Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak to Bill C-289.
I will begin by giving some of my background. For 11 years I litigated in northern Alberta on issues like this, issues dealing with constitutional rights, charter rights and aboriginal rights under the Constitution. I even have family in aboriginal communities spread out across northern Alberta.
I am disturbed about the issue that brings this forward and I have been for some 15 years. I think it is a travesty of justice that there is a gap in the legislation that has not been filled. However, I intend to vote against Bill C-289 for two important reasons.
The first is that it proposes a solution to the issue of on reserve matrimonial real property that is just simply too simplistic.
I have a community in my riding called Janvier. It is an Indian hamlet that is some 30 or 40 kilometres from the Saskatchewan border. On the other side of the border in Saskatchewan, I have a community, which is not in my constituency, called La Loche. Those two communities are connected by culture and by family. However, because there is a border separating the two, they would be under different laws. I do not think that is appropriate in these circumstances.
More important, a collaborative consultation process is currently underway so that the gap in legislation will soon be filled. The government is taking steps to ensure that happens. I believe that will be a superior alternative to this particular motion and, as a result, I must encourage all my colleagues in the House to oppose Bill C-289 for now.
Despite the noble goal at the heart of the proposed legislation, the intention of the legislation is great but the final outcome may not be, and, as a result, I think it is important to consult with the aboriginal communities that it will touch the most.
I respect the mover as well, the member for Portage—Lisgar. He is wise. I have watched him for many years debate in the House. He is very hard-working and I do admire him.
However, as some of my colleagues have explained, on reserve matrimonial real property rights exist in a legal vacuum. This legal loophole in Canada's body of legislation has caused many people to fall victim to abuse, especially, in my opinion, women and children, including homelessness and poverty. I have seen this firsthand, as approximately 20% of my riding is of aboriginal heritage.
The previous debate on the bill made it clear that every member of the House joins me in wishing for an effective and speedy resolution to the issue. Despite this desire, we must not accept this overly simplistic approach that is provided by the bill. We must have a solution that we can all live with, a long term solution, one that solves the problem and reflects the input of those affected, the first nation women and the communities. They must be consulted.
Bill C-289 is not that solution in my opinion. In fact, two aboriginal organizations, the Assembly of First Nations and the Native Women's Association of Canada, have raised concerns with the bill, as many of my colleagues have.
Additionally, when this option was presented to first nations in recent consultations, it was largely rejected as most groups felt that existing provincial laws were inadequate to address their needs, I would suggest in the realm of culture and family connections.
There is no question that the application of provincial law on reserves also requires consultations with the province. I would suggest that needs to be done as well. The provinces, after all, would find themselves responsible for the provision of legal services to residents of first nation communities under provincial law and under programs such as legal aid in Alberta.
The reality is that without the support of key stakeholders, such as aboriginal groups and the provinces, Bill C-289 is not the solution we seek, nor the solution that aboriginal communities and first nation people deserve. With respect, I believe it would simply not work adequately.
Thankfully, the Conservative government has taken action and has nearly completed a consultation process to develop a shared solution to this problem. We want to produce a broad consensus on an effective legislative remedy, not a one-off, but one that works in the long term.
To lead this process, we are fortunate to have a very talented individual, Wendy Grant John, as ministerial representative. Ms. John is a former chief, a successful entrepreneur and a very skilled negotiator. She has agreed to work with all parties to seek a long term consensus on real property. If a consensus cannot be reached, Ms. John will recommend an appropriate course of action.
At the heart of this process has been a series of consultations, which I believe are important and, in most aboriginal negotiations, are mandated by the Supreme Court of Canada. This has been led by aboriginal groups and by Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. While these consultations took several forms, such as in camera sessions, public meetings and written submissions, they have all been guided by the same consultation paper.
The paper was carefully designed to foster focused debate. It outlines three broad legislative options.
Option one would seek the incorporation of provincial and territorial matrimonial real property laws on reserve.
The second option would seek the incorporation of provincial and territorial matrimonial real property laws, combined with a legislative mechanism granting authority to first nations to exercise jurisdiction over matrimonial real property.
The third option would be to involve substantive federal matrimonial real property law combined with the legislative mechanism granting authority to first nations to exercise jurisdiction over matrimonial real property.
All of those options would involve consultation and would involve the consultation process dealing with the culture and values that the aboriginal people have.
This consultation paper also describes the mechanism that a handful of first nations have used to codify on reserve matrimonial property rights. In the 1990s, for example, a group of 14 first nations successfully lobbied the Government of Canada to acquire greater land management powers. Even the election acts of most aboriginals are cultural election acts based on the culture and the practice of the reserve.
The result for this 14 first nations lobbying effort was the First Nations Land Management Act. It was successful. This legislation enables first nations to develop, ratify and enforce land codes, management regimes and regulations governing on reserve and matrimonial real property rights.
Although communities continued to pursue this option, at the present rate it would simply take too long and it would not address this important issue that needs to be dealt with. The time has come to close the legislative gap and, I would suggest, all parties in this House and all members agree with that.
For the benefit of certain first nations' matrimonial rights, it is important to close this gap and to get this solved. To create this type of solution absolutely requires consultation, actively engaging the key stakeholders, the provinces and all aboriginal groups, which is precisely why this government supports this consultative process.
The Assembly of First Nations and the Native Women's Association of Canada have respectively conducted independent regional dialogue sessions and consultations across the country. Officials with Indian and Northern Affairs Canada have held and continue to hold discussions with the provinces and other stakeholders because the best way to get good legislation is by consulting the grassroots. They have also provided funding to other national and regional groups to hold consultations of their own and ensure that all parties are consulted appropriately.
Now that consultations are complete, the final consensus-building phase has begun. The purpose of this phase will be to build consensus on a solution that takes into consideration what Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, the Assembly of First Nations and the Native Women's Association of Canada have heard through their consultations and dialogue sessions.
The task of fashioning a consensus-based solution to on reserve matrimonial property will be both delicate and demanding. The issues will be sensitive and they will demand a profound familiarity, not only with the issues and the culture but also with the viewpoints of all stakeholders.
The legislation before us today calls for unilateral action. It completely ignores many of the concerns already identified by stakeholders.
We must help first nation women and children, and even men, who, without matrimonial property laws, are sometimes left to the whim of chiefs and council members or band members, but we must do it right the first time. We will not have a second chance and this demands our best attention.