Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree says a lot of discussion around the issue of so-called Indigenous identity fraud is based on apprehensions people have about the government defining who is – and who is not – a rights holder.
The topic of identity fraud came to a head last fall with a controversial bill in the House of Commons that sought to recognize Métis governments in three provinces.
First Nations and the Manitoba Métis Federation strongly opposed the bill, citing concerns about one of the groups, while the federal government maintained it was a requirement of the courts and the Constitution itself. even.
There have also been a number of high-profile cases of so-called Indigenous identity fraud, including a CBC News investigation into Buffy Sainte-Marie who claimed she was not Cree, but Italian.
Mr. Anandasangaree says that the recognition of rights is “very difficult”, but that decisions must be made in the coming years, particularly regarding the recognition of the Métis.
A major challenge is that the Indian Act still defines who is a First Nation, leaving many people disenfranchised due to what Mr. Anandasangaree called “arbitrary thresholds.”
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