Aboriginal Quality of Life Under a Modern Treaty: Lessons from The

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Aboriginal Quality of Life Under a Modern Treaty: Lessons from The I R P P c hoi Vcol. 14, no. 9, Auguste 2008 ISSNs 0711-0677 www.irpp.org Aboriginal Quality of Life under a Modern Treaty Lessons from the Experience of the Cree Nation of Eeyou Istchee and the Inuit of Nunavik Martin Papillon ounded in 1972, the Institute for Research on Public Policy is an independent, national, F nonprofit organization. IRPP seeks to improve public policy in Canada by generating research, providing insight and sparking debate that will contribute to the public policy decision-making process and strengthen the quality of the public policy decisions made by Canadian governments, citizens, institutions and organizations. IRPP's independence is assured by an endowment fund established in the early 1970s. ondé en 1972, l’Institut de recherche en politiques publiques est un organisme canadien, F indépendant et sans but lucratif. L’IRPP cherche à améliorer les politiques publiques canadiennes en encourageant la recherche, en mettant de l’avant de nouvelles perspectives et en suscitant des débats qui contribueront au processus décisionnel en matière de politiques publiques et qui rehausseront la This publication was produced under the qualité des décisions que prennent les gouvernements, direction of F. Leslie Seidle, Senior Research les citoyens, les institutions et les organismes Associate, IRPP. The manuscript was copy-edited by Mary Williams, proofreading was by Barbara canadiens. Czarnecki, production was by Chantal Létourneau, art direction was by Schumacher L’indépendance de l’IRPP est assurée par un fonds de Design and printing was by AGL Graphiques. dotation établi au début des années 1970. Copyright belongs to IRPP. To order or request permission to reprint, contact: IRPP 1470 Peel Street, Suite 200 Montreal, Quebec H3A 1T1 Telephone: 514-985-2461 Fax: 514-985-2559 E-mail: [email protected] All IRPP Choices and IRPP Policy Matters are available for download at www.irpp.org To cite this document: Papillon, Martin. 2008. “Aboriginal Quality of Life under a Modern Treaty: Lessons from the The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the author and Experience of the Cree Nation of Eeyou Istchee and do not necessarily reflect the views of IRPP or its Board of Directors. the Inuit of Nunavik.” I R P P C h o i c e s 14 (9). Aboriginal Quality of Life / by some 10 percentage points in the past 20 years; but the rate is still considerably lower than for all Qualité de vie des Autochtones Aboriginal people in Canada. This study also ana- Research Director/ Directeur de recherche lyzes the implications of the JBNQA for governance at the community level and explains the factors that F. Leslie Seidle led to a second agreement, the Paix des Braves, which the Crees signed with the government of Quebec in ith this publication, IRPP continues its 2001. In light of these developments, Papillon con- research program Aboriginal Quality of cludes that modern treaties are more than land trans- Life — a series of studies examining recent W actions and that there must be the capacity to adapt innovations in public policies, programs and partner- to changes in the conditions and priorities of the ships involving Aboriginal people. This program Aboriginal signatories. builds on research on Aboriginal issues carried out as IRPP plans to publish other studies as part of this part of the Institute’s Art of the State III project, research program. The authors will present case stud- notably the contributions of Evelyn Peters, Joyce ies of innovations in public policies and programs in Green and Ian Peach, and John Richards to the 2007 a given policy sector, including how the innovations IRPP volume Belonging? Diversity, Recognition and were developed and implemented, and assess the Shared Citizenship in Canada. results and lessons learned. The studies will be situat- The situation of many of Canada’s Aboriginal peo- ed within the broader context of historical and con- ple is one of the country’s most pressing public policy stitutional factors, and will outline policy directions questions. Based on a range of measures, from income for further progress within the policy field. It is hoped and unemployment levels to health indicators, there that, consistent with IRPP’s mandate, this research are significant gaps in life chances between many will inform citizen understanding and policy-making Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians. There has in this important domain. been progress in some areas —for example, in the pro- portion of Aboriginal people who have completed post-secondary education. Nonetheless, measures such ette publication représente une étape de plus as the United Nations Human Development Index dans le programme de recherche de l’IRPP sur continue to underline the unacceptable disparities la qualité de vie des Autochtones, qui com- between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in C prend une série d’études consacrées aux innovations Canada. Self-government agreements signed during récentes apportées aux politiques et programmes the past 30 years or so, particularly in the North, hold publics ainsi qu’aux partenariats avec les promise of a better future for the First Nations who Autochtones. Le programme de recherche s’inspire have acquired greater community autonomy. But the des travaux menés dans le cadre du projet de l’IRPP majority of Aboriginal people, notably those who live sur l’art de l’État, volume III, et en particulier des in cities, are not covered by such agreements; for contributions d’Evelyn Peters, de Joyce Green et Ian them, there is a need for other approaches and — Peach, et de John Richards à l’ouvrage Belonging? above all — renewed political will. Diversity, Recognition and Shared Citizenship in In this study, Martin Papillon addresses the impact Canada, publié par l’IRPP en 2007. of the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec La situation d’un grand nombre d’Autochtones est Agreement (JBNQA) on the quality of life of the Crees l’une des questions les plus urgentes auxquelles doit of Eeyou Istchee and the Inuit of Nunavik. The s’attaquer la politique publique au Canada. Plusieurs JBNQA was the first of a series of comprehensive indicateurs, depuis les niveaux de revenu et de chô- land claim agreements, often referred to as “modern mage jusqu’aux indicateurs de santé, soulignent treaties,” that have been signed with Aboriginal peo- l’écart important qui existe entre de nombreux ples. Papillon finds that the life conditions of the Cree Autochtones et les non-Autochtones du point de vue and the Inuit in this region have since improved in a des chances d’épanouissement. Certes, des progrès number of respects. However, some expectations have ont été enregistrés dans certains domaines — en ce not been met. For example, the proportion of the qui a trait à la proportion des Autochtones qui ont Eeyou Istchee and Nunavik populations with a high achevé leurs études postsecondaires, par exemple. school diploma or higher level of education increased D’autres indicateurs, tel l’Indice de développement 1 humain des Nations Unies, continuent néanmoins de les facteurs historiques et constitutionnels, et pro- mettre en lumière les disparités inacceptables qui poseront des orientations destinées à améliorer persistent entre Autochtones et non-Autochtones au davantage la situation dans ce secteur de la politique Canada. Les ententes d’autonomie gouvernementale publique. On espère que, conformément au mandat signées depuis une trentaine d’années, en particulier de l’IRPP, ces études de recherche contribueront à dans le Grand Nord, renferment la promesse d’une une meilleure compréhension au sein de la popula- meilleure qualité de vie pour les Premières Nations tion et à la prise de décisions dans ce domaine qui ont pu acquérir leur autonomie communautaire, important. mais la majorité des Autochtones, en particulier ceux qui vivent en milieu urbain, ne sont pas présents dans ces accords. Dans leur cas, il faudra envisager d’autres formules et, surtout, faire preuve d’une volonté politique renouvelée. Dans cette étude, Martin Papillon examine l’inci- dence de la Convention de la Baie James et du Nord québécois (CBJNQ) de 1975 sur la qualité de vie des Cris de l’Eeyou Istchee et des Inuits du Nunavik. La CBJNQ constituait la première d’une série d’ententes globales sur les revendications territoriales – souvent qualifiées de « traités modernes » – signées avec les peuples autochtones. Martin Papillon reconnaît que les conditions de vie des Cris et des Inuits de cette région se sont depuis améliorées sur plusieurs plans. Mais certaines attentes restent insatisfaites. Par exemple, si la proportion des habitants de l’Eeyou Istchee et du Nunavik possédant un diplôme d’études secondaires ou de niveau supérieur a progressé d’en- viron 10 points de pourcentage depuis 20 ans, ce taux reste sensiblement inférieur à celui de l’ensem- ble des peuples autochtones du Canada. L’étude analyse aussi les répercussions de la CBJNQ sur la gouvernance des communautés et les facteurs ayant conduit à un deuxième accord, celui de la Paix des Braves, conclu en 2001 entre les Cris et le gouverne- ment du Québec. À la lumière de ces développe- ments, l’auteur conclut que les traités modernes ne se réduisent pas à des transactions foncières et doivent pouvoir être adaptés à l’évolution des conditions de vie et priorités des signataires autochtones. L’IRPP compte publier d’autres études dans le cadre de ce programme de recherche. Les auteurs présenteront des études de cas axées sur les innova- tions apportées aux politiques et programmes publics dans des secteurs déterminés de la politique publique, signalant notamment comment ces innovations ont été élaborées et mises en œuvre, et analyseront les résultats de ces innovations, y compris leur impact sur la situation des Autochtones et les leçons tirées de ces expériences.
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