Scrap Indian affairs and Indian Act: Yalden

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The department of Indian affairs and the Indian Act should be abolished, says the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

In a nine-page penetrating report the commission calls on the federal government to "move away from the Indian Act regime and out from under the tutelage of the department of Indian affairs bureaucracy."

The commission says the Indian Act is "fundamentally and irreparably flawed. No amount of tinkering can alter that."

The report recommends replacing the department f Indian affairs with a new agency for aboriginal-federal relations.

In his report Chief Commissioner Max Yalden reiterated his recommendation for a royal commission on Native affairs to "achieve the more general consensus needed to forge a new association between aboriginals and non-aboriginal Canadians."

Yalden says the government is not fulfilling its obligation as a trustee for Natives in the landclaims process..

"The process is weighted heavily in favor of the government. A claim may be rejected slowly on the legal advice of the department of justice." This is clearly a conflict of interest, says Yalden.

The commission recommends establishing a third party to deal with land-claim issues.

The report, which scold the federal government for not giving Native issues the "priority they deserve," also calls for the elimination of the clause in the land-claims policy which requires claimants to relinquish aboriginal rights and title in return for benefits provided in the agreements.

The president of the Native Council of Canada says "any of the commission's recommendations would have to be implemented with the full anticipation of Native people."

In a telephone inter view from Ottawa, Viola Robinson said the federal government has to "start looking more seriously at aboriginal issues. If government doesn't do something of substance in dealing with Native issues, we may see more violence."

She says the report makes some "good recommendations which will serve to enhance the relationship between government and Natives."

Indian Association president Regena Crowchild says the Indian act should not be scrapped. Rather, she would like to see it changed from "an administrative law to something which will put the government and Natives on equal footing."

She says the land-claim process should be changed. "I'd like to see an independent body Natives and government so the government will no longer be the judge and jury in solving land claims."

Alberta New Democrat Native affairs critic Bob Hawkesworth says "it's about time we adopt some radical measures for Indian people to take control over their communities and their lives and have an advocate whose job it its to protect their treaty rights."

Hawkesworth says the current process "invites frustration and if something doesn't change soon, we may see more confrontations." Bill Erasmus, chief of the Dene Nation, while pleased with the report, says "unfortunately violence is here to stay for awhile."

"I've never seen my people so frustrated because there is nothing meaningful they can do to change the relations they have with the government."

Erasmus says before the government can solve any land claims it "must get rid of the extinguishment clause - it will go a long way to resolving outstanding claims."

Meanwhile, a senior advisor to Indian Affairs Minister Tom Siddon says the commission's report if "totally naive and blind."

"The report makes it seem as though it's easy to solve Native problems - all you need is Max Yalden at the head," says Rick Van loon.

Van Loon says the report accuses the department of "inaction in areas where we have done a lot.

All the issues Yalden mentioned are on the Indian affairs agenda."

Van Loon says the Indian Act is "a screw-up that I'd love to get rid of, but you need consensus first and that's hard to get."

He says he can see the value in an independent tribunal to negotiate land claims but "it's a simple answer that just won't work."

University ofAlberta political science professor Gurston Dacks says the government is moving in the direction of the report "but they are not going quickly enough."

Dacks says the dismantling of the Indian affairs department is "a viable and necessary goal along with establishing a more effective relationship between Natives and the government."

Dacks, however, does not see much prospect for change so long as the Progressive Conservative government is in power.

"The Tories don't see much hope in gaining votes from the Native population so why try to satisfy them? The issue that separates them and aboriginals are so profound it would be a greater investment than the government is willing to make."