Thank you very much.
I'd like to introduce myself. I have been the chief of Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation since 2012. I have been a member of the legislative assembly for over 15 years before that, and I served as chief between 1990 and 1996. As such, I am familiar with the final agreements.
I want to note that we are aware of and support the other first nations' statements here today. The Yukon first nations reiterate that the proposed four amendments undermine the spirit and intent of chapter 12 of the final agreements. If the four amendments proposed by Bill S-6 are proclaimed, the crown will have breached its constitutional duties owed to Yukon first nations.
The Yukon senator and member of Parliament have pointed out that section 4 of YESAA provides that in the event of an inconsistency or conflict between the final agreement and YESAA, the final agreement will prevail to the extent of the inconsistency or conflict. Section 4 does not address our concerns about the potential breach of our rights. Further to that, we do not understand why our senator and member of Parliament oppose Yukon first nations' and many Yukoners' views on the four objectionable amendments.
First, it's important to understand that chapter 12 outlines the general structure of YESAA and its functions and powers to guide the development of YESAA by Yukon first nations, Canada and Yukon. This means that chapter 12 and its objectives inform the development of the act and its regulations, but chapter 12 does not comprehensively define the structure, function, and powers of the YESAA process. The parties defined the YESAA process in government-to-government negotiations during the development of YESAA. The agreements reached in those discussions can't be changed unilaterally under the constitutional structure of Canada. We assert that the federal government does not have this legal authority.
Second, YESAA originates from and is rooted in our land claim agreements. It manages the use and the development of lands, waters, and resources in Yukon. As a result, implementation of YESAA may affect the exercise of aboriginal treaty rights. In this case, the crown has not acted in accordance with its constitutional duties owed to Yukon first nations. The crown has breached its duties to work with Yukon first nations and take steps to accommodate our concerns. The crown has not acted honourably or fairly. The crown has breached its constitutional duty to act in the honour of the crown. The crown's proposed amendments would serve to infringe on our aboriginal treaty rights, including the rights for independent assessment of projects, or the right for comprehensive reviews for projects in accordance with chapter 12. Canada's proposed amendments would adversely affect the integrity, independence, and effectiveness of the YESAA process.
Despite the concerns raised by Yukon first nations, federal government officials have not engaged in any discussion in good faith with Yukon first nations to address our concerns related to the four proposed amendments. We worked together collaboratively to draft the act and regulations. We need to do the same on any amendments.
For example, in April 2014, Canada specifically requested our input into the suitability of the proposed timelines. We provided written responses opposing the concept of beginning-to-end timelines, and also provided rationales for why the proposed timelines were too short. In May 2014, Canada decided to further shorten the timelines for all assessments, exactly the opposite of what first nations had recommended. Canada was unable to provide a rationale for why it not only failed to accommodate our concerns, but in fact took action in the opposite direction. The federal government would breach its constitutional duty to uphold the honour of the crown if it proceeded unilaterally with the proposed four amendments that do not arise from the collaborative five-year review.
Let's set the record straight. We have listened to the debate in the House of Commons, to the statements made by the ministers responsible, to our own member of Parliament, and to the premier. We are frustrated by the lack of understanding and respect to our treaties shown by them. We need to correct some of that record.
Fact: unlike the processes used for developing YESAA and completing the five-year review, the Government of Canada has not used a collaborative approach to developing the proposed changes to YESAA. In fact, twice we were promised that a joint working group would be established to provide departmental officials with the required information for the development of legislative drafting instructions. It is a fact that a working group was never established, and we were never asked to provide input on the development of drafting instructions for the four amendments.
Fact: the court has been clear that the context of the treaty must be given a large, liberal, and contextual interpretation of the goal of reconciliation. We actually support many of the amendments in Bill S-6, which clearly came from the collaborative five-year review. We do not support Bill S-6 unless the four problematic amendments introduced unilaterally by Canada are removed. In committee discussions on March 24, Mr. Ryan Leef stated that when he met with first nations directly, we stated that we supported “98% of the legislation”. We have never made such a statement.
Fact: contrary to the assertions of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, none of the four amendments was part of the original draft bill that Canada shared with the first nations in June 2013. We did not see these proposals until late February 2014. Canada and Yukon had many opportunities to raise the concepts of policy direction, delegation of powers and timelines, and exemptions for renewals and amendments during the collaborative five-year review, but they never raised the issues at all. When YESAA was developed, it was to replace the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act in Yukon with a made-in-Yukon approach that addressed the treaty requirements. The objective of maintaining a distinct regime defined by our treaties must be paramount over any unilateral objective to harmonize across the north and throughout Canada.
Thank you for the opportunity for us to speak here today to correct some of the information and inaccuracies.