Statement made on 01 November 2011 by Senator Pana Merchant
Hon. Pana Merchant:
Honourable senators, on October 14, 2011, two significant events of progress and accomplishment took place in Regina.
For the first time in Canadian history, a First Nations flag was flown in front of a government building. The Treaty 4 flag now has a permanent home in front of Regina City Hall, alongside the Canadian and Saskatchewan flags.
Treaty 4 was signed on September 15, 1874 at Fort Qu'appelle in Saskatchewan. There are 34 First Nations in Treaty 4 territory, 27 in Saskatchewan and 7 in Manitoba. The flag-raising ceremony was the culmination of several years of discussion and relationship building between the City of Regina and south Saskatchewan First Nations.
That same afternoon, I had the honour to witness the installation of the ninth president of the First Nations University of Canada, Dr. Doyle Anderson.
Dr. Anderson was led into the Regina campus by a drum group, dancers, veterans, chiefs, his family and university colleagues from across the country. During the ceremony, as he was sworn in by the Chair of the Board of Governors, Della Anaquod, he was cloaked in an academic robe and given a medallion in traditional First Nations colours, decorated with beadwork and eagle feathers.
Dr. Anderson, a member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation, was given a Cree name by Elder Pat Bugler, which translated into English is "Keeper of the Lodge."
In the early 1990s, he was on the faculty of the First Nations University of Canada, then known as the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College. He went on to be the founding executive director of the Indigenous Nations Institute and a founder and director of the Native American Business Administration Program at Idaho State University.
The installation of the new president is just one sign that the First Nations University of Canada is back on track, having again secured federal and provincial funding, a balanced budget, a cleared deficit and a clean audit from KPMG. The First Nations University of Canada welcomed nearly 700 full-time students this fall and over 5,000 are taking their 276 courses.
I sincerely congratulate Dr. Anderson and welcome him.
I am certain all honourable senators will join with me in recognizing these two historic events.