(Lheidli T’enneh Territory/Prince George BC) – BC Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Terry Teegee thanks Prime Minister Trudeau for this leadership and service and calls upon the Liberal Party of Canada to elect a strong, principled leader who will recommit the party to progressive values, bring Canadians together, and take the necessary steps to honour, recognize and implement the internationally recognized human rights of First Nations peoples throughout this country.
“Trudeau’s tenure as the Liberal Party Leader and as Prime Minister of Canada is one which made considerable commitments to First Nations and significant progress, but has also been hampered with delays, obstructions and half-measures. Under Trudeau’s leadership, Canada made the historic steps of passing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, and An Act Respecting Indigenous Languages. Unfortunately, efforts to implement these commitments and others have been hampered by slow-implementation progress, lack of funding, inadequate engagement with First Nations, and political gamesmanship,” said Regional Chief Teegee.
The Liberal Party’s leadership race is an opportunity to recommit to these values and actions, to resist the divisive politics of the right, to unite Canadians and to present a unified voice and policy platform founded on the recognition and implementation of the human rights of First Nations Peoples. It was these commitments that led to the early popularity of the Liberal Party in 2015, and its failure to follow through on these commitments which has led to the party's decline.
“I want to extend my appreciation for Prime Minister Trudeau’s service to his country. I also want to remind federal representatives of all stripes that the issues critical for First Nations must move forward, including addressing the ongoing Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls crisis, the pervasive, unacceptable and disproportionate use of violence by police against Indigenous peoples, the need for First Nations policing services to be designated an essential service, the need for universal access to clean drinking water, addressing the pervasive rural and urban housing crisis, a renewed negotiation mandate to address historical harms perpetrated against First Nations children under the Child and Family Services program, legislative reform of the Fisheries and Oceans Act and the fulsome implementation of the UNDA, “ stated Regional Chief Teegee continued.
“I look forward to working with the next Prime Minister once a new leader of the Liberal Party is chosen, and I invite any prospective leadership candidates to meet with First Nations in BC so that your platform is guided by our interests and values and is effective in addressing our concerns so that you can best advocate for a vision of Canada’s future that works for everyone,” he concluded.
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The British Columbia Assembly of First Nations (BCAFN) is a Provincial Territorial Organization (PTO) representing the 204 First Nations in British Columbia. BCAFN representation is inclusive and extends to First Nations currently engaged in the treaty process, those who have signed modern treaties, and those who fall under historic treaty agreements which include the Douglas Treaties and Treaty 8.
For further information contact:
Andreas Krebs, Communications Consultant. Email: akrebs@resonantstrategic.ca