Charest calls on Harper to honour Kelowna aboriginal accord

Elizabeth Thompson, CanWest News Service; Montreal Gazette

Published: Sunday, March 04, 2007

PIKOGAN, Que. - Quebec Premier Jean Charest called Saturday on Prime Minister Stephen Harper to honour the Kelowna accord, saying the money the federal government had pledged would make a big difference in the lives of Quebec's First Nations.

"I thought the Kelowna meeting was significant and that we should pursue what was done in Kelowna," Charest told reporters. "I would like them to honour it."

Saturday's comment marks one of the few times Charest has openly criticized a decision taken by Harper, a man who has become a political ally for his government over the past year.

The Kelowna Accord was hammered out between aboriginal leaders and Canada's first ministers in November 2005 in the dying days of Liberal Prime Minister Paul Martin's government. The deal called for $5 billion to be spent over five years to improve education, housing, skills training, economic development and health care for Canada's aboriginals.

However, Harper's government has refused to recognize the agreement, dismissing it as little more than a press release. Harper says the Liberal government announced something it had never provided for financially, however, the Liberals maintain that the money promised had been earmarked for Canada's first nations before they were defeated.

Charest, who participated in the meeting that led to the accord, said Ottawa should work to accomplish what the agreement set out to do - even if it decides to do it differently.

"I would like to see them pursue Kelowna... If they choose not to do it exactly the same way, (then) to do essentially what we all committed to doing in Kelowna."

One area where the Kelowna agreement would be changing the lives of Quebec's aboriginals, if it were being implemented, is in housing, Charest said.

Charest's comments came shortly before he visited the Algonquin Indian reserve of Pikogan near Alma, Que., home to the Abitibiwinni First Nation.

Band Councillor Bruno Kistabish agrees the Conservatives should honour the agreement, saying there are a lot of areas in which the federal government could be doing a lot more to help his reserve.

Pikogan, like many first nations communities, has been going through a baby boom - 50 per cent of the community's population is under the age of 18. In some cases, two families have to share a house. The northern community has around 140 homes but desperately needs 75-80 more to house its rapidly growing population.

"We build six houses and there is no more space. The situation is getting urgent."

The community also needs more money for education and for health care, said Kistabish.

"A lot of people have diabetes. It is a scourge in native communities."

Ghislain Picard, Chief of the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador, said he boycotted the Kelowna talks because what was proposed was not enough to meet the needs of Canada's first nations.

Refusing to honour what little there was is even worse, he said.

The handful of announcements made by Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice when he attended last fall's socio-economic summit pale in comparison to what was called for in the Kelowna deal, he said.