Kaska Reps Present Before Senate Committee in Ottawa

The Senate Standing Committee on Aboriginal Peoples is due to table a major report early in 2019 regarding what a new relationship between Canada and First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples should look like.

To this end, over the past months, Committee members have travelled widely and invited presentations from First Nations on the history of the relationship between Indigenous people and newcomers; the main principles of a new relationship; and the application of these principles to specific issues affecting Indigenous people in Canada.

On Wednesday evening, October 24, 2018, KDC Chief Negotiator Bill Lux and Lead Negotiator Michelle Miller appeared before the Senate Committee in Ottawa to present a KDC perspective on what a new relationship could and should look like for BC Kaska Dena people and communities.

At the direction of the KDC Board, and conscious of a very limited time for their opening remarks, Bill and Michelle decided on a unique approach to their presentation by choosing to talk about a short list of on-the-ground examples that would actually paint a vivid picture for the Senators of what a positive future could look like for the Kaska Dena grounded by the principle of a Nation to Nation.

In the allotted ten minutes, Bill and Michelle cited the examples of the Kaska Indigenous Protected Area, our Land Guardians, LNG, wildfires, the residential school building in Lower Post and the Kaska involvement in the 3 Nations successful efforts in Child and Family services.

The Senators were very appreciative of the presentation and engaged in a lively and informative discussion of the various matters raised for an hour. Each Senator expressed their personal thanks to Bill and Michelle for their interesting and fresh approach. As an immediate follow-up, the committee asked for more information on the residential school building situation and committed to helping Daylu turn the page on this outstanding and very sad chapter of our history.

We are delighted to provide the link to the video of the Senate hearing, so you can see for yourself the impressive job Bill and Michelle did on behalf of our people before the Senate. Let us know what you think.