Top News - December -2001 Published December 10, 2001 Marty Ballentyne, lead singer for Breach of Trust, performs at the 2001 Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards Photo by Bert Crowfoot New commission to look at justice system FSIN supports standing committee report Respected chief honored by his community This is only a partial listing of the stories featured in the December 2001 issue of Saskatchewan Sage. If you are not receiving your own copy of Sage, then you have missed out on a lot. New commission to look at justice system Cheryl Petten, Sage Writer, Saskatoon The Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN) and the provincial Justice department have joined forces to form a new commission to look at reforming the justice system to better serve First Nations and Métis people. The formation of the Commission on First Nations and Métis People and Justice Reform was announced on Nov. 14. The goal of the commission is to "identify efficient, effective and financially responsible reforms to the justice system. The objectives of these reforms are to reduce offending and victimization leading to reduced incarceration and safer communities for First Nations and Métis peoples." The main reason for the formation of the commission, according to FSIN vice chief Lawrence Joseph, is "the apparent failure, overall, by this western-style justice system in relation to First Nations people in Saskatchewan, and in indeed Canada. And that, actually, came to a head a year-and-a-half ago, January and February of 2000, when in Saskatoon, frozen bodies of First Nations people were found, and questionable deaths in Saskatoon were evident," Joseph said, referring to the deaths of Rodney Naistus and Lawrence Wegner, whose frozen bodies were found on the outskirts of the city. " And the big thing that happened with, resulting from all that and our political involvement, Darrell Night came forth and dared to report his drop off," Joseph explained. What Night came forward with were allegations that two Saskatoon Police Service constables had driven him out to the same area where the bodies of Naistus and Wegner had been found and left him there to find his way home on foot in minus 25 degree Celsius temperatures. The two officers have subsequently been found guilty of forcible confinement and have been fired from the police force. "Essentially, what happened, is from that incident, the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations called for a public inquiry at that time, and was very adamant in saying that if this doesn't go, we're going ahead with it anyway. And to that end, they provided $298,000 to the federation to move on with it in the form of a special investigations unit. "Now that particular fund was derived from the gaming trust funds, a portion of the gaming trust monies that would normally go to the bands. All the First Nations gave so much from their pot to the kitty. And from that we hired a special investigations unit, and to date, we have accumulated in excess of 1,500 calls from people in distress. From people who would normally not say anything about the abuse at the hands of the so called justice system here in Saskatchewan." Of those calls received, about 350 have been investigated by the special investigations unit, Joseph said. "And they're deemed to be very serious, well supported with evidence, serious incidents, still occurring against our First Nations people." While the FSIN has been working very aggressively for the past year-and-a-half in calling for a judicial public inquiry, Joseph said what has been negotiated is something better. "Often times people go out as a commission. And a lot of the times we hear lawyers making presentations, representations, more or less coming out and defending their realities, rather than actually putting together practical realities, and putting together practical remedies and solutions to problems that may exist. So I think we've got ourselves a better deal, where the government of Saskatchewan is not being dragged along kicking and screaming. They are actually very cooperative in not only providing the resources to do this, but also guaranteeing that, if need be, we will have the subpoena power if it's ever required." The commission is comprised of five members, including two nominated by the FSIN, two by the province, and one from the Saskatchewan Métis community. Former federal MP Willie Littlechild will chair the commission. Littlechild, a lawyer from Hobbema, Alta., was the first treaty Indian to be elected to Parliament, and is currently working with the United Nations on creation of a permanent UN Forum for Indigenous Peoples. The other commission members are Joe Quewezance, former tribal chief of the Saskatoon Tribal Council; Irene Fraser, a Métis woman and regional manager of community relations and training for the National Parole Board, Prairie Region who has worked to incorporate Aboriginal practices into the parole process; Hugh Harradence, a lawyer from Prince Albert who has recently been active as a coroner for three inquest investigations into the deaths of Aboriginal people in Saskatoon; and Glenda Cooney, deputy children's advocate in Saskatoon. The work of the commission will focus on all aspects of the justice system in Saskatchewan, including policing, the courts, prosecutions, alternative measures, legal aid, corrections, community corrections, youth justice, community justice, and victims services. The commission will be gathering information by going into communities across Saskatchewan, holding public meetings and individual meetings, and also by looking at reports and recommendations dealing with justice and Aboriginal people in other parts of Canada. According to Joseph, the goal of the commission in holding public meetings will be "to hear not only the dark side of things, but also hopefully scope out areas that are working not to bad in the area of restorative justice and what not." Under its terms of reference, the commission will provide progress reports to the federal and provincial governments, the FSIN and the Métis Nation of Saskatchewan every six months, with a final report due within three years. "Traditionally, these studies have been done, the perception is that they're done, and then they just sit in somebody's desk gathering dust," said Joseph.. "What we have negotiated as a last item is that the spirit of study or analysis by the commission is set aside for three years. But if it requires more time, it certainly does not restrict it. At the same time, if they finish within that three-year period or sooner . . . there's no need for them to continue. But the commission will recommend short term and long term implementation strategies. Meaning, if there's things that they can recommend as remedies right now after reviewing all other commission reports across Canada, including the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, Manitoba's justice inquiry and that type of thing, they're going to review and scope out the best remedies that we can implement now. And also, at the end of the day, identify a vehicle to oversee the implementation of its recommendations. Now, we know we cannot compel governments to do anything. But if we have a commission or committee that's in place to oversee the implementation of its recommendations, I think it's one way to make sure that the report and its recommendations are not sitting, gathering dust," said Joseph. "The commission is a process for reform. We have been told that it's supposed to be forward looking, but again, practically and realistically, we can't just close our eyes to the past. "This is actually quite , in my view, an historic event for Saskatchewan that will benefit all of the people in the province of Saskatchewan. Because when social costs come down for First Nations people, it's our contention that everybody wins," Joseph said. "This commission is a vehicle that will definitely address the concerns of Saskatchewan residents. Not just another inquiry. People can be heard offering practical realities and solutions without lawyers." Joseph shared an analogy he's used in the past to illustrate the lead role First Nations will be taking in the work of the commission. "This bus is moving. The inquiry is going. And First Nations are driving this bus. The province and anybody else that wants to come along for the ride may do so. But we're not waiting for them. And that's been the consistent approach that we've taken. Without compromise. Without any confrontational situations. We've done that, and I think the province heard us, and we sat down, and we hammered out a deal." Top FSIN supports standing committee report Sage Staff The Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN) is putting its support behind a report of the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs regarding Bill C-7, the proposed new Youth Criminal Justice act. If passed, the bill would replace the Young Offenders Act, which has been in effect since 1982. "The First Nations of Saskatchewan encourage the Senate to adopt the report of the Senate Committee," FSIN Vice Chief Lawrence Joseph said in a statement issued Nov. 19. "We look forward to our involvement in the implementation of the proposed changes and to our full participation in the forthcoming review of this legislation." The report of the standing Senate committee, released on Nov. 8, was presented to the Senate on Nov. 20. The bill was scheduled for third reading following that presentation but, at press time, the bill was still being debated. "We've been involved in this for a while already. Since 1996, actually, when the proposed amendments were called. Way, way back," Joseph explained during an interview about Bill C-7. "October 1996 is when we started involvement, presenting before the Commons Committee on Constitutional Issues. We became involved at that time. It was a draft legislation. And February of '98 we responded again, with strong recommendations for its amendments. As recent as Oct. 23 of this year, we again appeared before the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee to present our First Nations position. And I think we're generally pleased with the hearing that we got and the response that we got from the Senate committee." A number of the positions voiced by the FSIN were well received by the Senate committee, Joseph said, including taking existing Criminal Code provisions that apply to adult Aboriginal offenders and extending them to youth offenders. "Under 718.2 E of the Criminal Code, essentially what it calls for is that before you lock up Indians or Aboriginal people, you look at all other options. That's not there for the young people. What we called for is if it's there for the older guys, well, let's make sure First Nations youth are also given that right," Joseph said. "The other thing of course is the contentious issue of lowering the age to 14 from 16. Our contention is that we should keep that in place at 16 rather than 14," he added. "The other big thing also is the protection of kids if they have to be sentenced to an adult institution. They should be segregated, for their own protection. And the Senate was quite receptive to that... "And the fourth item that they were prepared to do was to recommend that the legislation be reviewed in five years, and that review committee include representation from Aboriginal communities. This recognizes the First Nations by legislation. They were quite receptive to that." Top Respected chief honored by his community Marjorie Roden, Sage Writer, Yorkton Recently retired Yorkton Tribal Council (YTC) chief Tony Cote was honored by his community with a "toast and roast" banquet held Nov. 16. Seen as both a great leader and an outstanding role model in the First Nations community, Cote was recognized for the many programs and initiatives he began during his six year term, which ended this past October. Cote was the founder of the first Saskatchewan Indian Summer Games, as well as the Yorkton Tribal Council Winter Festival. He also founded the first all First Nation Junior B hockey team with its team members coming from Saskatchewan First Nation communities. "The way I see it, he gave all of himself to the First Nation community and he committed a lot of his belief in his First Nation people," said Bev Whitehawk, director of health and welfare for the YTC. Cote worked to bring the casino to Yorkton,and was involved in the founding of Project Safe Haven, a safe shelter for battered women. He was also instrumental in the formation of the White Spruce Rehabilitation Centre, the Urban Services Project, and Yorkton Child and Family Services. Thanks to his terrific skills as a negotiator, Cote was able to help his people get what they needed to run the health department more efficiently, explained Whitehawk. "When he started here, there was only five people here in the health department, and he was really a political attribute for our unit,"she said. "Now we have 45 staff. You know how it is, when you go into negotiation for government funding. He knew how to negotiate with the government. Naturally, he always walked out with what we wanted." Before Whitehawk got the job she has now, she was working in negotiating and bargaining. "I was more of a technical person, developing the programs, but he really helped us in our health programming. All our funding that we had applied for, we had received." A major attribute Cote brought to the office, according to Whitehawk, was "knowing the communities, and knowing where we came from. He worked with veterans, he worked with youth, he worked with Elders. I don't know how he did his job, because now they've got two people doing his job. They have a tribal chief and an assistant." At the banquet, Whitehawk was "shocked at the response the provincial leadership gave him, and what they said about him. They said he was truly a role model for them, because most of these politicians now are quite young. [He] said what he had to say, and people usually listened." How will the YTC get along without him? According to Whitehawk, "It's going to be pretty hard to get that to work again, and a lot of provincial and federal leaders knew him. He had the reputation for never giving up. "That's how we got that safe shelter. We had to negotiate for the funding. We got our land there for 99 years for a dollar a year. How could you get that now?" Whitehawk said. "He is really a gifted person, really gentle. He said about the YTC staff he worked with, that he was part of the team. It was good to work with a team player." Top