Youth in care video on point

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WESTBANK-The Aboriginal Peoples Family Accord (APFA) is keeping attention focused on the actions and non-actions of the provincial government when it comes to honouring its commitment to help safeguard the well-being of Aboriginal children and families. It continues to press Aboriginal peoples' inherent right to have jurisdiction over their own children and families, with the political support of organizations such as the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs.

APFA points to a disproportionate number of Aboriginal children in care under provincial jurisdiction. Although they make up only about eight per cent of the province's youth population, Aboriginal children account for roughly 45 per cent of children in care, up 10 per cent since 1995.

The province pledged to transfer control of child welfare to Aboriginal communities but instead the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) has cut funding by 66 per cent to the mechanism that was supposed to support this regionalization process, according to the APFA. The organization points to the Tsawwassen Accord signing in June 2002 and the Memorandum of Understanding for Aboriginal Children (MOU) signed in September the same year, by which they say the province committed to fund this process.

This year, the APFA developed an informational video called Reclaiming Our Children, which it provided to band offices, Metis Nation offices and friendship centres in the Interior, as well as to government MLAs and MCFD officials. Created for an Aboriginal audience, the video is meant to bring information about changes in the child welfare system in a basic level to the grassroots people who need to understand the MOU between the MCFD and themselves. Its main points are that Aboriginal people must reclaim their inherent right for jurisdiction over their own children; that community wellness depends on the mental and physical health of the children; and that changing the child welfare system will take a while.

The video, which is less than 20 minutes long, is available in VHS (900 copies) and DVD (200 copies). The APFA is urging community members to share the video after they have seen it. Anyone who wants more information or who has not seen a copy of the video can contact APFA director Dan Odenbach at 250-707-0095 or you can send him an e-mail at dan.odenbach@gems7.gov.bc.ca.