Treaty 3 grand chief speaks out on rights
Grand Chief Arnold Gardner told his municipal colleagues that the constitutional rights of First Nations had to be respected, in order to restore the proper treaty relationship.
Gardner was addressing the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association Friday, along with Grand Chief Stan Beardy from Nishnawbe Aski Nation.
Supreme Court decisions and the findings of the province’s Ipperwash Inquiry aren’t being taken into account when documents such as the Rosehart Report or initiatives such as the Common Voice are being created. Instead, the rights of aboriginal people are treated as an afterthought, he said.
“The rights-based approach is a constitutional support to the economic well-being of the region. Approaching it from a stakeholder position weakens the political stability of the economy,” he said. “We all live under that treaty. It is our duty to respect and honour it,” he added. “Doing that, we respect and honour each other.”
The City of Kenora didn’t send a delegation to the conference, due to their ongoing objections to the Common Voice, which they say doesn’t go far enough to include First Nation participation.
The Assembly of First Nations is organizing a National Day of Action for May 29, in order to back their demands for changes in the way land claims and treaty rights are handled.
