Jean Augustine

[Black History Month, February 1st, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, on December 14, 1995, on a motion introduced in the House, the House of Commons declared February as Black History Month.

From the earliest period of our history to the present, people of African origin have contributed toward making Canada one of the most envied nations in the world.

Black people, both as slaves and as free men and women, gave greatly of themselves to the development of our nation. As fishermen and domestics in New France, soldiers and labourers in Nova Scotia, fur traders for the Hudson's Bay Company, prairie farmers, skilled tradesmen, teachers, and businessmen in pre-Confederation British Columbia, African Canadians have brought a wealth of skills to our country and continue to do so.

I encourage all members of parliament to take advantage of the opportunity to meet with members of the Black community in their ridings and to join in the celebration of Black History Month.

[International Day For The Abolition Of Slavery, December 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, today is the international day recognizing the abolition of slavery. It is a day that is commemorated around the world by countries whose citizens were victims of the slave trade.

The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery calls upon each and every one of us to pause, to reflect and to take stock of the vestiges of slavery and its implications for universal human rights.

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights and we must not forget the human rights violations that slavery fostered over 200 years ago.

I call upon my colleagues from all sides of the House to join me and thousands of African Canadians in recognizing this day and the history attached to it.

[Health, December 1st, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I want to ask on world AIDS day if the Minister of Health could tell us what is being done to combat this terrible disease which is a growing epidemic, especially among young people around the world. Recent statistics show us that half of new HIV infections are among young people. What is the strategy to combat this terrible disease among young people?

[Agriculture, November 30th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to participate in this debate on farm income.

This past weekend my constituents in the riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore watched with great interest the various news reports on the serious situation facing farmers across the country.

Yes, we are an urban riding. Etobicoke—Lakeshore has no agricultural sector in its economic base. Economic activities in Etobicoke—Lakeshore are concentrated in the service and manufacturing sectors. Nonetheless, the issue at hand affects us all as Canadians.

Etobicoke—Lakeshore relies heavily on the agriculture base of the Canadian economy to provide it with fresh fruit, produce and other products. In light of this reality, I offer the support of the people of Etobicoke—Lakeshore to all of the farmers in Canada during this crisis.

Farming is one of those activities that is the mainstay for many communities. Indeed, without farming in various regions of the country many communities would cease to exist economically.

Etobicoke—Lakeshore cares about the livelihood of these communities. The problems they face concern us all. Communities across Canada are all a part of this economic system and when one part is affected it could lead to disruption throughout the entire system.

There is a food terminal in Etobicoke—Lakeshore that distributes food from all over the country to various local businesses so they, in turn, can supply all Etobians. I can only imagine the impact of this crisis on that operation at present.

I am encouraged by the spoken words, the passion and the conviction of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. His conviction as he faces this serious situation in farm income has buoyed my sentiments and stirred in me the fact that he is joining together with all partners to bring about a resolution. I know his commitment. I listened and my constituents listened. We know he will respond and that his response will be the assistance that farmers need.

A senior in my constituency asked why they are facing this problem. I will give a few answers, as I understand them.

Demand for key agricultural products in Asia and Russia has been drastically reduced as the buying power of consumers has shrunk. The global financial crisis in farm income here in Canada cannot be de-linked. Combine this with simultaneous cyclical price downturns in grain, hogs, cattle and pockets of poor production in some areas and we get a situation in which many producers are seeing a pretty significant reduction in income this year.

Some members of this House would argue that the answer to these problems is insulation from the global economy, but that reflects a simplistic view of the world rather than compassion for those affected by this crisis. Offering complaints cannot be equated with offering solutions, and people need workable solutions.

Talk of removing Canada from global markets, from international trade or from the need to export makes great rhetoric, but it will not make one iota of difference to the financial security of men and women working on Canadian farms, and neither will bland complaints about not getting everything we want, when we want it, from trade negotiations.

Let us do our farmers justice by limiting the rhetoric and instead working together to offer practical responses to a complicated problem. The responsibility of governing demands that we offer the pragmatic, not the dramatic.

As this government has done in the past, we will continue to work with farmers and provincial governments to put programs in place that are equitable and available to all in need, no matter what province they live in. We will work with those same partners to develop a strong, united and compelling position for international trade negotiations.

In bringing forth long term and short term responses to this serious situation we are committed to both collaboration and co-operation. We have our minister's word and I know our minister's word is meaningful.

Canadian farmers have a right to expect such an approach to this problem. There is no room for theatrics or one-upmanship given the nature and the magnitude of the problem. We need all members from all sides of the House to work together.

In studying this issue I discovered some facts. Our most recent farm income figures—and let me underline that these were developed with the provinces—show that at the national level overall net farm income is down 4% from the average of the last five years and down 20% from 1997. For a city girl, this is really terrible news.

Of course, that aggregate number hides the problems we know exist. Some parts of the country are suffering worse than others. Depending on the commodity, some producers are practically unaffected while others are hurting really badly.

We know that there are very serious problems in the hog and grains sectors. My colleagues who come from those sectors speak to me about it. The majority of hog producers are in Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba, but Prince Edward Island has significant hog production and has also been affected. The majority of grain farmers are in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta. There are also grain farmers in Ontario.

Meanwhile we must not forget that other producers have experienced serious drought and even outbreaks of disease, such as scrapie. This is the full context of the farm income situation and we must recognize all the forces at work. Doing this will help us to bring sense to the numbers.

Looking at these problems regionally, we see that in Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan and Manitoba the situation is particularly serious. In fact, realized net farm income is forecast to be down 40% this year in P.E.I. and Manitoba, while in Saskatchewan farm income could fall almost 70% relative to the previous five year average. Unfortunately, current forecasts also predict that those who are having trouble this year are not likely to see improvements next year.

I know that there are a great many people in communities coast to coast who are facing hardship and are looking to the Government of Canada for relief and assistance. And there are other pressing issues that demand the attention of the federal government.

Politics is the art of making decisions. It is not running one against the other. We must find a way to do the best we can for all these people. The farm income situation is not one that the government is going to retreat from, any more than it will retreat in the face of any challenge. We want to fix this problem as quickly as possible in order to bring some sense of calm back to a sector that has become increasingly desperate in recent days.

Moving forward, not backward, requires partnership between all levels of government. This is what we must do. There is never a place for adversarial relationships between federal and provincial governments. In this situation the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food has made it clear that he wants to work with all in addressing the situation.

Together with farm organizations and all levels of government, we need to bring about a solution. Solutions will come from hard work and from working together and forming those partnerships. Effective programs will be produced by this approach.

Will it be flashy? No. Will it be a total cure? I think we must be humble. There are no quick, easy or total solutions. Workable and meaningful solutions do not have to be flashy or miraculous in order to make a difference. Making a difference is part of governing.

The Government of Canada is committed to making a difference in the farm income situation. All members on all sides of the House should join together in finding short term and long term solutions for our farmers.

[First Nations Land Management Act, November 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to speak to Bill C-49, the first nation land management act.

The impetus to create this legislation came from the first nations which developed a workable land management system to enable them to manage and control their lands and resources. The new land management regime outlined in this legislation is a government-to-government agreement that ends the authority and discretion of the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development to manage these lands under the Indian Act.

This new regime goes to the very heart of our efforts to try to make life better for aboriginal people across Canada. It places control over the daily management of lands back into the hands of several first nations. With this control they will have the tools to guide their own destiny and to support strong, healthy communities fueled by economic development and supported by a solid infrastructure of institutions and services.

This new regime is a striking example of the kind of productive arrangement envisioned in the paper “Gathering Strength—Canada's Aboriginal Action Plan”.

When this government launched that paper in January, we committed ourselves to renewing our partnerships with aboriginal people and to finding new approaches to bring about real, practical improvements in the lives of aboriginal people. This legislation leads the way in our efforts to give first nations greater autonomy and to strengthen their capacity and expertise.

Hon. members may recognize much of this legislation. It came before us in December of 1996 as Bill C-75. It received second reading and then died when the House was dissolved.

Those familiar with the legislation will know that it has a history that goes back even further. The bill before us, as with the legislation of the last parliament, seeks to ratify a framework agreement signed by these first nations in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and New Brunswick. This legislation would apply to 14 first nations.

The framework agreement provides authority for these 14 signatories to govern their lands and resources under their own laws. The first nations must first develop a land code that will set out their basic rules and procedures to govern lands and interest in land and resources after the land provisions of the Indian Act cease to apply to these communities.

The land codes must be consistent with the framework agreement, which can only be amended by the parties to it. The lands affected will be known as first nation lands and will continue to be reserve lands for the purposes of other applicable federal legislation. For example, the Indian Oil and Gas Act will not be affected by this agreement.

Each first nation will also enter into an individual agreement with Canada to determine a level of operational funding for land management and to set out the specifics of transition from the current to the new regime.

My colleagues across the way must understand that this framework agreement requires each first nation's land code to set out a whole series of requirements: the requirements for accountability on management of lands and money to first nation members; the procedures for making and publishing first nation laws; the conflict of interest rules for land management; a forum for the resolution of disputes; general rules and procedures for granting or expropriating interests in first nations lands; the general authorities and procedures for delegating administrative authorities; and the procedure for amending its land code or approving an exchange in lands.

It seems from the discussion across the way that these requirements are not well understood.

I would also point out that these provisions must be voted on by the community as part of their opting in procedure. These measures ensure the participation of the community at the outset and seek its approval for the process. In this way the first nations can be assured that their memberships are fully aware and fully apprised of all aspects of the opting in process and subsequent administration of the lands and moneys. In other words, this is an accountability process built to very high standards.

Both the land code and the individual agreements require community approval. All members of the first nations who are 18 years or older, whether resident or off reserve, would be eligible to vote in the community approval process. At least 25% of eligible voters would have to approve those land codes and individual agreements for them to be valid.

This process of ratification is further evidence that the framework agreement will help build and strengthen aboriginal governance. It will support strong communities, strong people and strong economies. I would remind the House that these are the major objectives in the paper “Gathering Strength—Canada's Aboriginal Action Plan”. There is just so much that one can say in speaking to this agreement.

It is important to note that the bill provides for each first nation and the minister to appoint a verifier to confirm whether the proposed land code and community approval process were consistent with the terms of the bill and the agreement. The verifier would also determine whether the land code and individual agreement had been approved by the confirmed process.

The legislation before us enacts a framework agreement that will benefit everyone. The signatories will benefit from greater control over their lands and resources. Neighbouring municipalities and affected provinces will benefit from economic development spinoffs. The federal government will benefit from no longer having to administer certain specific sections of the Indian Act. It can reduce its involvement in the day to day management decisions and activities of those first nations.

Other first nations will benefit from being able to study the effects on these 14 signatories and from using the framework agreement as a model for future self-government agreements.

Bill C-49 is a good piece of legislation. I urge all my colleagues to support this legislation.

[Violence Against Women, November 25th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, today in the Hall of Honour a clothesline with T-shirts bearing messages of women's experience with violence reminds us that November 25 is the international day to end violence against women.

Could the secretary of state tell the House what Canada is doing to eliminate violence against women.

[Foreign Affairs, November 18th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the secretary of state for Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean recently returned from Trinidad, Suriname and Guyana. Could he tell us what was accomplished to advance bilateral relations and Canadian interests in the region?

[Foreign Aid, November 16th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, hurricane Mitch has destroyed hundreds of bridges and roads in Nicaragua and Honduras, cutting off the most severely affected communities. The response to this natural disaster by Canadians has been incredible but my constituents and I are concerned about those most in need.

Could the Minister for International Cooperation tell us what steps are being taken to ensure that international assistance reaches those most in need?

[Parliamentarians On Population And Development, October 29th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, today the Canadian Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development celebrated its first anniversary with a forum focused on adolescent reproductive health and children's nutrition.

The purpose of the forum was to raise the awareness of parliamentarians on this important issue. Panellists from CIDA, UNFPA, UNICEF and others shared their expertise on the subject.

Young people will account for one billion of the world's population by mid-1999. These teenagers will be of reproductive age, yet many will not learn about sexual health. Without information they are at risk of unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV-AIDS. Every year over 7.5 million children around the world die due to poor maternal health and inadequate nutrition.

I call upon all of my colleagues to support the principles of the ICPD, an advocate for education on adolescent reproductive health.

[Governor General's Award, October 19th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to five women who received in 1998 the Governor General's Award in commemoration of the persons case.

The Governor General's Award was established in 1979 to mark the 50th anniversary of the persons case. It represents a salute to the famous five who were successful in challenging our political traditions and allowed for the admission of women into the Senate of Canada.

This year's recipients of the Governor General's Award are Jacqueline Sicotte Bétque, Alice Brown, Claire Haggtvelt, Stella-Maria Zola Gule-LeJohn and Phyllis Seymour. These five remarkable women have carried on in the footsteps of the famous five whom we are honouring this month, women's history month.

Today's recipients join the ranks of the famous five by fighting for women's right to vote, for equal treatment of women on family farms, for safe havens for women who experience abuse and providing us with a real picture of women's lives in Canada.