[IPSM] Has democracy paid a visit to your band office lately?

[Macdonald Stainsby]

Editorial

Has democracy paid a visit to your band office lately?

By James Wastasecoot

Increasingly we are seeing violent episodes in band offices across the 
country. This may or may not surprise residents of First Nation 
communities, but Canadians in general are stupefied at this and wonder 
why Indians can't get their act together and govern themselves like 
everybody else. After all Canadians don't expect to see violence 
occurring within their municipal, provincial or federal government offices.

Canadians are endowed with rules and protection of citizens' rights that 
assures them of an orderly process when it comes to governance.

What is happening to First Nations that makes us different? Shouldn't 
all citizens have redress and accountability in respect of their 
governance institutions?

What it all boils down to is that when a Canadian citizen has a concern 
or an issue, he or she is presented with a multitude of institutional 
avenues for redress and due process. A Canadian who wants information 
about the latest budget on a matter of concern merely has to file an 
"access to information" request to obtain the information.

Canadians can call their MP or MLA and get answers to their questions. 
Institutions such as the "official opposition" and the Auditor General 
exist whose primary function is to scrutinize government decisions and 
spending on behalf of citizens. Finally, Canadians have a free and 
independent media to ferret out problems which may lie hidden in the 
mass of reports produced by governments whether it be gun registration, 
government media contracts or corporate improprieties.

Citizens forums abound funded by private citizens or business groups 
where civil society and policy issues are discussed and debated. 
Canadians are the beneficiaries of a thousand year old tradition of 
stable democracy, that they've fashioned to suit their needs and that 
assures them of peace, order and good government. The key is that there 
are checks and balances in the power structure and almost everyone knows 
what the rules are.

"Indians" on the other hand, enjoy none of these safeguards and rules in 
respect of their governance on reserve. The Indian Act is pretty much 
irrelevant insofar as governance is concerned. Presently, efforts are 
focused on replacing it with legislation that is now before parliament. 
Federally funded negotiations are also ongoing in eighty or so locations 
across the country that hold promise of clarifying "self-government."

In the current state of limbo there are no effective rules of 
governance. The rules are based on the whim of whoever is in charge in 
the band office. Depending on the leadership, folks can experience fair 
democratic governance or, they may experience repression under a 
dictatorial regime. In the latter case, of which there are many out 
there, any citizen who files an information request is likely to be 
tagged a trouble maker and then targeted for special treatment by the 
chief and his or her supporters. The individual and his family may be 
denied services or experience intimidation at the hand of their leaders.

There is not a lot an individual can do. A lot of these matters are 
referred to the courts where a judge ends up ruling on symptoms rather 
than addressing the heart of the problem. Grand Chiefs, who used to 
count for something in terms of leadership in our community, are 
powerless to intervene and assist their so called constituents for fear 
they may offend a chief. It is after all the chiefs who elect them. 
Grand Chiefs in recent times have dismissed the violence as alcohol and 
drug-related. That's not good enough.

So the grassroots are left to deal with the problem of governance and 
reforming it, on their own.

They are fed up trying to deal with a flawed system that they see is 
deficient from all angles and are proceeding to solve it in what they 
see is the only means they have at their disposal. What to do?

Grand Chiefs and Elders, who are not short in their numbers and words 
when it comes to ceremonials, should be owning up to this problem and 
not merely dismissing it as a drug and alcohol issue. Surely they have a 
role to play in what they're supposed to be good at: leadership in 
governance. Our governance institutes, of which there are now a few in 
universities across this country, should be stepping in and addressing 
the critical governance issues. There are now literally thousands of 
highly educated folks out there who could also be helping to reshape 
governance in our community. When are we going to hear from them?

James Wastasecoot is publisher of the Drum

-- 
Macdonald Stainsby
http://independentmedia.ca/survivingcanada
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/rad-green
In the contradiction lies the hope
    --Bertholt Brecht.