First Nation Forum on Citizenship. FSIN: Treaty Governance Office

Transcription

1 First Nation Forum on Citizenship FSIN: Treaty Governance Office

2 Presentation Outline Enfranchisement Background Purpose Current Status Challenges Moving Forward Questions

3 Gradual Enfranchisement Enfranchisement and full citizenship were provided as a reward for becoming civilized Between : only one Indian choose enfranchisement More coercion, including compulsory residential schools that repressed Indian language and culture, were not successful in persuading Indians to give up their Indian status Between : only 250 Indians were enfranchised (military service, university degree, religious orders) 1920: non-consensual enfranchisement and stripping of Indian status (out-marriage) 1960: the Diefenbaker government extended the franchise (the right to vote in federal and provincial elections) Good or bad? Equality or subversion of nationhood (consent to Canadian sovereignty and citizenship)

4 Background to FSIN Initiatives The FSIN has passed 16 resolutions on citizenship between 1981 and 2009, many in reaction to federal legislation, a few on assuming control of citizenship January 2001 FSIN hosted a Membership/Citizenship Symposium as part of the self-government talks June 2009, The FSIN Chiefs Legislative Assembly formed a Chiefs Task Force on Citizenship after the McIvor decision July 2009 FSIN Special Assembly on Citizenship March 2011 TGO began citizenship engagement process as the first step in developing a major FN public policy on citizenship

5 Notes from 2001 Provincial Forum on Citizenship: Regina Part of the Governance Table discussions Presentation by Clatworthy on extinction of Status Indians, impact of classification into 6(2) Terminology has to be clear and accepted (membership, citizenship, blood quantum) After 140 years of Indian Act, major re-education required on inherent rights to govern citizenship and negative impacts Start thinking like indigenous people with kinship ties, community and Tribal connections, traditional adoption, inclusiveness, Treaty-based citizenship where leaders determined the Treaty pay-lists, Need to set a process to develop FN law on citizenship

6 Elders Comments: 2001 There was no membership code. We went according to our language group; Cree, Saulteaux, Dene, Dakota, Lakota, Nakaota. Citizenship means to me that I am Cree and they cannot change that. There is power in our language. If we are going to succeed, we are going to have to succeed using the Indian way. We have to use Cree to govern ourselves and our citizens. The people that wrote the membership rules had no consideration for family and kinship relations. The government would rather look at the paper documentation rather than our relationship. It should be the other way. Within the Nakoda, there were special ceremonies for making of relatives and the society determines it.

7 Purpose of Citizenship Engagement Encourage dialogue on First Nation membership and citizenship Develop guidelines to manage membership and citizenship Develop a framework to set out citizenship laws Where requested, assist First Nations in reviewing existing membership codes and citizenship acts

8 Engagement Sessions The Team has held engagement sessions with the Touchwood Agency, South East Treaty 4, Yorkton, File Hills Qu Appelle, Saskatoon, North Battleford, Meadow Lake, Prince Albert and Agency Chiefs Tribal Councils. A session was held at Stony Rapids with the Dene people of the Athabasca Basin. There will be sessions in Regina and Saskatoon and several with individual FNs that have expressed an interest. We intend to hold a province-wide engagement session before March 31, Process is: presentation, facilitated small group work, questionnaire. A report will go the FSIN Chiefs Assembly in February for further direction from the leadership.

9 Notes from the Engagement Sessions Awareness sessions with FN members/citizens on history, terminology, rights and responsibilities of citizens, Treaty and inherent right to determine citizenship. Capacity building at the FN to manage citizenship and share information and best practices with other FNs, especially those with Citizenship Acts. Important to teach traditional values and community laws that govern relationships and ensure harmony to reconcile traditional and contemporary legal frameworks. Citizenship based on lineage, language, culture, customs, kinship relationships, belonging and acceptance, connection to the land and traditional/treaty territories The majority of participants want the authority for citizenship to be at the FN level with responsibility for administrative support delegated to an aggegrate.

10 Notes continued FN need to codify our own custom adoption practices FN genealogy records are needed Privacy laws related to citizenship records are needed Citizenship managers/administrators must be funded as full time positions and meet regularly to share information and experience FN must focus on inherent and Treaty rights implementation with self-government agreements in place FN must develop our own citizenship laws and have the human and financial resources necessary to administer them effectively, There have to be effective communication strategies and curriculum

11 Challenges Lack of resources Developing citizenship law Systems and capacity to manage citizenship AAND controls registry, definition of Indians, funding, and benefits associated with Status and there is fear of losing that relationship Bill C-31 and the Second Generation Cut-off policies threatens cultural survival but people are slow to react Difficulty in achieving consensus across 74 FNs Working without a self-government framework

12 Membership Membership is determined by: A. The First Nation under s.10 of the Indian Act: Custom Membership Code B. A piece of self-government legislation separate from the Indian Act which determines its own membership/citizenship: MLTC SG Agreement under negotiation C. The Indian Register under s.11 of the Indian Act if neither (A) or (B) has occurred.

13 Current Status In Saskatchewan, 30 First Nation communities have custom membership codes under Section 10 of the Indian Act 44 FNs are under Indian Act Membership Regulations 20 either have or are developing constitutions, which set out areas of jurisdiction

14 Moving Forward 1. Engagement Forum on citizenship issues 2. Develop First Nations Treaty-based Citizenship Acts 3. Phase out the Indian Act registration provisions 4. Establish a permanent First Nation Citizenship Archive 5. Develop a Saskatchewan First Nation Citizenship Card

15 Issues Moving Forward Implementing a citizenship process that does not repeat the failings of previous policies. Develop First Nation Citizenship laws that include: On/off reserve Long term funding agreements Treaty Rights Indian Status Rights

16 Citizenship Considerations Future Generations Criteria Options Protect & Promote Indigenous Identity Commit to learn, maintain & preserve culture Commit to learn language and/or support its use in government, schools, businesses, etc Respecting traditions and practices related to hunting, fishing, gathering, etc Respect both contemporary and traditional ways of being Mi kmaq, Cree, Dene, Ojibway Dr. Pamela D. Palmater

17 Citizenship Considerations Criteria Options Loyalty to Nation Self-identification Family history of selfidentification/connection Oath/tradition/pledge to Nation Knowledge of and commitment to aims, goals of Nation Submit to jurisdiction & laws of Nation, including treaties Record of service jobs, volunteering, representation Civic duty vote, governance, protection, service Directing taxes, fees, etc to FN Help rebuild communities Star Dr. Pamela D. Palmater

18 Citizenship Considerations Adaptation Criteria Options Ancestral Connections Familial ties (birth, adoption) to First Nation families & communities? Marrying-in (Ex. 20+ years)? Inter/intra-FN transfers Inter-intra-provincial transfers? Birth on traditional territory Long-term residency in community or territory Treaty descendants Traditional new confederacies Dr. Pamela D. Palmater

19 Concluding Thoughts Must be our decision not INAC (AADNC) No one-size-fits-all solutions for First Nations Should adapt to modern circumstances (inter-marriage, living off-reserve for work, education) Work on the decolonization process & limitations Indian status vs traditional Indigeneity Reserve land vs. traditional territory Going back to Nation to Nation treaty relations Protecting all our people women included Strength in numbers negotiating power Dr. Pamela D. Palmater

20 Final Comments A long time ago the Elders and the old leaders had deliberate meetings to decide membership and who is to be Treaty. Elder Jacob Bill When my grandfather was a lifetime Chief, he brought in people from Standing Buffalo who didn t have Treaty and when they were voted into the reserve they were given Treaty numbers. That time they made laws of their own. Elder Stanley Pasqua I cannot ever refuse my grandchildren to be Treaty Indians. If I refuse my grandchildren Treaty rights, I will have sinned. Allan Joe Felix

21 Additional Information 1. Alfred, T First Nation Perspectives on Political Identity. Paper presented for First Nation Citizenship Research & Policy Series: Building Towards Change June Clatworthy, Stewart Reassessing the Population Impacts of Bill C-31. Ottawa: Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. 3. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada First Nation Registration (Status) and Membership Research Report. Prepared by the AFN-INAC Joint Technical Working Group. Ottawa: Ministry of Indian and Northern Affairs. 4. Palmater, P Beyond Blood: Rethinking Indigenous Identity. Saskatoon: Purich Publishing. 5. Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Ottawa: Government of Canada. 6. United Nations General Assembly United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.