Consultation Reports

In January 1998, the Alberta Minister of Justice, Honorable Jon Havelock, announced plans to hold a Summit on Justice. The purpose of the summit, which will be held on January 27-29, 1999, is "To build consensus on actions for improving public confidence and community participation in the justice system." The approved recommendations from the summit are to be incorporated into the Alberta Government’s business planning process.

Treaty 6, 7 and 8 First Nations were identified in the summit process as a major stakeholder in the justice system. An all-party consultation committee chaired by Richard Magnus, a Conservative MLA, has met with representatives of some First Nations to hear their views and has also received written proposals on their own justice initiatives. Treaty First Nations are not simply another "Stakeholder" to be consulted by the Government of Alberta. We are and should be dealt with as a third order of government. Furthermore, Alberta already plays far too large a role in First Nation Justice, and Canada should accept its constitutional and Treaty responsibilities in this area. The summit process is inconsistent with this view. Despite these fundamental problems that exist now, Treaty 7 Tribal Council calls on Alberta to take the following steps:

1. Alberta should make a political commitment to make First Nations Justice a high priority for those First Nations who choose to work with the province in this area. This commitment should be confirmed and described in a formal memorandum of understanding (the MOU) between Treaty 7 Tribal Council and Alberta.
2. The MOU should commit Alberta to support initiatives presented by First Nations, which will progressively result in a real transfer of authority and responsibility to those First Nations in the administration of justice. The right of each First Nation to pursue solutions consistent with its culture and traditions, whether alone or together with other First Nations, should be confirmed.
3. The MOU should create a joint political structure made up of Treaty 7 Chiefs who choose to participate and the Alberta Minister of Justice to drive and track the progress that is made in achieving these goals. Alberta should commit sufficient internal resources to ensure that the work will get done in a timely way.
4. Alberta should dedicate funds both to implement new initiatives and to properly fund and enhance existing programs such as policing and community corrections. These funds should be set aside solely for this purpose. The rules to access these funds should be clear and transparent.
5. Alberta should press Canada to contribute development and program funding for First Nations justice initiatives. In the short term, Alberta should immediately commit funds necessary to match the funds available from Canada under the Federal Aboriginal Justice Strategy.