Off-reserve people getting short end of the stick-Dorey

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The Congress of Aboriginal Peoples (CAP) held its 30th Annual General Assembly (AGA) on Oct. 19th and 20th in the national capital region. The two-day affair concluded with the Moccasin Walk held in Ottawa's Congress Centre, with proceeds going to the Moccasin Walk Foundation-an organization dedicated to reducing racism in Canada primarily through the education system.

Delegates from CAP reviewed several issues with discussions on justice and corrections, the Aboriginal Healing Foundation, Human Resource Development Canada initiatives, and the governance legislation consultation process. The proceedings were digitally broadcast over the Internet.

CAP president and national chief, Dwight Dorey, spoke on the first day of deliberations held at the Chateau Cartier Hotel in Aylmer, Que.

Dorey said "most Canadians do not realize that more than 73 per cent of all Aboriginal people in this country do not live on Indian reserves, nor do they receive any recognition in, nor benefits from, the provisions of the Indian Act.

He acknowledged the information vacuum that exists in the general public regarding Aboriginal issues. He stated that, "because of the publicity surrounding [the $7.5 billion reportedly being spent on Aboriginal issues], and a media so focused on First Nations bands and their leadership, Canadians could be forgiven for thinking that off-reserve people are beneficiaries of largesse.

CAP claims to represent more than 70 per cent of the 1.4 million Aboriginal people in Canada.

"The Aboriginal problems in this country will never go away under the restrictive provisions of the current Indian Act, or the distorted way in which money is targeted to Aboriginal people and issues . . . The greatest number of Aboriginal people in Canada are getting the short end of the stick," said Dorey

He said CAP must do its part to help the government pave the way for the debate and eventual passage of an Aboriginal Peoples Act, as suggested by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, that is fair, equitable and inclusive and that is status and residency-blind.

"We must do our part in helping develop an educated, employed Aboriginal population that puts Aboriginal people in positions of leadership and influence, in public and private life, in the professions and in the arts. It is you, the people who determine our agenda . . . It is my job to determine how best we can advance that agenda."

In a separate interview, Dorey discussed CAP's approach to the governance legislation consultations process. He said that finding an acceptable compromise among all regions, as it relates to mandating governance consultation objectives, is perhaps CAP's primary concern with the process.

Dorey said, as of November, "approximately 100 meetings have been held within the CAP organization to best determine our approach to the governance consultations." He added, "a bilateral agreement exists between CAP and the federal government. Through this agreement CAP is able to relay specific concerns to Parliament."

Dorey said CAP will focus on the second and third readings in Parliament of the proposed governance legislation.

He noted that CAP and the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) have taken two different approaches to the governance initiative consultation process. He said the "AFN is concerned that the governance initiative is too limited and will only address the federal agenda." Dorey states, "limited or not, this is a chance to raise the voice of the off-reserve population and that's what CAP is there for."