Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. (Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am going to make a statement regarding elders and their work. (Translation ends)

...to talk about the importance of elders in our culture. Traditionally, elders play a large part in passing on the

stories, traditions and knowledge of our culture. Many generations of family often live together, so that children can learn from their grandparents, Mr. Speaker. The elders are the teachers in our communities.

The experience and knowledge the elders bring to our people could be compared to our education system today. Many of our elders would hold Ph.D.s if we recognized their traditional knowledge for its value to our communities and ways of life. Industry has recognized the value of this knowledge, Mr. Speaker. They often call upon our elders for advice about the land or the animals when seeking permission to use our land, Mr. Speaker.

When we attend workshops or conferences, we often call upon experts to teach us about the particular subjects. We will pay these experts some large amounts of money for their consultant fees, whether it be hundreds or thousands, Mr. Speaker. Yet, we often expect our own experts to work for a nominal fee, or free of charge, Mr. Speaker. We expect our elders, our traditional knowledge Ph.D.s, to donate their time.

Schools and learning centres, community groups, often call upon the elders to teach the youth, Mr. Speaker. Funding for cultural activities does not allow these groups to pay for the elders what they truly deserve for their knowledge.

Furthermore, Mr. Speaker, this pay also affects the elders' pension. The money is essentially clawed back, Mr. Speaker.

Then to add insult to injury, Mr. Speaker, the government system requires that all cheques be processed through FMBS, the standard system. This means an elder may have to wait up to two or three weeks at the most.