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Native Canadians & the Federal Gov't (Attawapiskat, etc.)

17K views 200 replies 23 participants last post by  CubaMark 
#1 ·
Federal officials visited Attawapiskat 3 times in October, triggered no red flags on housing

Federal Aboriginal Affairs officials travelled to Attawapiskat at least 10 times this year, including three times in October, but it appears none of these visits triggered any concerns with the department about the state of housing on the reserve.

The Conservative government announced Wednesday it would be immediately turning over the management of the community to an outside consultant following a visit by department officials who concluded the health and safety of residents there demanded immediate action. The department also has an engineer on site tasked with finding a way to get residents into warm and safe housing.

Several families are living in tents and in shacks with no running water as deep winter-like temperatures have begun to settle over this community of 2,000 on the shores of James Bay.

The living conditions in the community have been described as “inhumane” and “life threatening” by the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario.
“This government has invested more than $90 million into this community since coming into office,” said Harper. “We will be announcing additional steps to deal with management problems in this community.”

NDP MP Charlie Angus, who has championed Attawapiskat’s cause, accused the government of blaming the community for its woes.

“Their solution is to blame the community,” said Angus, whose riding includes the community. “Why is it when a First Nation community is in distress does this government’s response is contempt?”

(APTN)

Brilliant. The Conservative Government's answer to this is to turn the community over to... what, KPMG? Yeah, that'll work... :yikes:
 
#2 ·
Despite Harpo's claim that it is their own fault for living in a native community something needs to be done very quickly.
 
#3 ·
I think this is a good idea. it couldn't get much worse. Kudos to the Conservatives for trying something new.

I love Angus's impossibly messed up quote: “Why is it when a First Nation community is in distress does this government’s response is contempt?”
 
#7 ·
This is nothing new. I saw 8'x12' shacks in Arrowland, north of Geraldton in the summer of 1975. I have long maintained that north of Highway 11 you are entering the third world. So these types of conditions have been happening in various places through a whole string of governments.

What is different here is taking over band finances. Bands have guarded their ability to disburse as they saw fit. The government says they have piled over $90,000,000 in the last six years. The bands and the opposition are going to scream. Personally, I will be glad to see some accountability and I am glad that it is a third party doing it. I would like it to be non partisan. Then you have a chance at getting to reality. Is it not enough money? Is it money wasted? a little bit of both? I'd like to know.

They interviewed an auditor on CBC radio this afternoon who had gone over the financial statements for the band. Her comments were interesting. first she indicated that the amount of money was tight. On the other hand she indicated that the ban had no budget and had not had one for years and that the statement showed money for housing to be there yet the band line of credit was maxed out.

so yes, I think that there is probably stuff to look at under the accountant's eye as opposed to the band or the politician's eye.
 
#9 ·
You can't be aware that the Federal Government and the Band were jointly administering the money. The First Nation was not doing things in the way that is stated here.

Had you read the quotes CubaMark posted, you would have no need to ask that question. :rolleyes:
I did not see anything in CM's quote that was radical or new. I see the same old knee jerk reaction of Conservatives to blame someone else.

I imagine it appeals to the base of Conservative supporters.

Take the focus off the Government's failures:

that for 30 days the Government ignored the appeals for aid;

that the Red Cross had to be the first responders to show up with the aid (sleeping bags and heaters) for the community;

that for 12 years the community is waiting for the replacement school;

that the community is built on a flood plane;

that there are another 100 northern First Nation's communities in as bad shape as or in worse shape than Attawapiskat.

It must be difficult to see the Conservative Government handle the situation so badly, not to have complete control of the message track.

I fear the reason for the third party control of the books is merely a tactic in an attempt to regain control of the message track. I also fear it will signal to other First Nation communities not to start complaining publicly about their dire circumstance at this time.
 
#11 ·
A couple of interesting comments from CBC coverage...

"This works out to ten thousand per year for each citizen on the reserve. Out of that ten thousand, food must be bought, clothing must be purchased, and there are no homes to move into. On top of that, you are expected to create your own drinkable water system to supply your home, employ teachers, and employ social assistance. Then there is electricity, sewage systems etc. How far do you think your ten thousand would go every year? My guess is that you would be living in a shack or tent, as these people have been forced to do." - Mary Lynn M.

"[T]his money amounts to about 8000 per person for the year.... Sounds like a lot but when you really break it down it is only enough to barely keep you alive." - Sicskahghee
 
#12 ·
My parents live near the Six Nations Reserve close to Brantford, Ontario. It is common knowledge that the financial management of the band council is utterly corrupted. Hundreds of millions of dollars flow in there, yet a third of houses have no running water or heat. The "ones in charge" live extraordinarily lavish lifestyles (multi-million dollar homes, SUVs and sports cars,etc.).

The government has needed to intervene in this financial arrangement and create transparency and accountability.

Native Canadians are given so many advantages by the system. Subsidies for education, medical, housing, tax exemptions and even radically lower academic requirements for acceptance to law and medical schools. Our native populations should be doing well, not living like this.
 
#16 ·
so we've gone from blaming the liberals to, questioning one's emotional baggage for daring to question the government's motives or actions.

welcome to a new, conservative government.

Did someone say, KPMG? Wow. Tha's real radical. Wasn't that the geniuses that the con mayor hired to come up with the beauties of recommendations for council here? The ones that Adam Vaughn drove a stake through in this oh so hilarious video?

Yeah have a look. THAT KPMG. The ones atom smasher et al are all ga ga about.


watch it right though, it's well worth it.
+ YouTube Video
ERROR: If you can see this, then YouTube is down or you don't have Flash installed.


yeah good luck with that...
 
#17 ·
*I* mentioned KPMG - no idea if that is actually the gov'ts intended "third party". None of the reporting I've seen on this issue has covered that aspect.

Also worth noting, for those who are shocked by the $90-million figure that Harper has thrown around:

The CBC's Adrienne Arsenault, reporting from Attawapiskat on Wednesday, said the $92 million in funding spread over six years was used for services normally covered by the municipalities or the provinces elsewhere in the country. In Attawapiskat, these services are covered by the federal government under the Indian Act. The sum left for housing is about $1 million, which, in the North, can build about four houses, Arsenault said.
(CBC)
 
#21 ·
*I* mentioned KPMG - no idea if that is actually the gov'ts intended "third party". None of the reporting I've seen on this issue has covered that aspect.

Also worth noting, for those who are shocked by the $90-million figure that Harper has thrown around:



(CBC)
I realize that, though I was chuckling at the predictable few that lapped up the news as something to be applauded. I just wanted to show what such a 'radical' change was.
 
#18 ·
The CBC's Adrienne Arsenault, reporting from Attawapiskat on Wednesday, said the $92 million in funding spread over six years was used for services normally covered by the municipalities or the provinces elsewhere in the country.
OK so we have a community with no running water, new sewers, no sidewalks and most people drive 4X4s, atvs and snow mobiles so I doubt they're spending much on roads. Just what services are they providing that eat up the $91 million?

Cheers
MacGuiver
 
#19 ·
The problem is the same as we see in third world countries; those with power and money do not spread the wealth as its intended. They keep the people poor and retain control ue to their wealth.

INAC has misused funds, and many chiefs have also pocketed money meant for the entire community. There are chiefs rolling around in cadillacs, mansions, living a wealthy lifestyle and their people remain poor. People who fight against them are run out of the reserve, and votes are won through bribery and force if needed.

The gov't should have stepped in LONG ago to control the funds. Nobody wanted to touch it because it was to politically incorrect.

There is a light through, some reserves are run correctly and don't have alcohol and drug problems like those we often hear about.
 
#23 ·
The problem is the same as we see in third world countries; those with power and money do not spread the wealth as its intended. They keep the people poor and retain control ue to their wealth.

INAC has misused funds, and many chiefs have also pocketed money meant for the entire community. There are chiefs rolling around in cadillacs, mansions, living a wealthy lifestyle and their people remain poor. People who fight against them are run out of the reserve, and votes are won through bribery and force if needed.

The gov't should have stepped in LONG ago to control the funds. Nobody wanted to touch it because it was to politically incorrect.
*

There is a light through, some reserves are run correctly and don't have alcohol and drug problems like those we often hear about.
* Bolded by me to address issue.

The old chestnut of the First Nation blew the money with no accountability is plain horse $h!t in this case. The Federal Government jointly managed the funds of the Attawapiskat First Nation. Blaming the victims in this case with stereotypical propaganda is not useful, IMO. If the First Nation did a poor job so did the Federal Government.

The Federal Governments failures are on many fronts, across the 100 or more First Nation's communities, just like Attawapiskat, through out this country.

Sympatico News said:
Angus said later Wednesday that the federal government has had a "co-manager in the community every single day, dealing with the books."

"He's appointed by the federal government," Angus told CTV's Power Play. "If they were concerned about the money they would have called him and I think he would have given them a pretty straightforward answer about what they're doing with debt and how they are dealing with their finances."

Angus said with the move, the government essentially "decapitated" the community and has taken away its ability to address its own problems.

"They're sending a message to other First Nations: if you've got problems, keep your mouth shut," Angus said. "And I think that's a really unfortunate position to take at this point."

Angus said while $90 million sounds like a lot of money, but 80 per cent of the community's budget goes to education and another 10 per cent to social services, leaving little left for infrastructure.
Feds to put Attawapiskat under third-party management | Sympatico.ca News

I see that some want to prop up Our Glorious Leader, others do not want to see fellow Canadians get out of poverty and squalor.

The attitude that in Canada we shouldn't have protesters in tents in city parks but it just fine for tent homes in northern communities. No need for the OWS movement in Canada cause we're all right jack indeed.
 
#22 ·
The whole relationship with government is predicated on the specialness of Native Canadians, so treating them like everybody else isn't always possible. In the situation mentioned above, if they were treated like everybody else, the town would cease to exist.
 
#26 ·
Both First Nations and the gov't did a poor job but the gov't didn't keep the people poor. Chiefs who kept the money for themselves instead of putting into community are the final point of blame. The gov't is to blame for not stepping in earlier to do something. Liberal and Conservatives alike turned their cheek. The only reason they are getting involved now is because of Attawapiskat.

I have friends who work at Assembly of First Nations and they all know the money is wasted by corrupt chiefs and by corrupt employees at INAC.

How exactly do you explain the conditions First Nations live in when they are given all this funding?
 
#32 ·
Does remind one of the Mark Twain's observation about the Indian Agent that prayed over every single barrel of pork that came his way, then promptly commandeered it.
 
#39 ·
I wonder if a little entrepreneurship could help the poor folks in the headlines now. I saw they have to pay $6.65 for a dozen eggs. No doubt they are all shipped in from out of town. Is there any reason that someone in their community could not raise chickens and supply all the eggs needed at a much lower price point and make a good buck while doing so? Also supply the meat?

What kind of fish and game is abundant in the area? Hunting could significantly reduce food costs for them if it isn't already being done. The furs can be made into clothes or exported.

What about raising other livestock and crops?

Is there anything they can make for themselves or export?
Build hunting lodges or otherwise tap into the tourist industry?

Is anything else going on in the area to help them economically?
Seems to me the folks of this first Nation had a well established way of life but the Government of Canada contrived a systematic policy to demolish those skills and adaptations.

Our Glorious Leader did apologized for the effects from the residential schools policy. I guess he felt taking the cheap way out of the situation was best. Oops Sorry is a cost effective policy rather than paying for remedial measures to make First Nation's people whole.
 
#52 ·
A road out of native hardship

An excellent common sense article.

....Any attempts by the federal government to make sure taxpayers' money is being well spent are regarded as an unwelcome, colonialist intrusion. The imposition of third-party management in Attawapiskat, after clear mismanagement by the band council (the housing budget was in surplus, despite people living in wood-frame tents), is dismissed as "the imposition of an Indian agent" by the local grand chief, Stan Louttit.

At the mention of Canada's past shameful treatment of its First Nations, guilty-looking white politicians reach for the chequebook. In the wake of the residential school apology, in which Mr. Harper said "the policy of assimilation was wrong," no one is going to propose changes that would really smash the status quo. Changes such as those proposed by Pierre Trudeau and his young Indian Affairs minister, Jean Chrétien, in 1969, which would have abolished the Indian Act and led to native services being delivered the same way as those received by other Canadians. The White Paper was opposed by many aboriginals because it was seen as ending their distinct status. But this was proposed in the name of equality, not assimilation - "the government believes that no one should be shut out of Canadian life," it read.

That ship has sailed and we are left with sinking communities like Attawapiskat, where there is no hope and few jobs. The people won't move south - the residents of nearby Kashechewan were offered the chance to flit to Timmins, at Ottawa's expense, and turned it down. Governments of all stripes and levels feel too guilty to withdraw the funding that is the community's lifeblood, so we are left with policy options that fall far short of smashing the status quo. The Conservatives have some good ideas on education, transparency and the restoration of aboriginal property rights.

But more prosaic options should also be explored, namely road-building. Most of the real basket-case reserves have one thing in common - no permanent road transportation link. Cree communities on the Quebec side of James Bay fare much better, in large part because they have road links. Quebec Premier Jean Charest unveiled an ambitious plan to open up the northern part of his province to mining, energy and logging industries earlier this year. A large part of the Plan Nord is the allocation of $800-million for new road development.

There is no similar plan for northern Ontario, which is, as far as Dalton McGuinty's Liberals are concerned, a far away land of which they know little.

An all-weather road along the shore of James Bay to Moosonee, which is connected to Timmins by the Polar Bear express railway, would at least link these remote reserves to the outside world. The federal government is already in the business of linking remote subArctic communities by road - the last budget allocated $150-million to construct an all-season road between Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk in the Northwest Territories.

Livio di Matteo, professor of economics at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, said much of northern Ontario is unprospected and there is the potential for all kinds of resource discoveries, similar to the find that persuaded De Beers to build a diamond mine 90 kilometres west of Attawapiskat. "They need something. If there were transportation links, there might even be the potential for tourism along James Bay. But without transport, these problems will continue," he said.

If we are stuck with this relic of a relationship, let's at least spend the money wisely. Building roads over muskeg would be expensive. But so is flying in supplies and flying out sick people and prison inmates.
 
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