Thanks, National Chief.
Thank you, Mr. Chair and committee members.
I would have to go back and begin with the Wen:de report and the work we did jointly with the Department of Indian Affairs on Wen:de. At that point in time we were, as Cindy and as the national chief have mentioned, engaged in a very thorough and exhaustive research and study on what it would take to get first nations child welfare agencies to an equitable and culturally appropriate place in this country. We engaged economists, first nations child welfare experts, and several hundred thousand dollars were expended on the part of the federal government to get the answer to what we were searching for.
We got that answer. Apparently, it wasn't to the liking of the government and it was shelved. It was at that point that the Department of Indian Affairs walked away and started to engage in one-on-one conversations, bypassing the Assembly of First Nations in a very direct fashion.
We certainly reached out to folks and to regions, both first nation regions and provincial bodies, but the willingness wasn't necessarily there.