Settling land claims will cost Canada a lot of money but those funds will prove to be an economic boon to the country one day, a national chief said Friday during a visit to Six Nations.
Assembly of First Nations Chief Shawn Atleo met with local elected councillors from the territory to hear their concerns and answer questions about many of the critical issues facing Six Nations and some of Canada's other 633 bands.
At the end of the three-hour discussion, Coun. Claudine Vanevery-Albert asked Atleo to help with what she said was Six Nations' most pressing issue.
"The federal and provincial government refuse to recognize our traditional lands," said Vanevery-Albert.
"We're always going to be under their thumbs until our land rights are recognized. All the issues we're speaking of today go back to our need to have our land base. If the AFN can do anything, I would say work toward moving, forcing, cajoling the Crown to move forward in land issues."
Atleo agreed, saying that mainstream thinkers are beginning to understand the tremendous economic potential that's being lost in keeping native municipalities poor.
"By keeping us tied up in over 100 current court decisions, they are withholding an incredible human potential."
Later, Atleo said Canadians worry about the large amounts that are owed to natives without looking at the buying power that will go into the Canadian economy when those funds are released.
"There's a link between economic prosperity and addressing land rights and what that means to our children. It's a value."
The national chief also noted that with the Canadian population greying and diminishing while the First Nation population is largely young and growing, Canadians are overlooking an ideal labour market.
"Let's invest in them," said Atleo, noting that education -- once used against natives in order to divest them of their own language and culture -- could be used to correct disparities.
Six Nations councillors also wanted to know what the AFN could do to help with other issues, including funding for education and fire protection, creating a band-run child protection service, reinstating language resources, collecting a gas tax rebate and determine band membership.
Atleo was elected national chief last July. He is a hereditary chief from the Ahousaht First Nation in B.C. He has a masters degree from the University of Technology in Australia and, in 2008, was named chancellor of Vancouver Island University. He is a regional chief in B.C.