Tony Belcourt Statement on MNC Expert Panel
Press Release
Tony Belcourt Statement On Mnc Expert Panel
My Name Is Tony Belcourt, Founding President Of The Métis Nation Of Ontario
At Long Last The Métis National Council’s Independent Expert Panel Report Has Been Released. It Concludes That The Métis Communities Of Ontario Are In Fact A Part Of The Larger Historic Métis Nation.
This Is No Surprise To Me. I’ve Know This For Over 54 Years – Ever Since The Métis Organizations On The Prairies Formed The Native Council Of Canada In 1971 To Advance Métis Issues At The National Level… They Did So .. With The Participation Of The Northwest Ontario Métis Association. I Know This Because If Was There.
And Because Of That Long History, It Is No Surprise That The Métis Leadership On The Prairies Fully Endorsed The Métis Nation Of Ontario When It Was Founded 31 Years Ago In 1994. Later That Year – At The Métis National Council General Assembly, The Mno Was Voted Unanimously As A Full And Equal Governing Member Of The Mnc.
Regrettably Within The Last Number Of Years, Some Leaders, Primarily From Manitoba And Saskatchewan Began To Ask “Are They Part Of Us”? In 2022 The Métis Governments Of The Mnc In An Annual Assembly Approved A Resolution To Appoint An Independent Panel Of Experts To Investigate And Report On That Question.
The Métis National Council’s Expert Panel Was Given A Simple Mandate: Do The Seven Historic Métis Communities Of Ontario Belong To The Métis Nation? Their Investigation Was To Be Done Through The Lens Of The Definition Of Métis That Was Adopted By The Métis National Council In 2002. That Definition Came From Years Of Debate And Consideration By The Mnc’s Métis Rights Panel Which I Chaired And Which Included Mnc President At The Time Clem Chartier And Mmf President David Chartrand.
Naturally I Am Extremely Pleased By Their Conclusion And I Quote:
The Panel Concludes That The Seven Communities Represented By The Métis Nation Of Ontario Meet The National Definition Established By The Métis National Council … Thus It Is Our Expert Opinion That These Communities Are Integral To The Métis Nation And Its Homeland!
You Would Think That This Would Lift The Heavy Weight Of Denial Over The Legitimacy Of The Métis Communities In Ontario.
But I Am Deeply Disturbed By What It Took To Get Here And The Swift And Flippant Denunciation Of Those Conclusions By Some Métis And First Nations Leaders.
I’m In My 80’s. I’ve Seen And Experienced Discrimination And Racism All My Life. My Mom And Dad Went Through That… So Did My Grandparents And My Ancestors Before Them. It’s Come From Outside Our Community And Sadly Its Come From Within. Its Demeaning, Its Humiliating And It’s Painful.
There Is No Way To Calculate The Amount Of Undo Mental And Negative Physical Well Being Our People Have Suffered These Past Few Years In Ontario As Our Communities Have Been Scrutinized, Our People Told They Are Not Recognized Or That Their Very Existence Has Been Denied. Our Children Have Seen Métis Leader’s Call Them Frauds, They Have Even Been Told By A Chief Visiting Their School That They Have Been Told Lies About Who They Are.
What Kind Of Adult Would Do That?
But It Hasn’t Always Been That Way. Before This Latest Campaign To Eradicate The Métis People And Our Communities From The Face Of The Earth In Ontario, We Worked Closely With Both Métis From Manitoba And The Chiefs Of Ontario. David Chartrand And All Other Leaders Of The Prairies Were There To Support Us At The Supreme Court Of Canada In The Case Of R V. Powley. And They Were There To Celebrate Our Victory …. And Benefit In That Affirmation Of Our Métis Rights.
And We Also Were Blessed With Strong Ties And Good Relationships With First Nations In Ontario. That’s Because We Had Begun The Renewal Of Our Nation To Nation Relationship With The Anishinaabek Nation That Was Honoured In Ceremony At Kettle And Stony Point First Nation In 2005.
Before That We Had Signed A Political Protocol With The Chiefs Of Ontario That Brought Us Both Great Benefit In Dealing With Governments On Issues Of Common Concern – We Dismissed Their Attempts At Divide And Conquer. I Remember When The Chiefs Of Ontario Refused The Attempts By The Government Of Ontario To Intervene On It’s Behalf At The Ontario Court Of Appeal On The Ruling By The Lower Court That Had Affirmed The Existing Constitutional Right Of Our People To Hunt And Fish For Food.
It Is My Sincere Hope That Those Who Have Denied The Existence Of Our People And Our Communities In Ontario Will Do The Honest Thing And At Least Read The Mnc’s Exert Panel Report, Its Mandate And What It Says About The Seven Historic Métis Communities Of Ontario. That They Will Follow Our Teachings Of Honesty, Truth, Humility And Respect And Begin A Dialogue With Our People – Whether That’s At Work Or In The Community.
It’s Time For Healing. If You Believe In Truth And Reconciliation, Then Let’s Put Those Recommendations In Action. There Is Far More To Be Gained In Unity Than In Division. We Proved That Before. Let’s Do It Again.
Ekosi, Hiy Hiy
Tony Belcourt
April 13, 2025
