So far, the Government of Quebec has succeeded in implementing — partially or totally — 86 of the 142 recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry on Relations between Aboriginal Peoples and Certain Public Services (Commission Viens).
More than three years after the tabling of the Viens report, these advances are reassuring even if there is still a lot of work to be done, affirms Ian Lafrenière, Minister responsible for Relations with the First Nations and the Inuit.
“Can I say that I am delighted, that I am on the party, that I am happy? The answer is no, Mr. Lafrenière told the To have to. I’m happy, we’re making progress, but above all we mustn’t go about it cheerfully and say: it’s settled, we’re not talking about it anymore. »
As of September 2021, 68 of 142 recommendations were in progress. In 2020, this figure was 51.
Minister Lafrenière says he has “great discomfort” with the “mathematical” approach to the Viens report. “It’s dangerous,” he continues. We’re all the same: every week, I go grocery shopping, check off what I’ve taken and get it out of my head. My fear is that as a society we look at it and we think it’s done. »
Recommendation 99, which is to “support financially and in a sustainable manner the services offered in urban areas to itinerant Aboriginal clients”, is a real social project, he argues. “The person who is going to stand in front of you and say [la recommandation] 99 is fixed, roaming is over, don’t believe her. »
The Viens Commission was set up following allegations of police abuse against Aboriginal women in Val-d’Or. She concluded that First Nations and Inuit in Quebec suffer from systemic discrimination.
Wouldn’t the recognition of systemic racism by the government of François Legault be the basis? “If we didn’t take concrete action, the question you just asked me would be unbearable for me,” retorts Ian Lafrenière. The latter evokes the creation of the post of minister responsible for the fight against racism, which Christopher Skeete inherited.
Regarding the notion of cultural security in health services, the minister assures that a bill will be tabled “as soon as possible”.
Further details will follow.
With Marie-Michele Sioui