Canada Moves Closer to Gender Equity for Indigenous Women
The law gave the Canadian government the power to regulate so-called Indian status — determining who was officially recognized as a member of a First Nation
and who was not — and to restrict access of so-called non-status people to reserves, services and legal rights.
Senator Serge Joyal said that The problem with any federal government is their past decisions are such
a horror story of broken promises you can’t take their word that the commitment will be honored,
Carolyn Bennett said that Our government is committed to working with First Nations, parliamentarians, impacted individuals
and experts to ensure all gender-based discrimination is eliminated from registration under the Indian Act,
The government portrayed the bill as a fulfillment of Mr. Trudeau’s pledge to build a new relationship with Canada’s 1.4 million aboriginal people, although
the government is also fighting legal battles with some indigenous groups over rights to natural resources, political control and services.
While the minister’s office said the consultations with First Nations groups would focus on identifying measures or resources "required to do this right," indigenous
advocates have objected to the postponement of gaining constitutionally protected rights based on a complex process many expect will be difficult to reach consensus.
The legislation was drafted more than a year ago by the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to comply with a 2015 court ruling
that ordered changes to the Indian Act to eliminate gender discrimination by December.
