{"id":265206,"date":"2017-06-09T10:31:53","date_gmt":"2017-06-09T14:31:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/policyoptions.irpp.org\/issues\/indigenous-people-and-the-constitution-conversation\/"},"modified":"2025-10-07T21:38:45","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T01:38:45","slug":"indigenous-people-and-the-constitution-conversation","status":"publish","type":"issues","link":"https:\/\/policyoptions.irpp.org\/fr\/2017\/06\/indigenous-people-and-the-constitution-conversation\/","title":{"rendered":"Indigenous people and the Constitution conversation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last week, when Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard suggested that it might be time for a Constitutional conversation, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wasted no time in shutting the federal door on any such proposal. He said, \u201cYou know my views on the Constitution,\u201d<\/a> and then went on to remind us of those views: \u201cWe are not opening the Constitution.\u201d That terse response was both brazen and inconsistent with past statements on the matter. Indeed, had Trudeau given any meaningful consideration of the perspective of Indigenous peoples, he might not have dismissed Constitutional dialogue so sharply. After all, Indigenous people have a great deal to say on the matter of Canadian constitutionalism. And, if we are to believe Trudeau and a number of his ministers when they repeatedly state, as did the Prime Minister, that \u201cNo relationship is more important to me and to Canada than the one with Indigenous Peoples<\/a>,\u201d then it might reasonably be expected that Trudeau would pause to hear Indigenous peoples out, before so briskly discounting any possibility of Constitutional reform.<\/p>\n

Despite his most recent assertions, Trudeau hasn\u2019t always held the view that 6the Constitution is \u201cclosed\u201d; it wasn\u2019t always so absolute. In mid-December 2015 \u2014 not long after he was sworn in as Prime Minister \u2014 he expressed a slightly different view. Speaking with the Ottawa bureau of the Canadian Press, he offered the following<\/a>: \u201cWhat I ask now to anyone who offers to open the Constitution, or says we should open the Constitution, is: what concrete problem are we trying to solve that is unsolvable without opening the Constitution?\u201d So, it would appear Trudeau was amenable to the conversation right up until the moment someone actually proposed a constitutional dialogue, albeit with some qualification.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s more, it would take very little constitutional expertise in Indigenous issues \u2014 and even less intellectual reflection \u2014 to meet Trudeau\u2019s \u201cunsolvable problem\u201d condition for opening the issue. In the ministerial mandate letters<\/a>, each member of Her Majesty\u2019s Privy Council of Canada \u2014 Canada\u2019s consultants to the Queen on constitutional matters \u2014 were told by the Prime Minister that, \u201cIt is time for a renewed, nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous Peoples, based on recognition of rights, respect, co-operation, and partnership.\u201d And there it is, the problem that is unsolvable without opening the Constitution.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s parse this a bit.<\/p>\n

First, Trudeau calls for a \u201crenewed, nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous Peoples.\u201d Just as Quebec has sought constitutional recognition of its nation, so too have Indigenous nations, for several decades. The matter is different for Indigenous nations, however. There is a peculiar omission in our constitutional history that sidesteps past recognition of Indigenous nations. The Royal Proclamation of October 7, 1763<\/em>, makes an appearance in section 25<\/a> of the Constitution Act, 1982<\/em>, to guarantee to \u201caboriginal peoples of Canada\u201d the non-derogation of \u201cany rights or freedoms that have been recognized by the Royal Proclamation.\u201d And though it is called in Canadian jurisprudence<\/a> the \u201cMagna Carta of Indian rights in North America\u201d and the \u201cIndian Bill of Rights,\u201d the Royal Proclamation\u2019s recognition of Indigenous nationhood<\/a> \u2014 specifically referring to \u201cthe several Nations or Tribes of Indians\u201d \u2014 seems to have dropped off the radar, in (rather selective) readings of Canada\u2019s historical constitutionalism. In other words, Canada\u2019s Constitution observed the rights outlined in the Royal Proclamation, but inexplicably left out other crucial features, namely enshrining recognition of Indigenous nationhood. This omission may be unremarkable in non-Indigenous circles, but it has never left the Indigenous collective consciousness. If Trudeau is to respect a truly \u201cnation-to-nation\u201d relationship, then it is incumbent upon the Crown to recognize, and enshrine in its Constitution, that Indigenous nations are exactly that: nations.<\/p>\n

If Trudeau is to respect a truly \u201cnation-to-nation\u201d relationship, then it is incumbent upon the Crown to recognize, and enshrine in its Constitution, that Indigenous nations are exactly that: nations.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The second critical part to tease out from Trudeau\u2019s comments in the ministerial letters concerns the assertion that the renewed relationship with Indigenous nations is to be \u201cbased on recognition of rights.\u201d Trudeau had promised as much as part of the Liberal election platform, and after he was sworn-in as Prime Minister he instructed Minister of Indigenous Affairs Carolyn Bennett, in her mandate letter<\/a>, to make her top priority in reconciliation \u201cimplementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples<\/em>\u201d (UNDRIP<\/a>). By May 2016, Minister Bennett was in New York City, speaking before the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. On behalf of the Trudeau government, Minister Bennett told the United Nations<\/a> that \u201cWe intend nothing less than to adopt and implement the declaration in accordance with the Canadian Constitution.\u201d<\/p>\n

But, in the time it took for the seasons to change, from spring to summer, the government made some significant steps backward on the promises that it had made to Indigenous peoples about their rights. In mid-July, the Minister of Justice, Jody Wilson-Raybould, told the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) at its Annual General Meeting that the Trudeau government would not \u2014 or, rather, could not \u2014 recognize their rights. She said that Canadian law as it stands was an obstacle to adopting the UNDRIP, thus squelching hopes of Indigenous nationhood. As Minister Wilson-Raybould told the AFN<\/a> at its meeting, \u201cas much as I would tomorrow like to cast into the fire of history the Indian Act<\/em> so that the nations can be reborn in its ashes, this is not a practical option \u2013 which is why simplistic approaches, such as adopting the UNDRIP as Canadian law, are unworkable.\u201d<\/p>\n

What we\u2019ve heard from ministers Wilson-Raybould and Bennett appears to meet Trudeau\u2019s condition for opening the Constitution. His ministers have told us that his priorities for Indigenous peoples are \u201cunworkable\u201d in Canadian law, and suggest that the UNDRIP cannot be adopted \u201cin accordance with the Canadian Constitution.\u201d And therein lies the unsolvable problem: the inadequacy of the Constitution to properly constitute the \u201cnation-to-nation\u201d relationship and the \u201crecognition of rights\u201d of Indigenous people and nations.<\/p>\n

If Indigenous people are partners in what Trudeau has described as his and Canada\u2019s most important relationship, then why has he yet to properly constitute the partnership? If the relationship truly is \u201cnation-to-nation,\u201d then it must be constituted as such. Token mentions of Indigenous peoples as nations are superficial. In any case, as Pam Palmater has pointed out<\/a>, references by this government to \u201cIndigenous nations\u201d have been eclipsed by less meaningful descriptions, such as \u201cIndigenous groups\u201d or \u201cstakeholders\u201d; a clear effort to downgrade the status of Indigenous nations and sustain their continued subordination in the political order of things.<\/p>\n

It is explicitly recognized, and protected, in the Constitution that non-Indigenous people have freely exercised self-determination and established governance over themselves, all in the name of the Canadian nation. These are not benefits enjoyed by Indigenous nations and their peoples. Highfalutin\u2019 policy statements and equally tenuous legislation that can be repealed at any moment are not a substitute for rights given the highest lawful recognition and protection. Without these rights, it can hardly be said that the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the Trudeau government is based upon \u201crespect, co-operation, and partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n

Photo: \u201cNiagara\u201d: This painting commemorates the Niagara Treaty, which set in place the spirit and intent of future negotiations between Indigenous nations and the Crown. Photo provided by Dawn Marie Marchand, Cree Metis Artist. <\/em>www.dawnmariemarchand.net<\/em><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Last week, when Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard suggested that it might be time for a Constitutional conversation, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wasted no time in shutting the federal door on any such proposal. He said, \u201cYou know my views on the Constitution,\u201d and then went on to remind us of those views: \u201cWe are not […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":253677,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-10-08T01:38:47Z","apple_news_api_id":"3375de08-ae54-4507-84fa-7ca0908e3bec","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-10-08T01:38:47Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AM3XeCK5URQeE-nygkI477A","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false},"categories":[9380,9358,9372],"tags":[8351,8360],"article-status":[],"irpp-category":[4371,4240,4295,4274],"section":[],"irpp-tag":[],"class_list":["post-265206","issues","type-issues","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-autochtones","category-politique","category-recent-stories-fr","tag-constitution","tag-reconciliation","irpp-category-autochtones","irpp-category-constitution","irpp-category-politique","irpp-category-reconciliation"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nIndigenous people and the Constitution conversation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/policyoptions.irpp.org\/fr\/2017\/06\/indigenous-people-and-the-constitution-conversation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"fr_FR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Indigenous people and the Constitution conversation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Last week, when Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard suggested that it might be time for a Constitutional conversation, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wasted no time in shutting the federal door on any such proposal. 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