NAN supported motion to end discrimination against First Nations children passes

Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Deputy Grand Chief Anna Betty Achneepineskum is calling on all members of parliament to support a motion that will be introduced by the New Democratic Party (NDP) this week calling on the Government of Canada to comply with the historic ruling of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal to end discrimination against First Nations children.

The motion passed on November 1 in parliament, with 302 yeas and 0 nays.

“This is not an issue about throwing money at a problem, but recognizing the urgent need to address the long-standing and shameful discrimination perpetuated by the Government of Canada against our children,” said Deputy Grand Chief Anna Betty Achneepineskum, who attended a press conference in Ottawa this morning. “We are calling on this government to comply with the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal order to end discrimination against First Nations children. We look to all members of parliament to do what is right for First Nations children and vote in favour of this motion.”

The motion specifically calls upon the government to do the following four actions: 
 
1.  Immediately invest an additional $155 million in new funding for the delivery of child welfare that has been identified as the shortfall this year alone, and establishing a funding plan for future years that will end the systemic shortfalls in First Nations child welfare;

2.  Implement the full definition of Jordan's Principle as outlined in a resolution passed by the House on December 12, 2007;

3.  Fully comply with all orders made by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal and commit to stop fighting Indigenous families in court who are seeking access to services covered by the federal government, and;

4.  Make public all pertinent documents related to the overhaul of child welfare and the implementation of Jordan's Principle.
 
Jordan River Anderson was a five-year-old First Nation boy from Manitoba who spent his whole life in the hospital because the federal and provincial governments spent those five years of his life debating on who would pay the hospital bills.

“The lack of funding and services, combined with poverty and despair, is this country’s greatest social injustice since the days of residential schools. All Canadians must demand that all levels of government recognize that First Nation children must have access to the same services as their own children,” Ontario Regional Chief Isadore Day said.     

In its landmark ruling in January 2016, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruled that the government discriminates against First Nations children in its delivery of child welfare services on-reserve. The Tribunal has issued two compliance orders, but the federal government has failed to act.

The precedent-setting First Nations child welfare case First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada et al. v. Attorney General of Canada was launched by the Assembly of First Nations and the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada in 2007. The case was brought on behalf of 163,000 children after the federal government failed to implement child welfare reforms recommended by several reports documenting inequalities in funding and access to services.

The Tribunal’s landmark decision found that the Government of Canada’s failure to provide equitable child welfare funding for vulnerable First Nations children is discriminatory. The Tribunal confirmed that the federal government is accountable for failing to provide First
Nations the same level of child welfare services as the rest of Canada, which is discriminatory and contrary to the Canadian Human Rights Act.

NAN was granted intervenor status in the Tribunal proceedings in May 2016, allowing NAN to make submissions and important contributions to remedies that will have a direct impact on the delivery of child welfare in NAN First Nations.

In September, the Tribunal recognized the importance of factoring in remoteness in the delivery of child and family services in First Nation communities within NAN territory and across Canada. It accepted NAN’s vision of a “remoteness quotient” and the application of a northern remoteness factor in the immediate term - not only in Ontario, but throughout Canada.

“There is a direct connection between the current child welfare system and the fact that far too many of our children either commit suicide, end up missing and murdered, or spend their young lives in prison. This federal government must also implement the TRC Calls to Action. We cannot lose another child. Canada’s greatest shame must end now,” Regional Chief Day said.