Thank you very much, Terry.
Let me start off by saying good evening to all at the INAN committee. Thank you for inviting me to appear today to discuss indigenous policing from the Red River Métis perspective. It is a privilege to speak on an issue that is so critical to the safety and sovereignty of our communities.
For generations, our people have upheld our own system of governance, justice and collective responsibility. As Louis Riel, the father of Manitoba, said:
When the Government of Canada presented itself at our doors it found us at peace. It found that the Métis people of the North-West could not only live well without it...but that it had a government of its own, free, peaceful, well-functioning, contributing to the work of civilization.... It was a government with an organized constitution, whose jurisdiction was all the more legitimate and worthy of respect, because it was exercised over a country that belonged to it.
We have long known how to protect our families through community-driven laws that govern our people and enforce consequences. The Prairies were not the Wild West. We had our own form of policing rooted in respect and infused with our cultural values. Public safety has been at the top of our mind for over 200 years, and our efforts to be included are not new. It is a continuation of a long legacy. Despite this, we are never included in Canada's strategy to reform indigenous policing, yet our villages have the exact same challenges as our first nation relatives. However, we have fewer services and resources and often none at all in our villages. For us, this gap deeply impacts our communities.
We currently lack a consistent presence that collaborates with local service providers, provides mental health and addictions support and has the ability and means to prevent harm, before it happens, through de-escalation and trauma response. Instead, we have responders who come into our community only when there are emergencies and do not have a strong sense of who we are, as they are from one detachment—I'm talking the RCMP—that was given the impossible task of serving 10 communities. This is a reactive approach focused on responding to emergencies, rather than a proactive approach that focuses on preventing emergencies and making our seniors, elders and our other vulnerable citizens feel safe in their own community. It is not the fault of the police. This is a system we have been forced into.
These issues are further worsened by the need for bail reform and the revolving door of repeat offenders returning to our community. This is why we look forward to the passing of Bill C-14.
For too long, the safety of our nation has relied on systems that were not designed for us and do not understand our realities, histories and unique approach to community safety. Our people deserve policing that reflects our language, families and values. They also deserve a strategy that will help prevent harm before it happens, one in which they feel safe, their rights are upheld and they can trust those who are serving in their communities.
Through our Red River Métis justice strategy and the recently published indigenous justice strategy process, we have emphasized the dire need for Red River Métis-specific public safety in our villages. Though these strategies did not go far enough, they need to be used as a starting point.
This is my recommendation to this committee. There must be a Red River Métis-specific indigenous policing plan. There are hundreds of villages, and there is no commitment to a Red River Métis-specific plan. There is no strategy or commitment to permanent change but, rather, the illusion of inclusion. They ask us to sit on boards and receive bulletins rather than driving real reform.
This would require long-term, stable and flexible funding, as well as commitments from all jurisdictions to collaborate and implement a new pathway for Red River Métis policing. We know this is a complex endeavour, but it is one we are ready for. We already have our own laws. We have the Métis laws of the harvest and, in the near future, we'll have our own child and family services laws as well as other laws that will follow. However, instead of being able to properly enforce them, we will need to rely on existing colonial entities to enforce our laws. This is not self-government in action. This denies us from truly reaching our potential.
We owe it to our ancestors to follow their lead. We also owe it to our future generations to ensure that our families grow up in a safe community that understands, respects and cares for them. In order for progressive change to reach an ultimate objective, it will take an inclusionary platform in which we are not looking in through the window but are meaningful partners.