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First Nations Women, Governance and the Indian

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First Nations Women, Governance and the Indian First Nations Women, Governance and the Indian Act: A Collection of Policy Research Reports First Nations Women, Governance and the Indian Act: A Collection of Policy Research Reports By Judith F. Sayers and Kelly A. MacDonald Jo-Anne Fiske, Melonie Newell and Evelyn George Wendy Cornet The research and publication of this study were funded by Status of Women Canada’s Policy Research Fund. This document expresses the views of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official policy of Status of Women Canada or the Government of Canada. November 2001 Status of Women Canada is committed to ensuring that all research produced through the Policy Research Fund adheres to high methodological, ethical and professional standards. Specialists in the field anonymously review each paper and provide comments on: • the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of the information presented; • the extent to which the methodology used and the data collected support the analysis and recommendations; and • the original contribution the report would make to existing work on this subject, and its usefulness to equality- seeking organizations, advocacy communities, government policy makers, researchers and other target audiences. Status of Women Canada thanks those who contribute to this peer-review process. National Library of Canada Cataloguing in Publication Data Main entry under title : First Nations women, governance and the Indian Act [computer file]: a collection of policy research reports Contents : A strong and meaningful role for First Nations women in governance / Judith F. Sayers and Kelly A. MacDonald.– First Nations women and governance : a study of custom and innovation among Lake Babine Nation Women / Jo-Anne Fiske, Melonie Newell and Evelyn George.– First Nations governance, the Indian Act and women’s equality rights / Wendy Cornet. Also published in French under the title: Les femmes des Premières nations, la gouvernance et la Loi sur les Indiens : recueil de rapports de recherche en matière de politiques. Includes bibliographical references. Issued also in print format. Mode of access: WWW site of Status of Women Canada ISBN 0-662-31140-X Cat. No. SW21-85/2001 1. Native women – Legal status, laws, etc. – Canada. 2. Indians of North America – Legal status, laws, etc. – Canada. 3. Indians of North America – Canada – Politics and government. 4. Indians of North America – Canada – Band membership. 5. Women's rights – Canada. 6. Sex discrimination against women – Canada. 7. Canada. Indian Act. I. Sayers, Judith F. II. Fiske, Jo-Anne III. MacDonald, Kelly A. IV. George, Evelyn. V. Newell, Melonie. VI. Cornet, Wendy. VII. Canada. Status of Women Canada. E98.W8S39 2001 342.71'0878 C2001-980312-5 Project Manager: Beck Dysart, Nora Hammell, Julie Cool, Vesna Radulovic, Status of Women Canada Publishing Co-ordinator: Cathy Hallessey, Status of Women Canada Editing and Layout: PMF Editorial Services Inc. / PMF Services de rédaction inc. Translations: Sayers: Joli Hébert Translations Inc.; Fiske: Pierre Chagnon; Cornet: Michèle Wilson Comparative Reads: Sayers: Linguistica; Fiske: Normand Bélair; Cornet: Normand Bélair Translation Co-ordinator: Monique Lefebvre, Status of Women Canada Translation Quality Control: Serge Thériault For more information contact: Research Directorate Status of Women Canada 123 Slater Street, 10th Floor Ottawa, Ontario K1P 1H9 Tel: (613) 995-7835; Fax: (613) 957-3359; TDD: (613) 996-1322 E-mail: [email protected] PREFACE Good public policy depends on good policy research. In recognition of this, Status of Women Canada instituted the Policy Research Fund in 1996. It supports independent policy research on issues linked to the public policy agenda and in need of gender-based analysis. Our objective is to enhance the public debate on gender equality issues and to enable individuals, organizations, policy makers and policy analysts to participate more effectively in the development of policy. One such issue on the public policy agenda is First Nations Governance. Communities First: First Nations Governance is an initiative of the federal government to amend the Indian Act. An important part of this initiative is public consultations, which are to be held throughout the entire legislative process. It is expected this process will last two to three years. The Policy Research Fund recognized the need to ensure a gender perspective in the public debate surrounding First Nations governance issues. A call for policy research proposals on “First Nations Women, Governance and the Indian Act” was issued in April 2001. The following three research projects were selected for funding and appear in this collection of policy research reports: • A Strong and Meaningful Role for First Nations Women in Governance, by Judith F. Sayers and Kelly A. MacDonald • First Nations Women and Governance:A Study of Custom and Innovation among Lake Babine Nation Women, by Jo-Anne Fiske, Melonie Newell and Evelyn George • First Nations Governance, the Indian Act and Women’s Equality Rights, by Wendy Cornet. Status of Women Canada’s Policy Research Fund hopes this collection of research reports will support First Nations women and contribute to the ability of individuals and organizations to participate more effectively in the policy development process. We believe that good policy research leads to good policies. We thank all the authors and reviewers for their contributions to this objective. TABLE OF CONTENTS A Strong and Meaningful Role for First Nations Women in Governance Judith F. Sayers and Kelly A. MacDonald ........................................................................1 First Nations Women and Governance:A Study of Custom and Innovation among Lake Babine Nation Women Jo-Anne Fiske, Melonie Newell and Evelyn George ......................................................55 First Nations Governance, the Indian Act and Women’s Equality Rights Wendy Cornet................................................................................................................117 A Strong and Meaningful Role for First Nations Women in Governance Judith F. Sayers and Kelly A. MacDonald ABSTRACT This paper illustrates that First Nations governments must once again restore women to their place of honour and respect in governance. The paper takes the reader through history where colonization severely affected women in First Nations communities and resulted in women being put in a very subservient position. Today, women still are not assured a role in governance. Treaties and self-government agreements are being negotiated, with very few women negotiators at the table, or with the counsel of women’s advisory groups where issues affecting women are incorporated in the documents. This paper is timely in bringing these issues to the forefront as there are proposed changes to the Indian Act, and many places across Canada are negotiating self-government agreements or treaties. The paper reviews what is available in different forms of government, proposes guidelines for different areas in governance and specifically delineates what needs to be in the Indian Act or agreements, and in First Nations constitutions or charters to ensure the strong and meaningful role of women in good governance. TABLE OF CONTENTS THE AUTHORS..................................................................................................................4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................5 1. METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................................8 2. SELF-GOVERNMENT AND THE ROLE OF WOMEN ............................................9 Traditional Roles of First Nations Women....................................................................9 The Impact of Colonization of First Nations Women .................................................11 Male Leadership ..........................................................................................................11 Contemporary First Nations Women and Sexual Equality..........................................14 Contemporary First Nations Women and Self-Government .......................................15 3. SELF-GOVERNMENT AND TREATY AGREEMENTS IN CANADA.................18 4. THE INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE .................................................................20 5. CRITERIA FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT: FIRST NATIONS ................................21 WOMEN’S PERSPECTIVE Health Communities A Prerequisite for Self-Government: A Leader’s Perspective ..23 Models of Governance.................................................................................................25 Framework or Constitution for First Nations Governance..........................................29 6. CONCLUSION............................................................................................................41 Recommendations........................................................................................................41 BIBLIOGRAPHY..............................................................................................................44 ENDNOTES ......................................................................................................................53 THE AUTHORS The authors are both First Nations lawyers who have worked extensively on First Nations treaty issues in British Columbia. Dr. Judith Sayers (Nuu-Chah-Nulth) is elected Chief of the Hupacasath First Nation
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