Senate Committee Hears First Nations Status Debate

Senate Committee Hears First Nations Status Debate

Tuesday, December 07, 2010 at 14:17

 

 

Ottawa’s Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights got an earful yesterday on the issue of First Nations citizenship.

 

A number of speakers from different Aboriginal organizations took turns telling committee members why they didn’t like Bill C-3.

 

The pending legislation is designed to even the playing field for Aboriginal women hoping to pass First Nations status onto their children.

 

A court in B.C. has ruled certain clauses in the Indian Act discriminate against the descendants of First Nations women who marry non-Native men, and must be changed by January.

 

However, Aboriginal groups say there are many problems with the bill and it still discriminates against women.

 

Jody Wilson-Raybould, a regional chief with the Assembly of First Nations, told the committee the issue of citizenship should be left solely to the First Nations themselves.

 

Human rights expert Gwen Brodsky says the legislation is a minor improvement to the old system and she’s tired of incremental changes.

 

Conservative Senator Patrick Brazeau asked Brodsky and others if they would be willing to admit the bill would give roughly 45,000 people the right to be identified “as who they truly are”.

 

Many of the invited speakers responded by asking why the government hasn’t set aside any money to help bands deal with the expected influx of new members.

 

The National Association of Friendship Centres told committee members it’s worried about the legislation’s impact.

 

The association’s Mike Hollis notes many friendship centres were overwhelmed when Bill C-31 awarded citizenship to thousands of people in the 1980s — and he’s worried the same thing will happen again.