Evidence of meeting #64 for Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was communities.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Thanks, Dona.
I want to go back to you, Jean, in the context of consultation and Bill C-8, for any recommendations. There are obviously members around the table who will go back to their respective parties. What are your thoughts—and I realize it's your opinion, so it's as it relates to you—on what you've seen concerning the bill? Is it something you'd still recommend that we move forward on?
Speaking to Mr. Martin's point, is there a need for more consultation, in your opinion, on Bill C-8?
11:55 a.m.
Individual Presentation
Personally, I think it will fail unless there is consultation with the first nations communities. I don't understand all the issues around it, but I think that people in Canada who are not first nations would never give up equal matrimonial property rights, and I think first nations families should always be given the same as the rest of Canadians, because we're all Canadian.
I don't understand how there can be such a discrepancy in law. All I want is for things to be fair. I don't know how it's going to work out, but I always believe that grassroots opportunities make things happen.
The first nations have to buy into it.
11:55 a.m.
Executive Director, Centre for Northern Families, Yellowknife Women's Society
That's why I talk a little bit about documenting. Consultations are pretty fruitless, from my experience, unless people are able to document what's happening in a community. That removes it from the garbage talk that goes on at the upper level. I don't know whether that's the proper way of saying it, but the fact is that women in the communities and on the reserves don't feel protected. They feel shortchanged; they feel at risk, and people who are talking for them find it really challenging, because there's no way for those women to document what's going on so that they can go to a meeting.
I've been at consultation meetings, I've been at tribal council meetings where the leaders are saying one thing and what is happening in the community is totally different. It's no different from our politics, actually. When I went to the United Nations, the Canadian government put forward evidence that just wasn't true. Our own territories produced evidence that said they had changed the policy around housing, but it really isn't true. They just played with words.
But on the ground the story is different. How do we as people in the communities document what's happening, and how are we able to put it forward to decision-makers, telling them not to play with words, that this is what's going on?
That's why I think consulting more is pretty fruitless work, I would imagine. And if you get into a fight among all those jurisdictions, you have a huge problem, in my experience. But it's really hard to ignore what women are saying on the ground, that they're experiencing this around housing on reserves. I had family on reserve as well—on reserve and off reserve.
I don't think it's sufficient to go to the leadership group. They're important; they need to be consulted. But they have been. Now I think women need to be consulted.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Michelle, you had a quick comment. Then I'm going to turn it back to Mr. Savage for some closing comments.
Michelle.
11:55 a.m.
Executive Director, NWT Council of Persons with Disabilities
I just want to add to Shirley's comments about housing and support by Inuit communities and first nations groups. There definitely needs to be some sort of accountability. It is the same with Inuit organizations. They do not always have to table their financial statements. A lot of words are spoken, but there's not much action on that.
We have all these companies that are owned by Inuit. How do I or anyone else benefit from that as an individual? Is my skin colour being used for some ownership of some million-dollar company? How is the average person benefiting? Just like the persons with disabilities, I think the HAP program is an excellent idea. Inuit are very intelligent. It's the same with first nations. They can construct homes. They have been doing it for years. They can put in equity. It doesn't always have to be monetary, but having the support of the Inuit communities and the first nations groups--right now we're using up the rental housing that is there. People who need to be homeowners are taking up that valuable social housing. They're stuck in there because they're paying maximum rent on the rent scale and they have no money to save for a down payment on a house, so we are using housing that persons with disabilities or other people could be using. We need to change the way we think.
As for the matrimonial bill, some housing authorities in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut have already adopted a policy whereby if there is any violence in the home, any separation, the women and children automatically get the home, but unless we support this and the community supports it, women cannot stay in their homes while being ostracized by the community because they were abused. They get on an airplane with their last few dollars and end up in Arlene's hands. It doesn't matter if there is a policy. It has to be supported by the community or it's not going to work. They cannot stay in a community and be ostracized by the entire band or the entire community for standing up and saying they are not going to be abused, they are not going to be violated. A policy doesn't work unless it is supported.
Thank you.
Noon
Individual Presentation
I'd like to mention that at Kwantlen Polytechnic University we have an aboriginal trades program and we have aboriginal students come from all across the province to be trained as carpenters, millwrights, welders, and other professionals. Then they go back to their communities with ticketed skills. It is hugely successful.
Two first nations communities that I know of have excellent social housing programs on the reserve. They are the Siksika Nation just outside Calgary and the Squamish First Nation in Squamish, British Columbia. Both of those communities are doing excellent work.
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Thank you.
I'm going to turn it over to Mike for a few last words.
Noon
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Thank you, Chair.
We added Jean and Shirley to our panel, which was great. It indicates the level of interest. I just met Dawn McInnis, who is in the back of the room. She is with the Canadian Association of Social Workers, and ideally we would have had her present. I did suggest I would read into the record some of her recommendations, if I could, Chair.
She was speaking about the federal role in anti-poverty. I will encapsulate some of this and perhaps we can take this as evidence, Dawn, as well.
The federal government has no official plan to combat poverty. Different organizations have proposed such a role. She references Canada Without Poverty and has argued for a rights-based approach with special reference to United Nations international agreements that speak to economic and social rights.
The National Council of Welfare, which we have heard from in Ottawa, has proposed four cornerstones to ensure lasting solutions: first, a national anti-poverty strategy with long-term vision and measurable targets; second, a plan of action and budget that coordinates within and across governments; third, a government accountability structure to ensure results and consult Canadians; and, fourth, a set of agreed poverty indicators.
It references Campaign 2000, who we've heard from, the 25 in 5 Network, calling upon the federal government to adopt a poverty reduction strategy with targets and timelines, dedicated fiscal resources, accountability, public reporting and consultation with those who have lived in poverty, and coordination with first nations and aboriginal communities. It references the Dignity for All campaign, which we have heard from, that was launched this year to eliminate poverty and build a socially cohesive country by 2010.
It also speaks about other work that has been done, some by parliamentary committees, one focusing on urban poverty and the other focusing on rural poverty.
Dawn, I thank you for bringing those to our attention, and we'll have that on the record.
Chair, thank you for your indulgence.
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Thank you.
And to our ladies here who presented today, thank you so very much. As I said, it's been enlightening to talk with people in specific communities about some specific issues. Once again, we appreciate those issues you've raised for us directly.
With that, the meeting is adjourned.
