Indigenous peoples edict means partnership: Bennett

OTTAWA — There’s nothing frightening about adopting and implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett said Tuesday at the UN.

Bennett earned a standing ovation from a UN forum in New York by announcing that Canada is now a full supporter of the 2007 declaration, “without qualification.”

But what that declaration signifies in the Canadian context depends on whom you ask.

In the words of one lawyer who represents indigenous resource interests: “Treaty making starts again today.”

UNDRIP, the acronym by which the declaration is known, describes a global set of collective and human rights covering indigenous issues including language, identity, culture and traditions, health and education and free, prior, informed consent over resource extraction. The declaration is not considered legally binding.

“What does this mean for Canada now?” Bennett told the UN’s permanent forum on indigenous issues.

“It means nothing less than a full engagement on how to move forward with adoption and implementation, done in full partnership with First Nations, the Métis nation and Inuit peoples.”

Canada is uniquely placed, she said, because it is one of the few states in the world that has already incorporated indigenous rights, in Section 35 of the 1982 Constitution Act.

“By adopting and implementing the declaration, we are excited that we are breathing life into Section 35 and recognizing it now as a full box of rights for indigenous peoples in Canada,” said the Liberal minister.

Under the former Conservative government, Canada was one of four countries, including Australia, New Zealand and the United States, that voted against the declaration when it was first passed in 2007 — even though Canadian diplomatic officials had helped draft the original declaration.