Canada's aboriginal policy gets a timely dose of common sense
Conservatives have cultivated a closer relationship with the Congress of Aboriginal People, representing off reserve and non-treaty Indians
Fresh thinking at last is starting to ventilate debate about aboriginal policy in this country.
That's due, at least in part, to the Harper Conservatives' consistent refusal to be enslaved by political correctness.
The governing party, which this week announced formation of a new aboriginal caucus, from the start has rejected the view that federal policy should cater to those on reserve -- common sense since most aboriginals now reside in cities.
Accordingly, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has cultivated a closer working relationship with the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples, representing those off reserve and non-treaty Indians, than with the Assembly of First Nations, representing band chiefs across Canada.
Conservatives also have openly called for more accountability on the part of band leaders and pushed both for greater empowerment of women and private property ownership on reserves.
The current government rejected the 2005 Kelowna Accord which featured a $5-billion spending package in favour of more focused initiatives and targeted expenditures.
Conservatives have quietly gone about the business of settling land claims, last October establishing the Specific Claims Tribunal Act to speed up settlements.
In June of 2008, Harper issued a long-awaited formal residential schools apology in the Commons, as part of a $1.9-billion settlement agreement.
Last week's election in Calgary of a successor to AFN chief Phil Fontaine reinforced the notion that times are changing.
The chiefs elected Shawn Atleo, 42, a British Columbian with a master's degree in education.
Atleo is promising to make Indian education his priority.
According to 2006 Census figures, 40 per cent of natives off reserve and 60 per cent on reserve don't complete high school.
While thinking around aboriginal policy is shifting, Canada's opposition parties continue to challenge the government's goodwill on the aboriginal file, embracing traditional AFN philosophy favouring self-government and big funding for reserves.
On Wednesday, the Liberals issued a news release reacting contemptuously to the Conservatives' new aboriginal caucus, asserting: "Canadians won't be fooled."
The news release quotes individual Conservatives questioning big spending to address aboriginal woes.
But these days it has become a lot more acceptable to question the way public money is spent on reserve, as well as the conduct of band leaders.
Joseph Quesnel, a Metis and policy analyst for the Frontier Centre for Public Policy, earlier this month called on native governments to address corruption on reserves.
"Stop pretending these issues do not exist," he wrote. "It is insane to ignore the voices of the people at the bottom who witness a lack of accountability and transparency in Indian country."
Further, Quesnel urged the AFN to "recognize the central role of private property and the private sector in promoting indigenous prosperity."
The fact is, native people themselves want change which doubtless accounts for the fact that the Conservatives managed last fall to elect four aboriginal MPs compared to just one elected by the Liberals.
At the inaugural meeting of the Conservatives' aboriginal caucus, the invited speaker was Calvin Helin, an aboriginal lawyer who wrote Dances with Dependency: Indigenous Success Through Self-Reliance.
Predictably, Helin's appearance was deemed inappropriate by the Liberals.
But new voices coming forward from within the native community should be welcome.
They serve not only to legitimize the Conservative government's approach to native policy, but hold hope for the future of Canada's aboriginal community.
byaffe@vancouversun.com
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