Fixing a broken relationship

When the Harper government scuttled the Kelowna Accord in 2006, it set the tone for a decade of discord between Canada’s First Nations and the federal government.

In the years since the accord’s demise, its promise to deliver the most basic necessities to First Nations reserves — clean water, habitable housing, health care, education and economic opportunities — have gone unfulfilled.

As a result, instead of improved relations between Ottawa and indigenous peoples we’ve seen the opposite: blockades, demonstrations and the Idle No More protests.

Instead of improved education, the Conservatives simply scrapped a $1.9-billion education agreement after aboriginal leaders rejected the strings attached to it.

And instead of a resolution to the heart-wrenching issue of murdered and missing aboriginal women, the government has simply refused to hold an inquiry.

It’s long past time for a new start. No matter which party wins the election on Oct. 19, one of its first priorities must be to fix this broken relationship. And it should start by reviving talks aimed at resurrecting the approach set out in the Kelowna Accord.

Far from getting better, things have gotten worse under the Harper government for most aboriginal people living on reserves, according to a 2012 report from former auditor general Sheila Fraser.

The result is that many First Nations people have been condemned to lives of poverty, poor health and despair. The signs are all there in:

High suicide rates: 126 per 100,000 for native men, versus 24 for non-native men; 35 per 100,000 for native women versus just five for non-native women.

High rates of incarceration: 10 times that of nonnatives. Aboriginals make up 4 per cent of the population but 23 per cent of those in prison.

High rates of kids in foster care: almost half of children in care are aboriginal.

Poor health, as measured in high diabetes and obesity rates, and, according to a 2014 UN report, “significant gaps” in life expectancy and infant mortality compared to others.

This is a shameful situation that must change. But where to begin? Among the priorities all parties should be committing to:

Education: Funding for a First Nations child going to elementary or high school is 20 to 40 per cent lower (depending on the province) than for non-native kids. That leads to crowding, inferior schools and a dropout rate four times the national average.

Clean water: Fraser found half of the drinking water systems on reserves pose a health threat.

Housing: In 2014 a UN watchdog warned of a housing “crisis” in aboriginal communities.

Economic opportunities. Statistics Canada doesn’t even collect unemployment figures on reserves. But a pilot project near Calgary found people living on one reserve had an unemployment rate five times higher than non-aboriginals in Alberta.

Resolving battles over resources, treaty rights and land claims. The 2014 UN report found negotiations around land treaties and claims had bogged down “with no foreseeable end.”

Despite all this, aboriginal issues have received hardly any attention during this campaign.

In fact, until this week, only the Liberals had released a platform on aboriginal issues. Among its promises: $2.6 billion for First Nations education, $500 million over three years for school infrastructure; and $50 million more per year in financial assistance for indigenous people attending college and university. Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau also promised to implement all 94 recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, call a public inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women, and lift the 2-per-cent cap on funding for First Nations programming.

On Wednesday, the NDP’s Thomas Mulcair unveiled his party’s approach, promising $4.8 billion over eight years for aboriginal education, the removal of the 2-per-cent funding cap, $375 million for clean water and sanitation over four years, and $120 million for health services for indigenous people in urban centres. He had earlier promised to ensure future federal decisions will respect Canada’s obligations to First Nations and to hold a national inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women.

The Conservative campaign hasn’t set out a platform in this area. But the government’s 2015 budget included $200 million over five years for First Nations education, and $215 million over five years to provide skills and development training. The Conservatives have also committed $500 million over seven years to on-reserve school infrastructure.

Regardless of who wins in nine days, politicians owe it to First Nations people to revive the approach set out in the Kelowna Accord. Its goal was to “close the gap” between the standard of living for First Nations and non-aboriginals by 2016. Sadly, that date is now very close — but the goals remain far away.

Instead of a resolution to the heart-wrenching issue of murdered and missing aboriginal women, the government has simply refused to hold an inquiry