February vote on the books for Anishinabek Nation Governance Agreement

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Votes to ratify the proposed Anishinabek Nation Governance Agreement — which would remove participating First Nations from sections of the Indian Act and give them greater control over elections, citizenship, language and culture — are scheduled to take place in February.

Anishinabek Nation Grand Council Chief Glen Hare and Canada’s Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Carolyn Bennett marked the initialing of the governance agreement Friday in Sault Ste. Marie, as well as the formal launch of the community approval process among Anishinabek First Nations.

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The voting period was initially scheduled for the fall, but the participating First Nations are expected to hold a ratification vote between Feb. 1 and 29, pending further sharing of information and outreach with their citizens.

“Our Anishinaabe leaders have been consistently pursuing moving beyond the Indian Act,” Hare said in a statement.

“The Anishinabek Nation Governance Agreement is a major milestone in our journey towards restoring our traditional governance in this modern world. We are ensuring our survival as Anishinaabe, and that is the greatest responsibility our leaders have.”

Bennett congratulated the Anishinabek Nation, the First Nations and the negotiating teams on reaching an “historic milestone” with the agreement.

“This is an important opportunity to restore Anishinabek control over governance, move beyond the Indian Act and implement the First Nations’ vision of greater self-determination and a better future for their communities,” she said.

After nearly 25 years in the making, members of the Anishinabek Nation may soon ratify the first Indigenous self-government governance agreement in the province.

To date, at least 20 member Anishinabek First Nations plan to hold votes on the proposed agreement, including Nipissing and Dokis First Nations.

Information sessions also have been held across Ontario, including last June in North Bay, to give citizens an opportunity to learn more about the agreement before casting their votes.

For the Anishinabek Nation and its participating communities, signing on means the federal government will recognize their law-making powers and authority over how they choose to govern.

It provides up to seven times more funding for governance, such as for elections and government operations, and allows them to determine citizenship rights and responsibilities, as well as qualifications for office and finance management laws, including not being forced to disclose salaries, honorariums and travel expenses of chief and council.

Terms of office for chief and council may be extended beyond the two-year limit set out in the Indian Act, which would prevent the occurrence of near constant elections that communities experience.

There is also a provision for the establishment of an intergovernmental forum with the prime minister and cabinet, similar to a First Ministers’ meeting with Canada’s premiers, which will be the first of its kind for any self-government agreement in the country.

Following Anishinabek First Nations approval, the next step will be to obtain federal government approval and have the agreement signed by all parties.

Once signed, federal legislation will need to be passed before the agreement comes into effect.

Work on the governance agreement began in 1995 and a framework was agreed to in 1998.

An agreement-in-principle was signed in 2007 and negotiations concluded this year.

Last year, 23 Anishinabek First Nations entered into a self-government agreement around on-reserve education.