And now:[EMAIL PROTECTED] (S.I.S.I.S.) writes:
UN COMMITTEE CRITICIZES CANADA
Windspeaker, January 1999 by Paul Barnsley
An international panel of judges and human rights experts has told Canada
it needs to get serious about protecting the human rights of Indigenous
people who live within its borders. The United Nations Committee on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights concluded its autumn session on Dec. 4
by issuing conclusions after listening to reports from five nations,
including Canada. The committee released its findings after listening to
three weeks of reports from the nations which are all parties to the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. This
international treaty has 137 signatory nations. The 18-member committee has
the power and responsibility to oversee the implementation of the terms of
the treaty.
Every five years, states that have ratified the treaty must report to the
committee and answer questions. During this session, Canada was criticized
by the committee for not following the committee's recommendations from
1993. That was the last time Canada appeared before the committee,"when it
adopted policies at federal, provincial and territorial levels which
exacerbated poverty and homelessness among vulnerable groups at a time of
strong economic growth and increasing affluence." The committee voiced its
approval of several Supreme Court of Canada rulings dealing with equality
provisions of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and also praised Canada
for appointing a Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.
But it slammed Canada for not taking steps to make the terms of the
international treaty binding within its boundaries, citing the lack of
legal recourse under Canadian law for those who might claim that the
covenant has been violated. The committee also chided Canada for failing to
make legislative or constitutional changes that would allow the federal
government to pressure provinces that violated the terms of covenant,
noting that under the present arrangement provinces could not be forced to
comply. The committee noted there is still a "gross disparity" between the
economic, social and cultural situation of Aboriginal people and most
Canadians" and urged Canada to implement the recommendations of the Royal
Commission.
The committee report frowned on Canada's policy of extinguishment of
Aboriginal rights, and raised questions about the federal policy of
devolving programs to provincial governments, asking what the federal could
or would do if provincial governments violated the terms of the covenant.
The committee also wanted to know what was being done about the
self-determination ambitions of Canada's Aboriginal peoples and asked what
the rights the Aboriginal peoples of Quebec would have if Quebec separated.
In reporting to the committee, federal officials assured the members that
Canada has reversed the trend towards social spending cuts and pointed to
Indian Affairs Minister Jane Stewart's Agenda for Action with First Nations
as proof that Canada was addressing the problems of its Indigenous peoples.
The Grand Council of the Crees was the only Native group that attended the
committee meetings. Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come summed up his impressions
of Canada's answers to the committee during a speech at Carleton University
in Ottawa on Dec. 10. Calling the committee report "one of the most
significant developments in recent years concerning the human rights of
Aboriginal peoples in Canada," Coon Come launched into his own stinging
indictment of Canada's reaction to the report. "The reaction of the
government was swift and predictable," he said. "Ministers Herb Gray and
Lloyd Axworthy stated that the UN committee had relied on 'outdated' data,
thus implying that things are now fine."
The grand chief argued that things are not fine. He argued that an analysis
of spending on First Nations programs showed that per capita spending for
Native people has dropped by three per cent since 1993 while per capita
spending for non-Aboriginal Canadians has risen over the same period by 24
per cent. "We are growing tired of the propaganda that is being used to
continue to oppress and dispossess us," he said. "By short changing
Aboriginal peoples in the way federal governments do as compared to per
capita spending on non-Aboriginal Canadians, the federal government is
actually enriching the federal treasury at our expense."
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CANADA - BUILT AND MAINTAINED BY COLONIALISM AND INDIGENOUS GENOCIDE!
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S.I.S.I.S. Settlers In Support of Indigenous Sovereignty
P.O. Box 8673, Victoria, "B.C." "Canada" V8X 3S2
EMAIL : <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
WWW: http://kafka.uvic.ca/~vipirg/SISIS/SISmain.html
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