Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said he hopes to introduce legislation certifying Indigenous policing as an essential service within the next year.
In a year-end interview with The Canadian Press, Mendicino said the future law is being developed with input from stakeholders and Indigenous communities who he says deserve “the same quality of policing.” ” than the others.
He described this as the next step in advancing reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.
“We must anchor our work in a relationship based on trust, respect and recognition of the inherent right of these peoples to self-determination in matters of public opinion,” said Mr. Mendicino. […] It is precisely these values that channel the work we do in the field”.
In September, the minister told reporters he would “work day and night” to have the law ready to be introduced this fall, but that did not happen.
In 2020, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to create legislation declaring Indigenous policing an essential service.
His government had also come under pressure, including from Indigenous leaders, to reform the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). The national force often acts as the primary service for those living on reserves due to contractual policing agreements with all provinces except Quebec and Ontario, which have their own provincial forces.
Tragedies such as the James Smith Cree Nation stabbing attacks that left 11 dead and 18 injured last September have amplified calls for more Indigenous policing.
According to Public Safety Canada, there are currently 35 Indigenous police services across the country, the majority of which operate in Ontario and Quebec.
The First Nations Chiefs of Police Association said it has received dozens of calls from other communities seeking to take the same path, which it says can prove to be a long and complicated process.
Chronic underfunding
Lack of funding is one of the main obstacles. Since 1991, Ottawa has funded policing in Indigenous and Inuit communities, but an internal evaluation this year found the program suffered from under-resources and under-funded service agreements.
The National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls had also flagged concerns about insufficient funding, and its 2019 report included a call to action to “radically transform Indigenous policing.”
The report said Indigenous police services should be funded at the same level as non-Indigenous services and subject to audits by civilian oversight bodies.
Although he has yet to issue new legislation, Mendicino said his government has made progress on the issue by reaching an agreement with the Alberta government and the province’s Siksika Nation that would allow the community to no longer depend on the RCMP and instead create a self-administered police service.
Mendicino said Ottawa has also signed an agreement with the Saskatchewan government and the Prince Albert Grand Council, which includes James Smith’s Cree Nation, to explore new ways to ensure public safety.
“This is what advancing reconciliation looks like,” he said. But there is still a long way to go.”