(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Chairman. First of all, I would like to thank Mr. Kakfwi, our Premier and our invited guests for briefing us on their views. As we know, the aboriginal people in the Northwest Territories, not too long ago, were not able to vote, and we were not able to be part of people who are being voted on.
Only in 1960 did we get the right to vote. We have to remember and acknowledge our folks for their hard work for the aboriginal people. This Constitutional Accord, which will be voted on in October, is not the best we have, but it is the best we can get. (Translation ends)
Also, the people who have been working on this document, have been trying to convince the federal government that there are aboriginal people living in Canada. Yourself, could very well remember, Mr. Chairman, that your people were told by white people to move away from Pond Inlet to go into another area, and you had to move. You had no choice, you had no right to say no. You moved to another area, it was foreign to your people, your father, your parents, and you had no rights.
My parents were living in our own camp, we had our own government, and of course that was not recognized by the national government. We had our own justice system, in our community, we had laws governing the resources that we used, like wildlife, wildlife management was in place. Wildlife management was probably one of the most stringent laws adhered to by my people, because we were living off them. We were moved. I remember the day that we were moved, because the authority told us to move into a community, from our traditional community where my brothers and sisters were born, in a sod house, and we were moved. One day, my father came back to get some supplies, and when he came back he said that we have to move because the R.C.M.P., and the administrators, told us we had to move, we had no choice. We had no say. I remember the day that we moved, that my mother cried, just about all the way, going into Pond Inlet, because she did not want to move. My father did not want to move, but we could not stay.
I am very glad today that the accord that is put to the people of Canada, says that inherent right to aboriginal self-government will be entrenched. I am very glad to hear that. Finally we will have something that, as aboriginal people, we will have something that to protect us, protect aboriginal inherent right to self-government.
When I came back from school, back in the early 1970s, the first thing I heard was that we would like to govern ourselves. We would like to say what happens in our community. We would like to say what happens to wildlife management. We would like to take part in the growth of our community. We would like to be part of the resource management that is taking place in terms of mineral management, oil and gas development in our community.
Our people are saying that we would like to be part of that decision making body, and we were not. The authorities were in Ottawa, and we did not have the right. As a result of that, I started to get involved in municipal politics, and I was the youngest one in the Baffin, I believe, as a Mayor, back in 1973. As soon as I could vote, I got in there, because I was concerned that our people were saying we would like to govern ourselves. I though that I could use my education to get them there.
In a large part, I have not been successful, in a lot of cases, but to some degree, being involved in this Legislative Assembly, shows that we are making laws that governs our people, and I would like to see that continue.
Mr. Chairman, I am looking forward to the day that Nunavut could be created. At this moment, in the thoughts of our people, aboriginal self-government is not big, because of our population. If we create the Nunavut government, we will have aboriginal self-government, but in the future this clause is going to be very important when the time comes, when our people will be the minority, this is going to be very important, but that is down the road. I am glad to see that happen. Also, guaranteeing the territorial government, and the Yukon government, be part of the national talks, that is very important to us.
I remember, our previous Premier, camping on the doorsteps of the First Ministers, waiting to get in. He was not allowed in, he did not have the right, the Northwest Territories did not have the right to partake in those very important discussions. We did not have that, no wonder the Premier was saying this is a milestone, this is a miracle, it is a miracle.
I am going to tell my constituents to vote for this, like the witnesses were saying, there is room for improvement, and those things will take place some point in the future when the time is right. I think we have something here that we cannot afford to let go, although it is not perfect, like a lot of people are saying. It is something that is the best that could be done right at this moment. There will be future constitutional talks nationally which we will be able to take part and our Premier, because of this agreement will be there at the same level as Premiers.
Qujannamiik, Mr. Chairman, Mahsi Cho.