Good morning.
I want to thank the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs for the opportunity to speak with you today on Bill C-61.
I am the chief of War Lake First Nation and appear before you as the acting grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs.
I would like to begin my remarks by explaining the significance of the water crisis for our first nations in Manitoba.
As we all know, lack of access to drinking water has devastating effects on our health. Some, however, may be less familiar with the host of adverse effects it has on well-being. Many of our children living in these first nations without proper drinking water are very sick. They develop conditions for which they have to seek help every day of their lives. Sometimes it goes on until they become adults. This is very stressful for families. They don't know who to turn to, sometimes. I have seen it. My own family is going through the same thing—first nations having boil water advisories.
I also want to state that we support Shamattawa in their concerns over drinking water. We should have access to the same drinking water as everyone else does across Canada. We have a legal right to be there, to have access to clean drinking water and to have water in every first nation across Canada.
Important teachings and knowledge that should have been passed down over generations have been disrupted. These losses have created a disconnect between first nations and the land, a relationship that is fundamental to our world view. The resulting impacts on well-being, spirituality and concepts of identity cannot be overstated.
On the foundation of this knowledge, I want to express concerns about how this bill impacts first nations' right to self-determination.
The bill follows a framework similar to existing Canadian laws, which limit the recognition of first nations' inherent right to self-government through the legislative approach. In short, Parliament is telling first nations how to enact laws in their inherent jurisdictions, subordinating first nations governments and undermining the nation-to-nation relationship. The AMC rejects the notion that first nations' jurisdiction and lawmaking authority is contingent on federal legislation. One nation cannot control or validate another in a true nation-to-nation relationship. It requires equal recognition of the laws and authority of each other.
Also concerning is the fact that the bill only recognizes first nations' jurisdiction on first nations land, as if water is stagnant and does not flow from one jurisdiction to another. I want to emphasize what the national chief said about water running and flowing in many directions. It's not just first nations' water that we utilize; we also live off reserve. The spring waters are in areas we also want to protect.
As a result, there is no recognition of first nations jurisdiction on much of the treaty and ancestral territories of first nations in Manitoba.
Overall, the proposed act fails to fully recognize first nations jurisdiction and conveys lack of respect for our laws. It only recognizes first nations authority over water resources within the confines of first nations land, despite the fact that the water knows no boundaries.
When we see buildings or roads being built, the builders don't meet with the first nations. We know where these waters are—the wells that have been there for a long time. They're just being bulldozed. Those are the waters that we would like to protect. Those are the waters that are clean. Some of these waters are not just for drinking; there are minerals in there that help in the way of medicine.
In order for us to protect the water, we would like to include in Bill C-61 water protection. It's not just within our communities on reserve that we're protecting the water, but it's also the waters that run outside. The water is all over, and we would like to protect that.
There are a lot of industries in operation. That's the reason many of us are going through these issues with health. The issues of health really undermine what we try to do to protect our children and grandchildren from some of these diseases. That needs attention.
The doctors do—