremonial meeting
• Harper, chiefs to meet amid chaos, protests
• Mr. Harper, one short meeting won't end native protests, by Russell Diabo
• Eight first nations come to agreement with Ottawa on land rights
• Editorial: Native groups wrong to insist that Governor-General attend meeting
• We natives are deeply divided. There's nothing wrong with that, by Hayden King
• Idle No More only sounds vague. Let's talk specifics, by Chelsea Vowel

Ottawa Citizen

• Prime minister, aboriginal chiefs meet as protests continue
• Vandalism mars $870K funding announcement for John A. Macdonald bicentennial
• Idle No More or the Demon Harper? There's another choice, by Terry Glavin

Winnipeg Free Press

• Harper's Conservatives see possible common ground with Idle No More movement
• One quarter of Canada's First Nations are under financial scrutiny by feds
• Mulcair engaged, if not visible, on aboriginal protests, hosts chiefs' meeting

Toronto Star

• The real story behind Attawapiskat's problems, by Thomas Walkom
• Meeting with PM only course for First Nations leadership, by Chantal Hébert
• Prime Minister Stephen Harper knows there must be progress at summit with First Nations leaders
• Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence won't attend meeting with Stephen Harper
• First Nations leaders want in on natural resources boom

Regina Leader Post

• Harper-First Nations meeting was only Round One in a long, hard haul
• Pressure mounts on Shawn Atleo, the quiet man at centre of First Nations storm

Edmonton Sun

• Theresa Spence shows no interest in taking ownership of issues, by Lorne Gunter

Vancouver Sun

• Rift opens among First Nations chiefs

Macleans

• What is known about Chief Spence

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E-MAIL

 

I suggest that our governments, both federal and provincial, do nothing else until all Native treaties are dealt with. Yes, it will be a lot of work. But it has to be done. The future of all of this country depends on it. Piecemeal treaties, laws, and agreements obviously have not worked. If it takes two years to get all of this researched, discussed, re-written and signed,then it takes two years. Sometimes things have to be completely done over. This is the time.

Barbara
Toronto, Ontario

 

I wish someone would stand up to these people. They only wish to cause havoc and are not reasonable. I am disappointed the Prime Minister agreed to meet with them. Enough is enough already. The law should be enforced if they carry out their threats.

Robin
St. John's, Newfoundland

 

This is not a new beginning. It is merely a resumption of the dialogue that resulted in the Kelowna Accord that Harper repudiated. Several years have been lost while the situation has festered. Had the dialogue continued forward from the Kelowna Accord, Idle No More may not have been needed.

There are those who claim Canadian aboriginals are claiming race-based preferences. The dialogue would be on a more factual footing if it acknowledged that Canada owes a great debt to the original landowners who have only received crumbs in return for their lands on which Canadians now enjoy a great prosperity that is largely denied to the original landowners.

George
Turner Valley, Alberta

 

I am frustrated with the inherent bias of reporting on this Idle No MOre protest. Our government provides significant funding to our First Nations people. The funds seem to be spent without controls or for what they were intended. Two Zambonis for Attawaspikat with a population of 1,500? A $56,000 goose hunt takes priority over leakey roofs? Where did all this money go? No one is above the law. Since when did our economic wellbeing become the responsibility of the government? Receiving public funds makes you accountable.
I have had enough. Let us hear both sides of the equation in a more balanced approach.

Greg
Peachland, British Columbia

 

If this is not already being done, why don't you have a program where one spokesman from each of the major nations (I believe there are 600 or more) is invited to state clearly their demands so that we ordinary citizens can recognize what the most common complaints for the government to address are, if they are not already being accounted for? And also to question the counteraction to cases of corruption and nepotism which seem to be widespread among the nations.

Gordon
Calgary, Alberta

 

In all this talk about Mr. Atleo's problems in dealing with the issues at hand, and with those First Nations leaders who don't seem to agree with his leadership, I feel you are overlooking one person who is having a worse time. That is, John Duncan, the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs. Mr. Duncan has been largely invisible during this whole time except when he held a press conference after the meeting between Mr. Harper and the First Nation's leaders. In that press conference, he mumbled and stalled and generally made no sense when answering the questions from the floor.

You have asked about changes that need to be made. I would suggest that Mr. Duncan should be sent back to the back benches where he belongs and that Mr. Harper bring forth someone with the intelligence and understanding to work with First Nations. Duncan has shown that he is not that person.

Lorne
Cumberland, British Columbia

 

I believe the current government's obsession with the economy, and the need for prosperity at all costs, has been sold to most Canadians. We need people to stand up for the values that make this country great and Idle No More is bringing our attention to issues that are very important to all Canadians and not just the First Nations.

I do not agree with most of Stephen Harper's policies but I do think that he is still the smartest man in the room. If he really wants to solve these issues then perhaps he should put aside the partisan politics and get Paul Martin involved in attempting to find some real solutions.

Charley
Haida Gwaii, British Columbia

 

I hope Friday's meeting will be the starting point for negotiations which will eventually result in improved conditions for our First Nation people. For several years now third-world conditions on reserves here in Canada has been Canada's shame around the world. I believe the federal government, not just the present Conservative government but Canadian government for decades, has ignored our Native peoples' living conditions. I believe our government and many Canadians would like to see First Nations people integrate into our society and abandon the reserves altogether. After all, wasn't this the general purpose of the Residential School System in the first place? Again I am hopeful the meeting Friday and the pressure of the Idle No More movement will force the issue, but I'm not holding my breath.

Ken
Trenton, Ontario

 

From my experience, and observing the recent events resulting in the meeting, it remains my opinion that it is the reponsibility of the Aboriginal people to provide managment and accountability of their affairs first. Secondly, the continuing special status relied upon by Aboriginals must end and they must participate in society as Canadians like the rest of us. Then some constructive progress in their culture and their relationship with fellow Canadians may result.

Ronald
Bakers Narrows, Manitoba

 

The people in government and Aboriginal leadership roles that will sit down to discuss this issue are to be commended. Those that choose to stand on the side deserve whatever outcomes are achieved which I expect, given the commitments demonstrated by those that want to make a difference, will be positive.

Those who blame the Prime Minister for this are hypocritical in their comments. This situation has been somewhere on the agenda of all prime ministers for decades. To single one out is ludicrous. Finally, one will try to resolve issues and make it important. Yes, he will have to deal with other national issues, but to say he doesn't get it does, in my view, show the narrowmindedness of many.

The best comment I've heard is that we need to reset the relationship of Aboriginals with the other occupants of Canada. The government is strictly the vehicle for doing so. The outcomes will test the principles of equality and fairness. A simple example is education. A single family wage earner (with three kids) who heard that his taxes were going to pay for free university education while he is mortgaging his house to pay for his kids was not happy.  So the outcomes need to reflect how we serve the whole needs of people, not just assign responsiblity and money to specific activities.

The First Nations people I work with don't want handouts, they want to be treated fairly. Those Aboriginals that want the government to fix everything with money are just doing what they've been condition to do because of the inadequacies (one could say mistakes) of previous decisions. However, if one assumes that most politicians truly want to do the right thing (despite those who create lots of opportunity to raise the inadequacies of humans) then everyone needs to grow up and approach this with open and respectful dialogue.

Jim
Edmonton, Alberta

 

It's apparent from listening to the comments from some of the callers that a lot of work remains to reconcile the relationship between Canada's Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal citizens. A caller referred to the reserve chiefs taking care of their own people. Well, these are our fellow Canadians facing some serious issues - issues that will need to be acknowledged and resolved by all Canadians.

Suzzanne
Calgary, Alberta

 

A Sri Lankan friend once asked me when the mortgage that we were paying to the First Nations would mature and the taxpayers own Canada. I understood his perception, but had no idea what to tell him. Obviously, the free flow of taxpayers' money to the First Nations has solved nothing. The  Prime Minister (of whom I am no fan) has shown willingness to step up to the plate and be accountable. Now the First Nations should get behind Mr. Atleo and establish a real process. It is not just the First Nations who are angry about what has been happening. Some just want to see the factionalism toned down so that all parties can negotiate to real and realistic solutions.

Christine
Mississauga, Ontario

 

I think the focus of the issue is the wrong one. I agree a new path needs to be found but it needs to be predicated on the principle that all Aboriginals in Canada are to be Canadians and receive the same rights and privileges all of us enjoy. What we are trying to breathe life into is the concept that Aboriginals are due special treatment and exist as a group of sovereign nations within the boundaries of Canada. We have created ghettos and an underclass in far too many communities with our current thinking.

Bill
Galiano Island, British Columbia

 

I agree there needs to be more openness and accountability within First Nations self government. However, the convenient timing of releasing the financial information of Chief Spence's band does smack a bit of hypocracy. Our federal government does not have a great track record in terms of openness regarding financial issues. Their attempts to block scrutiny of both the spending of the G8 meeting and costing of the Omnibus crime bill shows we also have a lack of good open governance. Maybe to redress the balance Chief Spence should be allowed to leak these reports just before the next election.

Martin
Calgary, Alberta

 

I am growing tired of the comments, both today and last week, which seem to be trying to distract the issues facing Natives that have been ongoing for over 200 years.These comments continue to try to lay blame or take issue with the governance of the many different bands across a large span of both time and geography. While these comments certainly have merit, there is nothing to be gained by focusing on the negative aspects of the political process, especially when the exact same issues exist in our own governing bodies at all levels.

Today we have a government which is anything but representative of the majority of Canadians. Our current government has been one of the worst managers of public funds ever and seems to have has no interest at all in transparency, even refusing to answer to the office in charge of both public funds and transparency. Lets keep the discussion on how we feel about the issues rather than throw rocks from our glass houses.

Dave
Revelstoke, British Columbia

 

In light of the many threats to Aboriginal Peoples' rights and to the health of Canadian lands and waters that have arisen in the latest Omnibus Bill, I want to express my gratitude to the Idle No More movement for taking a stand. I am part of the majority non-Aboriginal people of Canada. I believe I am one of many who are concerned about the lack of understanding of the Indigenous values and practices that might lead us into a more hopeful future. My hope is that more people will stand with the wise and courageous people who are no longer idle in the face of anti-democratic and socially, environmentally, and economically destructive policies of the present federal govement.

Judith
Winnipeg, Manitoba

 

It was telling that Natural Resources Minister Oliver was absent from the meeting last week. I strongly believe that royalties are anathema to the federal government and that the AFN doesn't have the courage to pursue that whole issue, in concrete terms, finally. The real problem is making things concrete. Last year's meeting was held in response to the Attawapiskat crisis in the first place. The faster we go, the further we don't get.

Ken
Quebec City, Quebec

 

Why else did Harper leak the information if it wasn't to incite folks like the present caller, Julian? Does he care about the $50-million Tony Clement built gazebos and washrooms with in Muskoka? That money was not accounted for and wasn't meant for that in the first place. That would be about half the money sent to Spence. Why was that ok?

Shirley

 

If there were a school on every reserve, the bands wouldn't have to fly and board thousands of kids a year in southern towns across Western Canada, just to finish high school. That's where all that money goes. That fact, coupled with the comparative level of public money spent on everyone else in Canada every year, makes this a no-brainer of public policy.

Kev
Halifax, Nova Scotia

 

As a new immigrant, I would agree with most immigrants that Canada is a land of milk and honey and Canadians are a very fair people. I can't understand why the Aboriginal people are unable to partake in such a vibrant economy. Or am I just naive and missing something?

Bakul
Calgary, Alberta

 

As a Newfoundlander and Labradorian, I feel great affinity with the First Nations people since we know too well of the great sacrifices we have made with our natural resources, especially our fish, minerals, oil and hydroelectricity  which have left our province in the raw state for others to prosper while our economy faltered. It is time for Ottawa to see to it that all regions of Canada are treated fairly, especially those whose natural resources are utilized for specific areas of Canada and the World.

Agnes
St. John's, Newfoundland

 

A Native person's thin privileges have gradually become that same person's poverty. There are no more nickel cokes left for anyone to share. And, more important, no one has changed one dash or dot in the dialogue. This has perpetuated apartheid's misery and exclusion by the colonial designed reserve system of population control, in stark contrast to all of our signatures on the Universal Declaration for Human Rights. Steven Harper and Brian Mulroney are well aware of the damages visited on our Native people and Mr. Harper is now faced with the prospect of starting a needless insurrection and/or racial war where activists will be killed and those who surrender will be branded as terrorists. Paul Martin and Joe Clark - both former prime ministers of Canada - have visited with Chief Spence. They know the anachronistic paradoxes that continually lead us nowhere. It is no wonder we have never been able to become a unified nation. We've never fullfilled every Nation's most basic responsibility, that being tolerance and respect for one another's differences. Winston Churchill once said " It is better to Jaw than to War."

Victoria
Brandon, Manitoba

 

Only one of your callers has mentioned the importance Canadians attach to the Idle No More movement as an ally in their own concern about Harper's onslaught on the environment. The government muzzles and fires scientists and eviscerates the laws of the land which were intended to protect the environment. So long as we have hope the First Nations will fight to protect the land, they are guaranteed support.

Nicholas
Fredricton, New Brunswick

 

Having lived most of my earlier life under apartheid, and finding, on immigrating here some 15 years ago, that Canada has a similar system, although not as violently applied as the South African one, I feel that the only answer is to scrap all treaties and make Canada one nation with one set of laws. Giving certain groups of the population special treatment and laws makes for tension between them, as has happened in the fairly recent past.

Raymond
Winnipeg, Manitoba