Celine Cooper: Reconciliation with First Nations should be a national priority – Montreal Gazette
December 13, 2015
“What does reconciliation look like? Does it matter to you?”
That question is posed on the home page of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which will make public its final report on the history and legacy of Canada’s residential school system on Dec. 15. Ahead of its release, the Liberal government has committed to renewing a nation-to-nation relationship between Canada and indigenous peoples, one based on “the recognition of rights, respect, co-operation and partnership.”
This is a significant moment in our country’s history. Last week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joined First Nations leaders who gathered in Gatineau for the Assembly of First Nations Special Chiefs Assembly. In a speech, he introduced a five-point plan for honouring this commitment. It includes a promise to launch a national public inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women; lift the two per cent cap on federal funding for First Nations programs and replace it with a new fiscal arrangement; and implement all 94 recommendations that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission made public in June.
