Statement made on 04 June 2009 by Senator Charlie Watt
Hon. Charlie Watt:
Honourable senators, the amendments proposed in this bill are in fact an incremental recognition by the Government of Canada of the Cree rights to govern in their territory. Those amendments result from protracted discussions between the Government of Canada and the Grand Council of the Crees, and they were developed in consultation with the Cree communities. Moreover, the Inuit were consulted through the Makivik Corporation, and the Naskapi Band of Quebec was consulted on them as well. Both organizations agreed that the proposals do not affect their rights or the rights of their citizens. The Government of Quebec was also consulted and accepted the proposed amendments.
In order to understand Bill C-28 in its proper historical context, it is important to remember that it is seen by the Cree leadership to be the modern-day expression of their Aboriginal rights to govern, as they have always done on their traditional lands.
In the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement of 1975, the Government of Quebec recognized the Cree Regional Authority. This bill takes the same Cree Regional Authority and brings it into the federal Cree-Naskapi (of Quebec) Act, originally passed by Parliament in 1984. Canada will therefore recognize the Cree Regional Authority as having a certain power over Category 1A lands, which are under the federal jurisdiction — that is why it is called Category 1A land.
The Cree of James Bay, Quebec, share a common history and a common culture and language. This act recognizes their historic existence as a people. Unlike the Indian Act that has fragmented many of Canada's Aboriginal peoples into community nations, this act recognizes the Cree presence in James Bay and enhances their ability to govern.
The Cree Regional Authority will be empowered by this bill to set regional standards for the Cree communities, and it will provide regional oversight in planning, environmental protection and the protection of the Cree language and culture.
The Cree Regional Authority will also be responsible for the implementation of certain obligations to the Cree people, contracted by Canada in the 1975 treaty. By assuming Canada's obligations to their own people, the Cree will take charge of their community and social development.
In 1975, the Cree and the Makivik Inuit signed the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement. I was one of the signatories. In both cases, we opted to have certain services from Quebec and others from Canada. The Cree and the Inuit fought for years for the implementation of the obligations of the Government of Canada and the Government of Quebec in that agreement.
In the case of the Cree, substantial obligations of the Government of Quebec were settled in 2002 with the signing of a Quebec-Cree New Relationship Agreement. In 2008, a similar agreement with Canada settled a court proceeding, as well as a certain issue concerning the community of Oujé-Bougoumou.
The amendments that we have before us will also recognize the Cree of Oujé-Bougoumou as a community under the Cree-Naskapi (of Quebec) Act. This is a fact of great importance to the members of that community, who were moved several times since the 1950s and were eventually scattered along the roads in the Chibougamau region. Their community has won an international award for excellence, a credit to their tenacity. We will honour their effort by the passage of this bill.
The 2008 Canada-Cree New Relationship Agreement called for a new amendment as part of the two-step process in the development of Cree governance. Those amendments are part of phase 1 and empower the Cree Regional Authority to implement the obligations it has assumed from Canada.
The second phase, which has already begun, will involve the Cree, as well as Canada and Quebec. It will seek consensus among the parties on further developments in the governance of the James Bay territory. The federal issues only to be covered in the discussion comprise 27 matters of governance, including a Cree consultation, dispute resolution, representational matters and their own source of revenues, among others. When phase 2 is completed, a comprehensive proposal will be presented to Canada and to Quebec for their consideration.
I recommend the passage of Bill C-28.