Herb Dhaliwal

[Fisheries, September 20th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should meet and talk to some of the chiefs who have signed deals and then he would have a firsthand view.

They are very reluctant to go out to talk to the aboriginal community because then they would see the good work that has been done with the 29 deals which have been signed for this year that are creating real opportunity for first nations.

This has been a big commitment by the federal government of $160 million, to make sure that we have a plan to deal with Marshall. It is doing well. Unfortunately one or two bands are not signing, but we are working on that. At the end of the day we will make sure we will protect the resource for all Canadians.

[Fisheries, September 20th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should take the time to read the 29 agreements we have signed.

For the first time we are creating real opportunity, providing not only access to the resource but providing vessels, providing training and providing mentoring so that the aboriginal community can truly be successful in the fishery as it participates more and more in the commercial fishery.

We have taken enforcement action, as I said earlier. We arrested and seized four vessels. We charged 16 people, so enforcement action has been taken. We want to make sure that every step is taken to try to resolve this issue in a peaceful and co-operative manner. However, at the end of the day, we will enforce the law and make sure we protect the resource for all Canadians.

[Fisheries, September 20th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has not been following what we have been doing. We have been taking enforcement action. In fact we have taken 2,700 traps out of Miramichi Bay, so there has been enforcement action.

We have always said from day one, unlike the hon. member, that it is through co-operation and dialogue. That is our first preference. That is why we were able to get 29 agreements with first nations out of 34.

That is working well. We will continue to do it, but at the end of the day I will take my mandate seriously. I will protect the resource and make sure the rule of law is followed by all Canadians.

[Fisheries, September 20th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to report to the House that Mr. Rae has reported and sent out a press release saying that he has a commitment from Burnt Church first nation to substantially reduce the number of traps in the Miramichi Bay.

The intent is to ensure that we have conservation as a priority. As I said in the House before, and I want to say it again, I will carry out my mandate to make sure we protect the resource for all Canadians and future generations, but we owe it to the communities to bring the communities together to make sure that we make every effort to resolve this situation in a peaceful way. That is exactly—

[Fisheries, September 19th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, it was members of the Conservative Party who said that I was doing too much when we bought vessels to include the aboriginal people. They were saying I was doing too much when we brought them into training. Now they are saying we are not doing enough. What they should do is be constructive and not try to divide Canadians, not try to inflame the situation but bring Canadians together to make sure the problem is solved at the community level. That is exactly what we are doing.

[Fisheries, September 19th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, as I have always said, we prefer the avenue of co-operative negotiations. I have said right from day one that we will enforce and make sure we uphold the law. The commercial fishermen have been very active and their views have been taken into consideration. They have been very much a part of what Mr. Rae is doing. He is meeting with the commercial fishermen making sure that their views are taken into consideration. We will monitor the situation very closely. We will make sure that we respond to make sure that the law of the land is upheld.

[Fisheries, September 19th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure the hon. member that both the minister of Indian affairs and I are working together on the east coast fishery and the first nations issue in terms of the supreme court ruling.

We have been working hard on the fisheries file and there are long term issues that we are working on together. He has been very active and involved in the Atlantic Policy Congress to look at the long term issues of the treaty rights in regard to Marshall. Together we are coming forward with a plan in the fall to make sure that we address some of those long term issues. We will continue to do that.

[Fisheries, September 19th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the government has made a tremendous amount of commitment to make sure that we abide fully with the supreme court ruling with an initial investment of $160 million for the aboriginal people to fully participate in the commercial fishery.

This is working extremely well. We have two bands, Indian Brook and Burnt Church. We are trying to work with them so that they too can participate fully. We provide them with opportunities for access into the fishery, but we need to make sure that we take every avenue to bring the parties together.

At the end of the day, I want to assure the hon. member that the law of the land will be upheld.

[Fisheries, September 19th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, unlike the hon. member we believe that it is through dialogue and co-operation that we can resolve these issues.

That is why we have 29 agreements with the first nations that are working extremely well. We have an eminent Canadian, Mr. Bob Rae, who is working extremely hard to bring the parties together.

The party over there wants to divide Canadians. We want to bring Canadians together and solve the real problems of the nation.

[Fisheries, September 18th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, an eminent Canadian, Bob Rae, former premier of the province of Ontario, is there mediating. He is bringing the parties together. He is working with the community. He has asked for a few additional days to bring the parties together.

We should respect that request and make sure that we make every effort to resolve the matter in a peaceful and co-operative way. That is exactly what we are doing.