The creation by Quebec of a Commissioner for the well-being and rights of children is being done “without the consent” of indigenous communities, deplores the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador (APNQL). “It’s extremely trying,” said its leader, Ghislain Picard, on Wednesday.
The latter presented himself to the parliamentary committee with a knife between his teeth at the end of the morning. On the second day of the study of Bill 37 “on the commissioner for the well-being and rights of children”, he was particularly harsh towards the government’s intentions to create a position of “associate commissioner” for issues indigenous people and then submit it to the national commissioner.
“Today we will allow ourselves to be very critical,” Mr. Picard told the Minister responsible for Social Services, Lionel Carmant. ” In [leur] current form, the functions planned for […] this associated commissioner will limit himself to assisting and advising the commissioner to whom he reports. »
A situation that surprises the main spokesperson for the AFNQL, in the context where, in 2021, the Laurent Commission “on the rights of children and the protection of youth” proposed “that communities who wish can avail themselves of ‘an independent Commissioner’.
Visiting parliament on Wednesday, the Makivvik Corporation, which represents the Inuit of Nunavik, also did not mince its words when the time came to offer its comments on Bill 37. “This new institution is useless,” she stressed in her memoir. “Certainly relevant for the children of Quebec, this mandate nevertheless appears disconcertingly timid when placed in the context of the disadvantage of childhood in Nunavik. »
Not heard
Chief Picard criticizes Minister Carmant for failing in his duty to listen to the communities when developing his bill last year. “A bit like regional head Picard mentioned to you before, we don’t have the impression of having been heard much either,” said the executive advisor to the president of Makivvik, Jean-François Arteau.
“It is deplorable to note the persistence of this government in debating that it is the only one able to exercise in this field of jurisdiction, while the Court of Appeal unanimously confirmed the inherent right […] to the self-government of First Nations in the area of child and family services,” said Ghislain Picard on Wednesday.
Almost two years ago, the Quebec Court of Appeal confirmed the right of Indigenous nations to provide youth protection services, under a federal bill adopted in 2019. Contested by the Quebec government, the law has since come under the microscope of the Supreme Court of Canada, which is due to issue a decision on the matter this week.
The AFNQL pleads its “right to self-determination” in the context of services to indigenous youth. This is also why she opposed the establishment of an advisory committee of young indigenous people to advise the Commissioner for Children’s Welfare and Rights; she pleads for a fully autonomous commissioner.
“The First Nations have never ceded their rights or delegated to the government of Quebec the exercise of their rights. They have never consented to him adopting a non-independent institution to take care of the well-being of their children in their place,” Ghislain Picard insisted on Wednesday.
In committee on Wednesday, Minister Carmant assured the groups representing the First Nations and Inuit of his collaboration. “If we can rephrase things to say that the commissioner would play an autonomous role, could that be a possible solution, in your opinion? “, he asked Mr. Picard. His bill will be the subject of detailed studies in the coming weeks. The elected representatives of the commission will then be able to make amendments.
At the end of the day Tuesday, the Ombudsman, Marc-André Dowd asked to “postpone the appointment of the associate commissioner dedicated to children who are members of the First Nations or Inuit, until the consultation process is deemed satisfactory by all the parties involved.
In interview with The duty On Wednesday, the President of Quebec, Catherine Claveau, also pleaded for a “completely independent person”. “ [Quelqu’un] who would not be deputy, under the commissioner,” she clarified. “Someone who would obviously be Indigenous and who would have full autonomy regarding issues that concern Indigenous children. »