Native council president returns to constitution talks

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Native Council of Canada president Ron George backed off threats to withdraw from the constitutional process after receiving promises non-status issues will be "fast tracked."

But the top representative for Canada's estimated 750,000 non-status Indians said his threats could be resumed if progress is not made soon.

"We could very well be in the same position next week," George said following an hour-long meeting with Constitutional Affairs Minister Joe Clark.

George had threatened to walk away from the negotiating table if Ottawa was not prepared to guarantee equal access to federal funding for status and non-status Natives.

Coupled with the threat, he also announced the council would hold off accepting its share of a $10 million federal grant to pay for Native participation in the final rounds of constitutional talks.

Although he described discussions with Clark as "frank and honest," he criticized the federal government as "not interested in the rights of a minority, who happen to be the original people."

Clark has so far refused to commit Ottawa to paying for non-status services and support and said future programs will have to be funded by federal, provincial and Native governments. But he has promised to make the issuue a priority in the current round of constitutional meetings with the premiers.

"The funding involved extends to hundreds of thousands of people when the government has fiscal problems," he said. "Naturally the provinces would like the federal government to say we"ll take responsibility. We can't do that."

George said he will "wait and see" what develops with Premiers before resuming his threats. Clark said he "regrets" the council's stand but added the constitutional process will continue if they walk away

Meanwhile, Clark said he will be taking Alberta's Metis settlements to the premiers as a model for dealing with non-status and Metis rights in rural areas. But Clark did not have any proposals for dealing with self-government in urban areas and said a solution to that problem is a long way off.