Mr. Speaker, you are perhaps assuming the outcome of the next election, which is why you designate me with the name Compton-Stanstead. In fact, after the next campaign, my riding, which has been altered considerably and separated from Mégantic, will be called Compton-Stanstead.
I see you therefore as a visionary, who already acknowledges not only that I will be re-elected in the riding of Compton-Stanstead, but that the Bloc Quebecois will be here in full force after the next election for its well known purpose of defending the interests of Quebecers.
My colleague, who wants to hear nothing but the truth, is perfectly right, and that is what I am going to try to do in the next few minutes. I am going to try to explain what the truth is in connection with Bill C-79.
First of all, if I may, I will take a few moments of my time to congratulate my colleague, whose performance as Indian affairs critic is recognized by all those involved in this question, which is such a touchy one and so important, not only for the future of the aboriginal communities, but for the future of our respective communities, I would say, that is the people of Quebec and the people of Canada.
We cannot treat this question lightly, as the Liberal government has already done for decades, ever since Canada began, I would
say, by denying reality. In recent years, we have witnessed a study without precedent in this area, and I would say without precedent anywhere in government activity.
I am of course referring to the Erasmus-Dussault report which was tabled only a few months ago. This study took years to complete. It thoroughly examined aboriginal issues and proposed a comprehensive plan in its recommendations. That was and still is what made the Erasmus-Dussault report unique, that it proposed a comprehensive plan to deal with aboriginal issues.
I would also like to say that in addition to the hon. member for Saint-Jean who has done and still does an excellent job in this respect, the Government of Quebec has also made an effort in the past to understand the expectations and demands of the First Nations in Quebec. I am referring to the government of former Premier René Lévesque.
This was the first government in North America to recognize the First Nations for what they were, peoples who had and have a different culture, who want to develop this culture as part of their lives, not only for the benefit of their own communities but also for the benefit of the other communities around them. In Quebec we were the first, as a people and as a government, to recognize that fact. I think that is an important point.
We should also remember, setting all political considerations aside, that the Quebec government, the Liberal government under Robert Bourassa in the 1970s, was also the first government to negotiate an agreement with a First Nation, with the Inuit in Northern Quebec on the development of James Bay, an agreement which although not perfect, set a historical precedent. As a result, a First Nation was considered a legitimate party, with the authority to decide on behalf of its people, which led to the James Bay agreement, an agreement which has been quoted as an example on many occasions in the past and still is today.
I mentioned these two positions to point out that as a people, we may wish to consolidate our future. As a people, we may wish to develop our potential while respecting those who live around us. This is the example that should be taken from the earlier positions of the Government of Quebec in the case of native communities.
What we have before us looks more like a botch. In other words, following the conclusion of the Erasmus-Dussault commission, which cost over $50 million in tax money and produced a report of thousands of pages including hundreds of recommendations proposing a comprehensive plan, the Liberal government arrives with a bungled proposal on the eve of an election. This government does not want to go into another election without being able to say it has done something for the native population. Thus we have Bill C-79, which uses a piecemeal approach to try to resolve a number of problems.
This is not the way to go about it, and I consider it almost an insult to the native peoples. This is not the way to resolve the government's problems with the native peoples. It must first recognize their existence and the importance of the Erasmus-Dussault report and the riches it has to offer and then sit down with these communities to define their future.
This is the only logical and intelligent way to proceed in this matter as in all matters. This is what my colleague from Saint-Jean is proposing on behalf of the Bloc Quebecois.
We will not agree to support a bill that does not even start to honourably address the claims of the aboriginal nations. The government and its minister must get into the habit of sitting down and talking to people. They must sit down with the native groups, see what they and their representatives want, and how they would like the necessary changes in the relations between the federal government and the communities to be planned.
Is the hon. member of Saint-Jean, who has convinced his colleagues, including myself, of the validity of this proposal, now alone? Are we the only ones to take this view of resolving the problems of aboriginal communities? No.
I need not repeat what my colleague, the hon. member for Kamouraska-Rivière-du-Loup mentioned earlier. We all know that the Liberal members of this House can be hard of hearing, to say the least, and have a hard time understanding sometimes, which means that we have to repeat the same things over and over if we want to at least be heard by this government and try to get our point across.
On this issue, it is important to remind the House that 542 of the 610 aboriginal communities, not only in Quebec but across Canada, oppose this bill; 85 per cent of the First Nations categorically reject the proposal put forward by the minister in terms of process.
I will close on this last remark I just made: 85 per cent of aboriginal communities, of the First Nations have rejected the process put forward by the minister. Be that as it may, the minister, and his government, stubbornly want to press on. The minister and his government are going to botch this bill purely for electoral reasons, in order to be able to claim during the campaign that they have started working on the aboriginal issue. We condemn this today and will continue to condemn it during the next election campaign.