Hello, everyone. Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge our presence on the unceded traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabe people. Senators, I’m very happy to be with you here today to speak on Bill C-51, An Act to give effect to the self-government treaty recognizing the Whitecap Dakota Nation/Wapaha Ska Dakota Oyate and to make consequential amendments to other Acts.

As you know, chair — better than most of us — this bill has been a long time coming. In a sense, you could say that it has been in the making since 2009, and perhaps even before. It is when Canada began working with Whitecap Dakota to complete a comprehensive self-governance treaty that recognizes Whitecap Dakota as a self-governing entity with jurisdiction and authority over a broad range of authorities. In another, more accurate sense, it has been in the making for generations.

The Whitecap Dakota has a long history of self-governance that existed before the arrival of my people in what today is known as Canada. This was undone by successive federal laws and policies, most notably the Indian Act. Whitecap Dakota has realized a number of important gains over the years to remove portions of the Indian Act through instruments such as the First Nations Land Management Act and First Nations Fiscal Management Act.

The bill we’re discussing today moves further than that. It ends the Indian Act governance over Whitecap Dakota. It formally acknowledges that Whitecap Dakota is one of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada and holds an inherent right to self-government that is protected by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.

As a more general point, it is important to pause here and speak about what we are talking about today when we are talking about the recognition of section 35 rights. It is the recognition of a very basic dignity, which is the existence of the Dakota and Lakota peoples, the nine communities, the nine oyates, that comprise the Dakota presence in Canada. Their homelands have long been denied to them, and it resulted in them being treated as second-class First Nations. It is a stain on Canada’s history, and it’s one that is only now being removed through the advocacy of those nine communities, including Whitecap Dakota. An example of that is the self-governance agreement that we are discussing today and, hopefully, respectfully, passing in the Senate in time for the September timeline of which you are well aware.

Again, this is an indignity that has been levelled on the Dakota/Lakota peoples treated as immigrants in Canada or as refugees, which is an insulting word given that they own the lands. The indignity is one that is ending. As a basic matter, it is important to have Canada recognize the Dakota and Lakota peoples as Aboriginal peoples of Canada because there are legal rights that flow from it, but I would hasten to say that they know exactly who they are and, in principle, do not need Canada for that because it is not up to Canada to determine who is and who is not in the identity of Indigenous peoples. It is for them, themselves, to determine.

This agreement does an important thing; it puts the decision-making power back into the hands of this Indigenous government to make their own choices about how programs are delivered and services are provided to the community. It establishes a new nation-to-nation relationship between Whitecap Dakota in Canada. It sets out practical mechanisms for intergovernmental cooperation. It is the next step to revive self-governance and self-determination for the Whitecap Dakota people.

Mr. Chair, I know you have heard from senators about the history of the Dakota/Lakota people. You’ve heard from Chief Bear and councillors here today that these people have been here, as I mentioned earlier, from time immemorial and continue to contribute to Canada.

When I visited Whitecap Dakota this spring, I had the opportunity to see the impacts of their vision, the determination and efforts of the community due to the leadership of Chief Darcy Bear. From the golf course to the Dakota Dunes Resort, supported by Indigenous Services Canada’s, Community Opportunity Readiness Program, to their casino, Whitecap is a strong example of the importance of self-determination of Indigenous communities across Canada.

[Translation]

This self-government treaty is the result of some 12 years of long and painstaking negotiations in co-operation with Canada. Throughout this process, Canada worked closely with Whitecap Dakota Nation leaders to ensure that the final document reflected the community’s own vision of self-determination. This process culminated in April, when the Whitecap Dakota community reached unanimous consensus on the treaty.

If the bill we’re discussing today passes, an order will confirm the effective date of the governance treaty, which will be September 1, 2023.

Therefore, the Whitecap Dakota government would obtain full and complete jurisdiction and authority over the basic governance functions, including elections, membership, citizenship, taxation, administration and enforcement of Whitecap Dakota laws; lands, including land and natural resource management, public works, infrastructure and services; regulations, including licensing, regulation and operation of businesses, and economic development; programs and services, including child and family services, education, health, language and culture.

[English]

Throughout this treaty, Whitecap Dakota reaffirms their full jurisdiction over these areas of governance. It’s about reclaiming the powers and abilities that were eroded by decades of colonialism and racism embodied in the Indian Act and government policies.

This is a forward-looking treaty that allows the First Nation to make decisions that will impact future generations based on their own culture, their own history, their own priorities.

When this bill is adopted, Whitecap Dakota will be able to enact laws to set out how it will manage its own resources, promote and enhance its culture and build on its economic development successes for the community, with full transparency and accountability to its members. Because this self-government treaty is the first that Canada has struck with a First Nation in Saskatchewan, it complements existing agreements between Whitecap Dakota and the Province of Saskatchewan.