Changes to Indian Act Elections needed, says Aboriginal Senate

The Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples (SSCAP) released a report this year entitled “First Nations Elections: The Choice is Inherently Theirs.”

The report requests a definite obligation by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (DIAND) to work with First Nations communities that choose their political leadership under the current Indian Act electoral system.

They also request that DIAND promote and enhance the capacity of First Nations communities in determining their leadership based on ‘customary’ or ‘community based methods’.

Prior to the arrival of Europeans to the Americas, First Nations communities had their own traditional ways of choosing their leadership. Criteria for choosing leaders differed between First Nation communities, but democratic principles in deciding community leadership were very much the same.

“Prior to the Indian Act, or where the Indian Act regime is not applied, First Nations were global leaders in democracy,” stated Professor Bradford Morse, on the SSCAP’s webpage.

“Democracy does not mean elections with ballots; it means the voice of the people in the selection of their leaders and in the decision-making of governments,” he added.

However, foreign electoral systems were enforced on First Nations communities as a method of assimilation and integration into a foreign society. This was reiterated in the Indian Act in the late 1800’s, by the Canadian Government.

The report addresses many of the issues stemming from the problems with the current Indian Act electoral structure. A structure that has created problems with governance in First Nations communities.  The report is based on the testimony to the Committee during public hearings in British Columbia, Manitoba and Ottawa.

As well, the Committee recommends that immediate steps should be taken by DIAND to put in place a First Nations Electoral and Appeals Commission.

The report also suggests that the existing two-year term of office imposed on First Nations by the Indian Act is too short to provide political and economic stability, and often causes separations within communities.

The report makes a number of recommendations towards improving the current governance under the Indian Act Electoral structure.

One is that DIAND should firmly commit to assisting all First Nations who currently hold elections under the Indian Act, which according to statistics is 41 per cent, or 252, of the current bands.

As well, it states, DIAND must work with the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) and that 41 percent of First Nations communities shift to a more traditional community-based method of selecting leadership.

It also recommends that DIAND dedicate sufficient funds to aid First Nations communities in transitioning to a more communal approach to electing leadership and provide an annual progress report to the SSCAP. The report would reveal the number of First Nations communities reverting to community-based codes and the amount of money transferred to First Nations in assisting with embracing the community-based methods of selecting leadership.

First Nations leadership must create suitable consultation mechanisms that ensure full community participation, the report states.

“Our committee acknowledges that governing is an increasingly complex and challenging task,” said Senator Gerry St. Germain, Committee Chair. “Which is why we believe greater support must be made available to First Nations to assist in the development of effective management and administrative practices,” he added.

A copy of the full report can be found on the Committee’s website at www.senate-senat.ca/abor-autoch.asp

Photo caption: Senators from the Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples share advice and personal anecdotes with high school students at the Dauphin Friendship Centre in Manitoba.