Nakurmiik Thank you for that.
There are many things at play here. One is the commission itself, and one is who represents the legitimate interests of a people, in this case the Métis nation.
As I said earlier, as long as the MNC is referred to as what it is, a not-for-profit organization with a membership base, it can represent whoever it wants, wherever it wants, and we can't stop that. However, if it comes to the point.... I think there's still some potential through the section 35 rights reconciliation table that each of these three provincial bodies would be recognized under section 35 rights by province. We totally oppose that, because then it's just carving up our nation, destroying our nation and doing what English Canada couldn't do in 1870 and 1885.
English Canada today is trying the same thing through the back door by using Parliament to divide us. We won't stand for that, but in fact, we've already.... The national government of the Red River Métis already has thousands of registered citizens throughout the Prairies and outside of the Prairies, people who have moved, so we will continue on this path.
The federal government, approved by cabinet, has already signed the self-governing agreement, the only one of its kind. On the one hand, it can't say that it recognizes us and our government and that we represent our people wherever they may live, and then turn around and say it is going to recognize a non-profit pan-aboriginal organization, which the MNC has become, and thwart our future.
There's going to have to be some balancing. That's why I say the federal government is not keeping up with the progress of reconciliation that has happened since 2015.