SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Committee

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 7, 2023
The Chair (Mr. John Aldag (Cloverdale—Langley City, Lib.))
  • 03:31:19 p.m.
  • Watch
  • Read Aloud
Good afternoon, colleagues. Let's get started. I call this meeting to order. Welcome to meeting number 88 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs. We recognize that we're meeting on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe peoples. Pursuant to the House order of reference adopted on June 21 and the motion adopted by the committee on Thursday, October 26, the committee is meeting to proceed with clause-by-clause of Bill C-53, an act respecting the recognition of certain Métis governments in Alberta, Ontario and Saskatchewan. We're going to get right into it. We had a start on Tuesday, so we're going to pick up right where we left off. We're on new clause 2.1, with MP Schmale's subamendment to CPC-1.1. We are on the subamendment, and the floor is with Mr. Viersen.
151 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border
Mr. Arnold Viersen (Peace River—Westlock, CPC)
  • 03:32:31 p.m.
  • Watch
  • Read Aloud
Thank you, Mr. Chair. We were just discussing the word “individuals” and “Métis individuals”, and whether we should have clarified in this bill whether they should have the ability to choose to be represented in Alberta by the MNA or by no organization at all. A number of people have contacted me since the last meeting as well. I'm pointing this out. You may be a Métis person who wants to exercise Métis rights, but you may not want to be represented by any of the three organizations that are referenced in the schedule. That was where our discussion left off in the last meeting. My colleague Jamie Schmale put forward an amendment to amend it from “Métis peoples”, because, as Ms. Idlout and the officials as well pointed out, “Métis peoples” is meant as more of a collective. That was not actually what I was trying to achieve with this amendment. We are now at the point where we need to have a discussion around what the term “individuals” means. How would that fit into this bill? I also managed to find, on the MNA website, the 2018 agreement. It did confirm that was indeed the case. It said folks who are part of the Métis Settlements of Alberta may become members of the MNA. However, that still doesn't clarify if individuals not living on the Métis settlements, not part of the Métis settlements, who don't want to become members of the MNA can exercise their rights as Métis people or Métis individuals across the province or across the country. That's what my amendment would do—it would ensure that. That's different from what Jamie was talking about with NDP-4, which is coming. I hope, Mr. Chair, that we will be able to pass the subamendment and then my amendment to ensure that Métis individuals, regardless of where they live in the country, are able to exercise their rights as Métis people, regardless of who is representing them. Those are my comments.
374 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border