Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on Feb. 23rd, 2016

[Don Rusnak, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

How much time do I have left?

[The Chair, Liberal, Andy Fillmore]

Thirty seconds.

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

Sorry, we'll go for coffee.

[Don Rusnak, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

Perhaps with Grand Chief Warren White one time.

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

Yes.

[Don Rusnak, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

In any event, in dealing with off-reserve first nations people—you touched on it a bit—what's your best advice to engage them? I know the law, but a lot of the chiefs I speak to, whether purposely or not purposely, exclude a lot of the off-reserve first nations. What's the best way to make sure that they're part of this process?

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

Ensure that the fiscal resources are there at the community level so they can look after the people off reserve.

Look at school supplies for example. The chief and council only get money for school supplies based on the on-reserve population, but half their people live off reserve in town, in Kenora or wherever. Their people are going to say, “Hey, my kids go to school in town here. They need crayons. They need books, all these things.” Who are they going to ask? They're going to ask the chiefs and councils, and nine times out of 10 those chiefs and councils will fund that, but they get no money for that.

Ensure that the proper fiscal relationship is in place based on total membership on and off reserve so that the chiefs and councils can look after their citizens no matter where they reside, portability of rights.

[Don Rusnak, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

I'm probably out of time.

[The Chair, Liberal, Andy Fillmore]

Sorry, yes. I got distracted with timekeeping here.

Thanks, Don, for the questions and for the thoughtful responses. I really appreciate that.

Arnold, you have five minutes, please.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Thank you, Chief Bellegarde, for being here today. It's a real privilege to be able to question someone like you, so I really appreciate your coming here.

You mentioned fundamental human rights in your report. I would assume that the most fundamental human right is the right to life. As you know, there's a special joint committee studying physician-assisted suicide. They've been doing that for the last two months, and they're about to bring out their report on this.

I'm alarmed by the lack of first nation engagement on this. It appears that the committee only heard from two indigenous witnesses.

Dr. Alika Lafontaine is the president of the Indigenous Physicians Association of Canada. In his presentation he said:

I feel obliged to identify the absence of the major national indigenous organizations. I believe there has not been meaningful consultations with indigenous peoples.

Was the Assembly of First Nations invited to present at this joint committee on physician-assisted dying?

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

The answer is no, not to my knowledge. The issue is a lack of capacity. As an organization we've been gutted in the last 10 years, so we don't have the capacity to respond to all these important issues in a very meaningful and effective way.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Do you feel that first nations were consulted? We had two—

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

It's obviously weak. Again, it comes back to capacity in a lot of instances. It's not that it's not an issue, it's just that a lot of times capacity comes into play.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Have you consulted with the more than 600 reserves represented by the AFN? Have you consulted at all on this issue?

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

No, not at all. It's something that has to get done, because it is a huge issue, the fundamental right to life. Again, it's a capacity issue. We're getting ready for the environmental meetings coming up, so we're focusing our energy on that. Then the first ministers conference is coming up in July.

So the answer is no, we have not been involved or consulted adequately.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Both of the indigenous witnesses that appeared highlighted other important areas of concern, noting that indigenous peoples have the highest rates of suicide in Canada, with indigenous young women at nearly eight times the national average. Dr. Lafontaine expressed alarm that the consultations of the government may be ignoring the largest potential demographic that is eligible to pursue this service. Can you speak to any concerns that the AFN may have in regard to preventing suicide, and the impact of legalizing assisted suicide?

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

The whole issue is mental health. When you look at holistic health, you think of mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical heath. These are the four quadrants of an individual's being and they all have to be in balance. Mental health is a huge issue, and there are not enough adequate resources. The suicide rate is high among the Inuit and it's high among our youth. It really has to be addressed. Where are the adequate resources to deal with this?

Dealing with mental health issues and having a national suicide prevention strategy has to be put forward. There have to be both the human and financial resources in place to deal with this because it's an epidemic in our territories and communities.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

One of the things talked about at this committee hearing was the use of palliative care. I think you just addressed that a little: the four areas of life, the spiritual, the psychological, and the physical health of these communities.

What is it like in the indigenous world, the incorporation of the entire family into the beginning of life and the end of life decisions that are made within the indigenous community?

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

It's a really deep question. How long do you want me to get into it?

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

You have 45 seconds.

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

Again, it's wellness, child rearing.... We have different sections from birth: the quadrants again, zero to 25. You have adolescents and teens. It's a whole cycle.

Historically we had child rearing practices and ways of raising children. Children are gifts from the Creator. The role of the grandparents was huge and key in raising the family as a unit.

Everything has been displaced.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Perhaps I can join you and Don for coffee, and we can continue this conversation.

[Chief Perry Bellegarde]

Yes. I wish I could be briefer, but these are such deep questions, I can't answer in 20 seconds. It's going to take a little longer sometimes.

I apologize, Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Andy Fillmore]

Thank you. Good. I appreciate the depth of the question. That was great.

Rémi, you have five minutes, please.

[Rémi Massé, Liberal, Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Thank you for accepting our invitation, National Chief Bellegarde. I am pleased to meet you.

I represent a riding—