Government Reneges on Promises Yet Again

[Guest guest]

Sue , Canadian Press

Published: Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice was booed and jeered Tuesday as

he tried to speak to about 400 native protesters on Parliament Hill.

Organizers of the rally say anger over perceived Conservative

backtracking on First Nations rights has reached the boiling point.

Over shouts of " Liar! " and " Shame! " Prentice tried to explain that

his department was not responsible for cutting $160 million meant to

preserve native languages. That cash was recently eliminated by

Canadian Heritage and replaced with $5 million a year for seven

years.

The Tories say they'll use the money to craft more effective

programs to keep about 50 fading languages from dying.

But Prentice, the only federal minister to brave the placard-waving

crowd as it huddled in a -5 C breeze, bore the full brunt of its

frustration.

He was almost drowned out by catcalls.

The Conservatives, he said, have earmarked more money for native

issues than previous regimes.

" This government is trying to do real work to improve the living

circumstances of aboriginal Canadians, " he offered over a protester

who countered: " Kelowna does that! "

The national $5-billion Kelowna Accord reached a year ago to improve

native education, housing and economic conditions was scrapped.

Canada's long-standing support for a United Nations declaration on

the rights of Indigenous Peoples was pulled also back under the

Tories.

Assembly of First Nations national chief Phil Fontaine says the Tory

government has broken promises while making progress in very few

specific areas.

Prentice is being disingenuous when he includes in federal spending

the $2.2-billion settlement to compensate former students of native

residential schools, he said.

" It's not a program or a service, " Fontaine told chiefs from across

Canada who began a three-day meeting here Tuesday.

The Conservative budget actually committed just $450 million in new

spending for 630 First Nations, Fontaine said. He reached that

figure after subtracting the residential schools settlement along

with $600 million promised for off-reserve and northern housing.

" Our people are frustrated and angry, " he said. " And they have a

right to be.

" We feel betrayed and we simply can't be silent about this betrayal. "

Fontaine said he'll keep trying to negotiate with federal

politicians of all stripes.

Another prominent leader said polite talks " have gotten us nowhere, "

and issued an urgent call to action.

" This government has done nothing but lie, break promises and

distort the truth at the international level, " said ,

president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs.

Aboriginal people across the country must set aside political

differences and mobilize to exert united political pressure, he said.

" For too long we've been too nice. "

Taking it all in was a 16-year-old girl from Tyendinaga Mohawk

Territory just east of Belleville, Ont.

Her name, Kenhnonnianions, means " she who makes patterns, " a Mohawk

reference to buckskin and leather adornments.

She is an immersion student who hopes to one day speak her native

language fluently. People in her community are tired of being passed

over and ignored, she said.

" I just think it's time for them to listen, " she said of the

government

MNN Mohawk Nation News