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27/04/2001

Claims System Still In Gridlock, Says Annual Report

Ottawa (April 27, 2001) - The Indian Claims Commission (ICC) says the federal government's specific claims system remains bogged down by an enormous backlog of claims across the country, despite its repeated warnings that the system needs to be reformed. And for the first time in its ten-year history, the ICC declined to make any new recommendations to the federal government, choosing instead to "reiterate the recommendations we have offered since our inception."

The ICC's 1999-2000 Annual Report, released today, sounds a pessimistic note about the lack of progress in establishing an independent claims body, a reform long-advocated by the Commission. While it acknowledges that negotiations between the federal government and First Nations continued on this issue, the Commission says that no concrete progress had been made over the year and "as a result, the specific claims system remains in gridlock."

Commissioners state they did not want to offer new formulations of ideas presented to the government in the past, pointing out that the recommendations made over the years "are as valid now as they were when they were first crafted and, for the most part, have yet to be implemented." They maintain that in validating claims against itself, the federal government remains in a conflict of interest, a situation that can be rectified by creation of a permanent, independent claims body.

The report credits the federal government for its $44-million increase in funding to the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development's Specific Claims Branch but notes that more resources are needed to expedite the 480 outstanding claims currently in the system. It further laments the fact that the federal government has done little to make Canadians aware of this backlog: "Canadians in general do not know that these claims exist nor that they are based on allegations of outstanding lawful obligations."

The report points out that the ICC released reports on five inquiries over the year and began six new inquiries. It highlights some important successes: an ICC-chaired pilot project resulted in the return to 1,100 acres of waterfront to the Fort William First Nation by the Canadian Pacific Railway; the Michipicoten First Nation negotiated two claims; and the ICC aided settlement negotiations for the Kahkewistahaw First Nation.

The ICC was established in 1991. Its mandate is: to inquire, at the request of a First Nation, into specific claims that have been rejected by the federal government or where the First Nation disputes the compensation criteria being considered in negotiations; and to provide mediation services on consent of the parties at any stage of the claims process.

To download the report PDF