Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on Feb. 6th, 2014

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Shall the bill as amended carry?

Mr. Bevington.

[Dennis Bevington, NDP, Western Arctic, NT]

Thank you.

I think quite clearly we've been very careful to deal only with the issues we've had here in front of us, but I want to make a point about our voting patterns here so that people fully understand that while this party supports devolution, we've suggested changes to the devolution part of the bill that in every way were only to improve the aspects for the people of the north.

The changes to the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act, on the other hand, are ill-conceived. They're poorly executed. They're going against the land claims spirit and intent, and not only the spirit and intent but also the practice that's been put in place for over 20 years of regional boards. This is something....

What we're seeing here is a political move that's been made. We had evidence from Mr. McCrank in front of us that no one in the Northwest Territories asked for these regional boards to be disbanded. That idea, he admitted, came from himself, or perhaps from his political bosses, but it didn't come from anyone in the Northwest Territories.

That, I think, was a statement that spoke volumes about what's happening here with this bill. The Conservative government has chosen to put things in the second part of this bill that are really universally not accepted by the people of the north.

We're in a position now where in order to get something that as citizens of this country we're fully entitled to—that's a legislative assembly that can properly make decisions for us on issues, such as everyone else has in this country—we have to accept the heavy hand of this government in its dealings with our first nations people. That is totally unfair; totally unfair.

This has ramifications that may only play out in court. We may find that the relationships that have been built between industry and first nations in our territory will be affected over the next while.

The only solution I see here is a change in government, when we can actually reverse these decisions that have been made by this very—

[An hon. member]

[Inaudible--Editor]

[Dennis Bevington, NDP, Western Arctic, NT]

It's worse than that, actually, but I thank you for setting the parameters of where I can go with that comment.

I'd say that this government is authoritarian. It has a serious bias towards the corporate presence in the Northwest Territories, and to an extent that is even not appreciated by groups such as the chamber of mines.

In other words, it's been an exercise where this decision-making process in the Government of Canada is so top-heavy that the members of its party can't even look at the evidence in front of them. They have no ability to actually deal rationally and fairly with the people of the north on this particular aspect, and as such, it simply leaves us with a process....

I don't believe this bill should go out of this committee at this time. That's why we won't vote for the bill to carry, because it shouldn't leave the committee. What happens in the House of Commons may be a different thing, but what happens in this committee is really unfortunate, because you as Canadians are not taking your job seriously—

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Mr. Bevington, could you please direct your comments to the chair?

[Dennis Bevington, NDP, Western Arctic, NT]

Well, Mr. Chair, I find that in your process over the last while, you have acted in a fashion that's consistent with a chair who recognizes only one side of the argument, and I really don't appreciate that.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Mr. Bevington, if you'd like to challenge the chair, you're free to do that. Otherwise I'd bring you to order.

[Dennis Bevington, NDP, Western Arctic, NT]

I'm not challenging you, Mr. Chair. I'm offering you some comments for your own improvement.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Thank you, Mr. Bevington.

Ms. Jones, we'll turn to you.

[Yvonne Jones, Liberal, Labrador, NL]

Mr. Chair, I thank all my colleagues around the table for their input.

This is the first bill that I've dealt with as a new member of Parliament, and it has been an interesting experience to say the least.

First of all, I want to say that I'm very supportive of the devolution agreement with the Northwest Territories. I want to congratulate the people of the Northwest Territories and their government for negotiating this particular agreement.

What's unfortunate is that what is supposed to be a very proud moment for many people in the Northwest Territories, a dream that is being realized is also being clouded by changes to the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act that are not coinciding with what the aboriginal people in the region feel are proper in terms of what their role and position should be.

It was very interesting to go to the Northwest Territories and to hear directly from the people who live there, people in all different capacities of life, whether they be with self-governments or they be with the chamber. They came to us with recommendations for change, change that would make things better for them, that would give them more control, give them more opportunity. I listened very attentively, as I'm sure most of my colleagues did, to what they had to say.

We came forward today with amendments that we were hoping would pass through committee to give them the degree of comfort they needed to carry forward with this.

It's unfortunate we could not have accomplished more on their behalf in the committee, especially in terms of their having more control and more input over what happens. I can only hope, Mr. Chair, that as this agreement moves forward and is implemented, the government will be more flexible in looking at changes that are needed as they move along, things that can be changed to make it better for the people of the Northwest Territories.

In conclusion, I want to say that I support them and I wish them well. I'm proud of what they've been able to accomplish thus far. I'm proud of the fact that they were not afraid to speak up and tell us how they feel as part of this country, and how their government can respond more positively to them.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Thank you, Ms. Jones.

Mr. Morin.

[Marc-André Morin, NDP, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

I'd like to make a brief comment.

I am very proud of my aboriginal heritage. My grandmother was Mohawk and she would roll over in her grave if she knew what was going on here.

Most aboriginals—people I know well, having lived among them for years—have a longstanding oral tradition. For aboriginals, a person's word is their bond and is considered to be sacred. It carries more weight than anything else. In a society where nothing is written down, no contracts are drawn up and no documents are drafted, people learn to take others at their word. If the government negotiates with aboriginals by presenting something good, while adding a myriad of details that ultimately prevent the agreement reached by the two parties from being implemented, aboriginals will no longer trust the interlocutor and further discussions will be impossible. It reaches the point where the value of the interlocutor outweighs the topic being discussed, because, in the eyes of aboriginals, when you make a commitment and you give your word, it has to be genuine and you have to follow through on it.

Every time things are not presented clearly, every time the government takes with one hand what it gives with the other, it taints the relationship. It will take years for Canada to rebuild an acceptable relationship with aboriginals. Governments at every level behave in the same way. And I can attest to that fact because I have lived all over the country.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Thank you.

We'll move to a vote on the bill as amended. Shall the bill as amended carry?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Shall I report the bill as amended to the House?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Shall the committee order reprints of the bill?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Thank you, colleagues.

We will adjourn momentarily, but I'll just remind committee members that the Monday meeting was intended to complete this. As we have done that today, we will not meet on Monday. We'll wait to hear from the clerk about a future meeting.

The meeting is adjourned.