Keith Martin

[Specific Claims Tribunal Act, May 13th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I know the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley has done a lot of work in his community and in British Columbia on this issue, for which we are all very grateful. The member for Nanaimo—Cowichan has also done a lot of work on Vancouver Island, both as an MP and outside.

There are two things. First, in my view, the Indian Act should be scrapped. It is a racist act that separates aboriginal people from non-aboriginal people. Rather than enabling aboriginal people to be masters of their destiny, it actually acts as an anchor around their ankles.

Secondly, I spoke about property rights yesterday. Aboriginal people should have property rights and should be able to own their own homes. Some people say that is anathema to the history of aboriginal people but that is not true.

If we look at what happened with the Iroquois, it was their property rights. They had the ability to own, to utilize and to hand their land down from family to family and generation to generation. Those property rights can be done in such a way that the land does not disappear from ownership from the community, but can be done in such a way that the individual member can actually have ownership, have capital, have a source of revenue and have an asset that they can bank on and utilize for future wealth building. Aboriginal people cannot build wealth like we can, as the member knows, because of the absurd situation that exists.

Lastly, on the issue of housing, part of the problem in B.C. is that some of the people who are building homes should be going to jail because they are building homes that they know full well will be health hazards. They knew these were sick homes and yet they criminally built them. Now aboriginal people are living in homes that are death traps. They are mouldy, sick, toxic homes. The people who built them should go to jail.

As I said previously, it would be helpful if a database could be set up with a list of people who have done a good job on reserves. There should also be an obligation for those people to capacity build on reserves so aboriginal people can have the tools, the wherewithal and the capacity to build their own homes and manage those homes in the future.

[Specific Claims Tribunal Act, May 13th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for taking this initiative along. I know he will find a lot of support across party lines.

The minister mentioned that aboriginal leaders were restricted in their ability to move forward and engage in economic development. I would offer three other suggestions to the minister. First, we could have a list of approved and non-approved band managers who are capacity builders on reserves. As the minister knows, some people are going around the country engaging in fraud and those people should be prosecuted. A database could be set up that could be easily accessed by aboriginal leaders.

Second, we should enable aboriginal leaders, such as Chief Clarence Louie and others, who have done some remarkable work in Osoyoos, to travel around and teach other aboriginal leaders what they have done and how they have managed to enable people in their communities to develop economically. As the minister knows, they have done some remarkable work and if they were to share that kind of knowledge it would be very valuable.

The third thing would be to make a list of those restrictions within the Indian Act that are so perverse that it is essential that they be removed.

Lastly, in my community, the Pacheedaht Band is in crisis. There is a health care catastrophe and people are getting sick. They do not have access to water. I have written to the minister's department. I know he receives many letters but I would be grateful if he would be willing to look at that reserve so the people can receive the urgent attention they require.

[Specific Claims Tribunal Act, May 13th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, as you mentioned, this is a continuation of the speech I began last night on this critically important issue that affects some of the most underprivileged citizens of our country.

The land claims issue is important for fundamental justice. Will the resolution of land claims ultimately affect the present social and economic problems that act as an anchor attached to the ankles of aboriginal people from coast to coast? I would submit that it will not.

There are other larger structural problems to which solutions have to be put in place to enable aboriginal people to be integrated, not assimilated, into Canadian society. Without that, these people, who now live in some of the worst social and economic conditions in Canada, cannot become part of the 21st century economy.

The current Indian Act is a rock tied to the ankle of aboriginal people. It is so bizarre, so restrictive, so offensive, so unfair. We, as non-aboriginals, would never tolerate such a structure. It does not enable aboriginal communities to be masters of their own destiny. They have an act which sits above them, that rules their lives, that restricts their ability for economic development, that impedes their ability to have the same rights as we have. This contributes to some of the fundamental horrific problems that we see in aboriginal communities across our country.

I will cite one example that the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development may want to consider. I have written to him about an urgent situation at the Pacheedaht reserve in my riding. On the Pacheedaht reserve a catastrophe is taking place right now. The reserve does not have a secure water system. The houses are rotting. Mould is infesting the homes. We know that the incidence of tuberculosis in these kinds of sick homes is much higher than in other communities. This is an urgent situation. It is a health crisis on this reserve. It demands the urgent attention of the Department of Indian Affairs now. Without this attention, people will get sicker and they will die.

I was on the reserve a couple of weeks ago. The day before I got there, a woman was raped. Tragically, that is not an uncommon situation on this reserve. Children are sexually abused. Alcohol and drug abuse is endemic. Unemployment rates are double digit and through the roof. There is no hope. When we look into the eyes of the children on this reserve, we have to ask, do these children have any chance, any hope, of getting out of this hellhole? The answer is no, they do not.

Let me provide a few solutions that may be of benefit.

Number one, we have to remove the Indian Act. It should be scrapped. The AFN should be tasked with, and funded for, providing a list of those groups that can provide constructive solutions and capacity building on and off reserve for aboriginal people.

One of the cruel things that exists is that while responsibilities have been downloaded to aboriginal communities for health care, social services and other structures, too often they do not have the capacity to execute those duties and responsibilities that have been placed upon their shoulders, so they outsource them to individuals. Too often they have no idea whether the band manager is competent or whether the capacity building individuals are any good. Too often I have seen people who are shysters, frankly, go in and engage in fraud. They take money from the reserve and do not provide the needed capacity building.

The AFN and the Department of Indian Affairs should make a list of those groups and individuals who have the proven ability to provide strong capacity building on aboriginal reserves. There should also be a list of those people who are not approved, those people who have gone around the country and frankly committed fraud. Those people should be prosecuted, but a reserve could not do that, because the reserve would not have the resources to do so. The RCMP should be tasked with going after these people.

The aboriginal peoples have some beautiful territory. They have some in my riding in Sooke, Beecher Bay and Pacheedaht. I would tell the aboriginal leaders to take chances and start public-private partnerships. Health care is a good example because there is an enormous need for health care on reserves. This would provide a revenue general stream of money and a clean and environmentally sound industry that would go on in perpetuity.

If aboriginal leaders were to do that, they would be able to provide a source of economic opportunity for their people now and into the future. They could negotiate contracts and the resources could be used to build up the capacity within their own communities. This would provide them with the wealth and security to do what they want.

Aboriginal leaders should take a chance and participate in public-private partnerships. Private-public medical care would be one option. They have the chance to do this now.

The Department of Indian and Northern Affairs should have an investment fund that would be managed with the AFN. This fund would provide aboriginal leaders with the resources they need to provide the economic development their communities require. They cannot do that at the present time.

A dynamic young chief, Russ Chipps, lives in Beecher Bay in my riding. Many children in his community have been sexually abused and the whole community has been damaged as a result. However, I must give Chief Chips credit because he is reaching out and asking the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs for help. The youth in that community need hope and they need opportunity. Now that the chief and council are reaching out for help, it is incumbent upon the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs to work with them effectively.

Many of us who have reserves in our communities all know that the social conditions are utterly appalling. These are conditions that would never be tolerated in non-aboriginal communities. The Department of Indian and Northern Affairs is such an ossified structure that if people on reserve try to engage in some economic development they could not do it because the department is so onerous. It takes four times longer for people on reserve to do the same kind of economic planning as someone off reserve. They need to navigate through at least six different federal departments. What kind of nonsense is that? How can these people possibly get on their feet and move forward with that kind of structure?

I would ask the Minister of Indian Affairs to put back the money that he took out of the AFN. It cannot do its job as a result of the more than $1 million in cuts that have taken place. I would ask him to work with the AFN to establish some of the economic and social initiatives that are required and are being asked for by the aboriginal peoples. That kind of relationship would enable the people on the ground to have the hope and security they require. Without that, nothing will change and the horrible conditions that too many people on and off reserves are enduring will continue.

We know that off reserve aboriginal people only receive about 3.5% of funding from the Department of Indian and Norther Affairs. They need hope and they need opportunity. I urge the minister and his department to work with these people to give them the hope and opportunity that all of us deserve, need and have a right to secure.

[Specific Claims Tribunal Act, May 12th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, we have inadvertently created a welfare dependency trap for aboriginal people and it is fundamentally important that the trap be removed. I would submit that the Department of Indian Affairs needs to work with aboriginal leaders to remove the existing obstacles that prevent them from being able to be masters of their own destiny. As I said before, it is immoral that the status quo is allowed to exist.

I will provide the House with some solutions.

I mentioned that the Indian Act should be scrubbed.

One of the challenges facing aboriginal people is capacity building. When aboriginal leaders on reserve want to develop something, be it land or whatever, they need to hire experts to help them. However, some of these experts are actually criminally negligent in their behaviour. They often receive money for substandard work. It is similar with band managers. Some band managers are good and some are not.

It would be helpful if the Department of Indian Affairs worked with the AFN to build a website where a chief and council could determine which individuals give good service and which do not. A chief or council member could then link to those individuals who would do a good job.

Second, on the issue of capacity building, the Department of Indian Affairs needs to do a lot more with its budget of $9.1 billion to ensure that aboriginal children have access to education.

Third, property rights need to change. Aboriginal people need to own their own property so they can build up some wealth and be able to use that land for their own benefit. They then would be able to provide for themselves, for their families and for their communities.

Fourth, we need to ensure that aboriginal people have access to health care.

In my riding, the Pacheedaht reserve does not have clean water. Many times it has asked, begged and pleaded for help from the Department of Indian Affairs and it has received the cold shoulder. The Pacheedaht reserve needs water and it needs it now. Can anyone imagine not having access to clean water? That is a fundamental right of life. Being forced to drink filthy water is a health hazard. It is immoral, sickening and fundamentally unfair.

As my time is winding to a close, I want to press upon the government the need to talk about integration on assimilation. We need to scrap the Indian Act and we need to work together with aboriginal peoples so they will have a better future for themselves, their families and their communities. We should not constrain them as we have done for so long.

[Specific Claims Tribunal Act, May 12th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour for me to speak on this very serious matter. I want to begin with a fundamental question that I think we should all consider. Will land claims fundamentally improve the lives of aboriginal people?

A week ago I went to one of the reserves in my riding, the Pacheedaht reserve near Port Renfrew. When one goes to this reserve, one sees conditions that are very much like those in a developing country. The houses are rundown. The windows are smashed. Mould is infecting these houses. We know that the presence of mould in these types of homes is a major risk factor for tuberculosis and is a contributing factor in the very high rate of tuberculosis among aboriginal people.

While I was there, I noticed very few people.

I went to the reserve because in my community we have created libraries for children on some of the reserves in my riding. We have set up three libraries on reserves.

As I said, when I went to Pacheedaht, there were very few people around. There was a sense of foreboding and bleakness. The reason was that the night before one of the young women on the reserve had been raped. Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon situation on this and a number of other reserves that I have had occasion to visit. It speaks to a much larger and bleaker situation that exists for too many aboriginal people living on and off reserve.

What is it like? As a physician I had the opportunity in British Columbia to fly in to some aboriginal reserves, where I would pay house calls. I would visit the communities and see people and treat them in their homes.

There is nothing as heart-wrenching as going into communities where more than eight people are living in hermetically sealed houses. There are a grandmother and a grandfather sleeping on urine-stained mattresses. Sitting out in front of their homes are children with impetigo, a really bad skin infection. People are lying right beside the children, drunk at 10 o'clock in the morning. Unemployment rates exceed 50%. Essentially in these communities there is no hope.

There is a fundamental question I would ask. Treaties must be honoured. The treaties must be completed and land claims must settled, but at the end of the day, will the completion of those treaties fundamentally improve the bleak situation that we see on and off reserves for too many aboriginal people?

There are hundreds of statistics. Let me illustrate a few of them. The incidence of male aboriginals being incarcerated is 11 times that of non-aboriginals. For female aboriginals the incidence of being incarcerated is 250 times that of non-aboriginals. In other words, the risk of an aboriginal woman being incarcerated is 250 times higher than it is for a non-aboriginal woman.

The median income for aboriginals is $13,500.

Seventy-five per cent of aboriginal children do not graduate from high school.

The level of sexual violence and the incidence of HIV-AIDS and of tuberculosis are far higher than what we see in non-aboriginal communities.

The question I would ask is this: will these treaties fundamentally improve the lives of people living on and off reserve?

For 10,000 years, aboriginal people lived in independence. They lived and flourished on this continent. However, something happened that changed everything, and that was the Indian Act. For the last 130 years, the Indian Act has ruled the lives of aboriginal people.

What is the Indian Act? It is a racist act. It is an act that separates aboriginal people from non-aboriginal people. The Indian Act is like a rock tied to the ankles of aboriginal people. It prevents them from being integrated and equal--not assimilated but integrated--in society in North America. It prevents them from having the economic ability that we as non-aboriginals are ensured.

Separate development is apartheid. Tragically, we have apartheid in Canada. It is not something that we should be proud of. It is something we should be ashamed of. In my view, the racist Indian Act should be scrapped because it is a rock tied to the ankles of aboriginal people and it prevents them from being able to move forward and be champions and masters of their destiny.

If we were to try to develop land and engage in economic development on reserve, we would have to go through a minimum of six different departments. It would take use four times the length of time to develop that land. If a developer or a business opportunity came to us, it would take us that length to have any chance to move this forward.

Where does capital go? Will it go to on reserve? It does not. Because the structure is such that no matter how hard-working, no matter how diligent, no matter how hopeful, no matter how inspired aboriginal members and leaders are to develop on their land, to provide for their people, to provide a sustainable future for their people, they cannot. We can. However, the structure prevents them from doing that. Is that fair? Is it reasonable? It is immoral. It is appalling that this situation is allowed to continue.

Land claims are all well and good to complete, for the importance of land and the culture and history and as a matter of fairness with respect to aboriginal people, but we have to go beyond that. The resolution of these claims will be unable to address the fundamental socio-economic tragedies and trauma that are inflicted by aboriginals on aboriginal people every day, day in and day out.

We have to give those children on a reserve a chance. We have to give them hope. We have to ensure they will have access to the same opportunity that we have, but they do not. There is no chance they will be able to do that. That is the most heartbreaking of all.

We can take a look at some of the communities, and there are some phenomenal communities. Chief Clarence Louie, for example, in Osoyoos, has done some remarkable work as have others leaders. They are true leaders who have taken things upon themselves, despite overwhelming and very difficult circumstances.

I can hardly hear myself think, Mr. Speaker, because of all the chatter going on.

[Specific Claims Tribunal Act, May 12th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I want to ask my friend from the NDP a fundamental question. He has a lot of experience in this area, as he outlined in his speech. One of the fundamental ways to build wealth is the ability to own property. Property rights are essential. The Peruvian economist, Hernando De Soto, made that very clear in one of his seminal books.

Does my colleague think that this bill is going to enable aboriginal people who live on reserve to have the property rights that they require, rights which all of us in this House enjoy, but others do not? Aboriginal people do not have those property rights and therefore, they are forbidden from being able to accumulate the wealth that we can. Does my friend not think that what we need is property rights for aboriginal people so they can enjoy the same hopes, possibilities and economic development that we enjoy as non-aboriginals?

[Burma, May 8th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the minister is correct. We do not need more words. We do need action. These people will die in the events taking place after this disaster unless we act quickly. There is another option at hand. Canadians are very proud of our Disaster Assistance Response Team. That team can be deployed and can be used to save lives in this very situation.

My question is simply this. Will the government authorize and offer the deployment of the Disaster Assistance Response Team to the people of Burma?

[Burma, May 8th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the tragedy in Burma has reached proportions the world has not seen since the tsunami of December 2004. In that disaster the then Liberal government put forth a matching program that would match the extraordinary contributions made by Canadians.

My question is simple for the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Will he authorize a similar matching contribution that will massively increase the resources for the beleaguered people of Burma?

[Business of Supply, May 8th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I have a fairly simply question for my hon. colleague with regard to the GST reduction that his government put forward.

The GST reduction will cost the government coffers about $12 billion. It, preferentially, will help those who make more money because, obviously, the more one spends the more one gets back. The people who are the poorest do not derive much of a benefit from it because most of their money is spent on food and rent, which are GST-free.

Rather than reducing the GST two percentage points, does my colleague not think that it would have made more sense to take that money and put it into things such as lowering tuition rates for students; implementing a refundable tax credit for the poor, particularly those who make less than $20,000 a year; working with the provinces to establish a country-wide strategy for affordable housing; or putting money into health care for those issues that affect those who are living on the street?

In my view, those things would have been a much more prudent and effective use of limited taxpayer funds. Twelve billion dollars could go a long way toward helping those people who are the poorest in our country.

[Business of Supply, May 8th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, in my colleague's dissertation, he spoke about a central issue on which he and the Conservative Party continue to press. I disagree with some of his statements. They continue, correctly, to talk about the increase in GDP. The problem, however, is not one that deals with a central increase in GDP. It is an issue of distribution, of equity, of those people on the ground, the poorest people, and their ability to have the resources in their pocket to go to school, to get the skills training, to get into a place where they a roof over their head, to have the necessary medical care for things like substance abuse or mental health problems. These people cannot get access to those. They do not have the money to do it and the levels of government do not have the money to provide for the type of care these people need.

As a country, thankfully, we are doing well, but the people who most need our help, most need the help of the House, are not getting it.

Could my friend tell me if his government would reconsider some of its policies and put a significant structural investment into access to skills training, put money in the pockets of the poorest people and help our seniors? The child tax benefit helps those children, but does not help single people or seniors who have had their children. Money in the pockets of people, lower tuition fees for students, better help to the provinces for mental health disabilities and substance abuse are the things those people most need.