And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: >Date: Sun, 31 Jan 1999 18:50:11 -0500 >From: Kahn-Tineta Horn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.02 [en] (Win95; I) >To: Action Canada Network <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: WHO REPRESENTS INDIGENOUS PEOPLE IN OTTAWA CANADA? > >CASNP. Kahnawake M. T. 30 Jan. 99. The President of the Canadian >Alliance in Solidarity with the Native Peoples, Kahn-Tineta Horn, spoke >on January 29th 1999 at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law "35th >Annual Conference on Law and Contemporary Affairs. No law conference is >complete nowadays without a panel on Indigenous issues. This one was on >"Remedies in Aboriginal Rights Litigation". The following is the text >of Ms. Horn’s comments. The Indigenous and many of the non- native law >students reacted favourably, but many politely did not react. > >"If you are an indigenous person living on territory claimed by Canada, >you might want to ask some questions about Draft Resolution No. 49/98 >passed by the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) at its 19th Annual General >Assembly in June 1998. That resolution is about "Representation of all >First Nations Peoples by the First Nations". Sounds good, eh? > >So why is the AFN asking Ottawa to pass laws about OUR electoral >rights? Does the United States ask Canada’s Parliament to pass laws >about how it’s people vote? Does China? NOW WAY! > >WHO SHOULD MAKE LAWS FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLES? > >It’s up to each nation to make its own laws and choose its own >representatives. Ottawa has no say in how we govern ourselves … at >least not according to international law. > >The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights says: "All >peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right >they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their >economic, social and cultural development". > >Canada signed that covenant. We First Nations haven’t had a chance to >do that yet because Canada has been undermining our governments every >since their colonial ancestors started claiming our land and >possessions. Canada holds us hostage because it owes us money for our >lands and resources and it won’t pay us. But they will pay the >organizations they set up to ‘represent’ us. This is outrageous! > >Do you know of any other Nation that is treated like this? When anyone >else sells land, does the buyer have a right to say, "Okay, I’m gonna >pay you. But first I’ll tell you what kind of ceremonies you have to go >through to be married to your wife, who your children are, and who you >can invite to stay at your house. Then you have to show me all your >account books. If I approve of how you’re going to spend the money I >owe you, well, then maybe I’ll pay you." NO WAY! But that’s exactly >what Canada is doing to the First Nations. > >We should be asking some really hard questions about what Ottawa and >their AFN are up to. The AFN promotes Ottawa’s viewpoint instead of >standing up for our inherent right to self-government. > >AMBASSADORS? Or REVIEWERS? > >The AFN wants their "Chiefs-in-Assembly" to be able to REVIEW >legislation about the way WE choose OUR governments before it is >introduced in CANADA’S parliament!!!! This is REALLY WEIRD!!! Does any >other nation or international organization kow-tow to Ottawa that way? >No as far as I know! > >Does Canada have a right to send its proposals about us to their puppets >for review? Or do we want to send our own AMBASSADORS to Ottawa? > >Let’s look at what the AFN review proposal means: > >If Ottawa sends legislation to the AFN Chiefs-in-Assembly for review, >who’s work do you think they’re reviewing? Why the Department of Indian >Affairs, of course! Do you think any of those bureaucrats are going to >stay up late at night thinking up ways to get rid of the Indian Act and >do themselves out of their high paying civil service jobs? Not on your >life! > >Do other countries let Ottawa’s Department of External Affairs decided >how they are going to govern themselves or choose their >representatives? Not a chance. They choose their own forms of >government and pick their own representatives in their own way. > >And do you think Ottawa would agree to anything their Chiefs-in Assembly >propose which conflicts with their policies? Of course not. Does >Ottawa invite the United States to send their draft legislation so >Parliament can review it before the US passes laws affecting Canada? No >way. Canada decides for itself what Canada’s laws are going to be. So >does the U.S. > >We are nations so we too have a right to choose AMBASSADORS to represent >us. We do not have to beg for a right to review a foreign government’s >(Canada) attempt to make laws for a jurisdiction they do not legally >have. Think about it. > >WHAT KIND OF REPRESENTATION DO WE WANT? > >We all agree that we want "Representation of First Nations Peoples by >First Nations People". What does this mean and how are we going to go >about it? > >The first questions is WHO ARE THE FIRST NATIONS? > >Are we the band of people attached to reserves governed by Canada’s >Indian Act? Or are we the nations that were here before European >settlers took our land and split up our territory and resources among >themselves? > >Just because we are all Indigenous peoples doesn’t mean we all have the >same ideas. European peoples are not forced to belong to the same >countries or organizations just because they’re of European ancestry. >We shouldn’t have to be lumped together just because we have indigenous >ancestry. We all have in common that we are titleholders to North >America and that we have true traditional indigenous governments. > >What we want is acknowledgment of our national identities, for our >inherent right to political existence, jurisdiction over our territories >and all aspects of our lives. We all have different histories and the >right to choose different futures and different forms of government … >especially those of us who still exercise independent nationhood. > >Canada and the AFN do not recognize this. The AFN is, after all, made >up of a system of Chiefs set up under Canada’s Indian Act. The AFN is >playing right into Canada’s hands. Instead of defending our true >traditional governments, it is allowing Canada to force us into their >confederation which wants jurisdiction over us and our land. We never >agreed to become part of their confederation of settler provinces. The >Six Nations were never conquered. Canada should pay its debts to the >true representatives chosen by our own internally chosen traditional >government .. not to the Indian Act Band council that they imposed on us >by force. > >HOW CAN WE CHOOSE OUR PROPER REPRESENTATIVES? > >The international community needs to know who our proper representatives >are. So we need to know who we are. > >The AFN says it represents all first nations people regardless of >residence. But does it really? Who decided that the AFN represents all >First Nations people anyway? The people? Or the individuals who set up >the AFN? Or Canada’s Indian Act which was imposed on us against our >wishes? Who decides who can vote in the elections of a First Nation? >If the AFN recognizes voting rights under Canada’s Indian Act, it is >betraying our inherent right to our true governments. Like other >nations, we have a right to decide for ourselves who our representatives >are. > >The AFN’s top down decision-making is the same way Canada decided that >all Indigenous nations north of the artificial Canada-United States >border were Canadians. The people themselves had no say in it. How >would they feel if the U.S. decided that all Canadians were U.S. >Citizens? I don’t think they would like it at all. > >The AFN models itself on Canada’s government set up under Imperial >British authority. This violates our international human rights. Under >international law just because a person is a member of a First Nation >does not mean they can represent a First Nation. The representatives of >the First Nations must be properly chosen by our legitimate governments, >not by the governments imposed on us by Canada. > >Each nation has to right to decide on its own form of government. What >kind of government does each First Nation have? What kind does it want? > >The Mohawk Nation citizens have a true traditional government. > >The traditional government of the Haudenosaunee Iroquois Confederacy is >governed by the Gayanerekowa, the Great Law of Peace, which is the >constitution of our people. We are a union of six independent nations: >Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and Tuscarora. Each nation is >independent .. or at least as much as we can manage in the face of all >the interference from Canada, Quebec, Ontario, New York and the United >States that we have to cope with. Our Confederacy deals with >jurisdiction over our territories, governing ourselves and issues like >trading with Europeans and alliances with the settlers. We have always >defended our independence as nations and we have never become subjects >of either Britain or Canada. > >Other First Nations deal with Canada in other ways. It is their right >to decide for themselves what to do, but that has nothing to do with our >right to self-government under our traditional laws. > >If the AFN really wants to help the First Nations people reaffirm the >true First Nations governments, they should stop being Canadian >government paid civil servants who are helping a foreign government try >to keep the First Nations people colonized". > >Order booklets on Indigenous issues for $20 a set from: >Canadian Alliance in Solidarity with Native Peoples >Box 991, Kahnawake Mohawk Territory (Quebec, Canada) J0L 1B0 >450-635-7402 Fax 450-635-2413 [EMAIL PROTECTED] or >[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Check out the Website http://users.cyberglobe.net/~casnp > >Booklets: > "An Introduction to the CASNP Movement"; > "Commentary: Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples - is it a >diversion from the fact that true Aboriginal Nations’ governments >supersede the colonial government of Canada?" > "Who Represents Indigenous People in Ottawa Canada?" > "Is the United Nations Facilitating the Extinction of Indigenous >Peoples?" > "Is Canada Under Corporate Occupation?" > "Canada and U.S. to Hold Tricky NAFTA "First Nations" Summit in Calgary >Alberta" > &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) Unenh onhwa' Awayaton http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
