I will work on being as diplomatic as I can be. You young people who are sitting here know very little of our history. I'm a direct descendant of the headmen and leaders who entered into treaty at Smith’s Landing in 1899.
At the age of 21, I became a chief in my community. I'm a non-elected chief. A year after that, we engaged in the Paulette case that's been talked about. I'm not going to get into that.
What I do want to say about the Paulette case is that Judge Morrow in his ruling says that your version of the treaty, Treaty 8 and Treaty 11, where we extinguished.... That's what the crown says. As for Justice Morrow's ruling, in his words he doubted that the Dene ever surrendered. I want you to look at that case.
I'm going to get right into the 1930 NRTA act in the south and Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. In 1930 Canada, the crown, deliberately made omission of the treaty first nations at these talks about the resources, their lands, and their way of life, and to this day the first nations are struggling and talking about their resources. You just look south of the 60th parallel and the tar sands.
Neil Young's concert honoured the treaties. Bill C-15 devolution resembles and perhaps is the NRTA act that is now being imposed on the Dene up here. It is no different. The Dene play a very small part, if any, in the bilateral relations that you have with the crown.
This NWT Act does not have a constitution. There was an attempt in 1990 to have a constitution developed by all people, including non-indigenous people. Why hasn't that happened? It should have happened or we wouldn't have this discussion. That's a huge oversight of the territorial government and the crown, but now you want to implement and change the NWT Act without consulting the people, without consulting the treaty first nations. That's a sin.
In 1967, forty civil servants got off the plane here in Yellowknife, and today there are about 5,000 civil servants controlling every facet of our lands that you are about to transfer to the north. These legal documents, by convention, by Parliament, you are dismantling them. I find that to be very unconstitutional. I find that to dishonour our forefathers and your forefathers.
By the way, the NWT Act is weaker than the Indian Act. The Indian Act has more power and authority over the NWT Act by law and by Constitution.
These are my final comments as I want to keep this short. Below the 49th parallel there was the George Bush doctrine where he said that if you are not with us, then you are against us. Harper has adopted this philosophy, this doctrine. Your standing committee is carrying out this doctrine because your minds are already made up. You are just rubber-stamping. I feel very dishonoured that our treaties are not being respected.
We have two unfinished pieces of business with treaties. Dehcho Treaty 8, are you expecting these people to be harnessed into this mega-regulatory board? I doubt it. I would ask you to ease off these lands. These resources are going to be here. They are not going anywhere. It's a pity where we are in our history. What you call democracy is not being followed.
Are you adhering to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples? Are you adhering to other conventions that were made at the UN? No.
All the rules and laws that were there to protect our waters have been lifted. Where is our protection?
I'm very embarrassed and insulted that you are carrying this out on the people who are the rightful owners of this land.
I want to stop there. Thank you.