Chiefs back NWT inclusion in child welfare settlement

Assembly of First Nation chiefs have voted to include the Northwest Territories in a historic child welfare settlement with the federal government.

A large delegation of Dene leaders travelled to Ottawa this week to attend a three-day Special Chiefs Assembly.

They advocated for fair and equitable inclusion in child and family service reforms, compensation packages, and improved administration of Jordan’s Principle.

“The Elders have taught us that to survive, we have to share,” Dene National Chief George Mackenzie told those gathered at the assembly on Wednesday.

“This will be historical news, that the small population of the NWT is supported by all of Canada.”

The Dene Nation’s resolution was backed by 245 voters with just three people abstaining and one person voting against it. After the resolution passed, the room filled with applause and several Dene chiefs rose from their chairs in celebration.

In a Thursday press release, the Dene Nation said the win is “a significant step towards providing compensation for past harms, reforming NWT’s child welfare system, and addressing the injustices caused by past discriminatory policies towards NWT children and families.”

“The fair and equitable inclusion of children of the Northwest Territories is a commitment to the future and a meaningful step in addressing the unspeakable past harms inflicted on our children and families by a colonial system that just simply does not work,” Salt River First Nation Chief Toni Heron told the assembly on Wednesday.

“Let us pledge to lift the voices of our children, to honour their experiences, and prioritize their needs in our decisions about child welfare.”

At a previous special assembly in October focused on long-term reform of the federal First Nations Child and Family Services Program, Indigenous leaders voted against a draft $47.8-billion agreement with Canada. They called for the Assembly of First Nations to renegotiate.

The Dene Nation said at the time that doing so would give it more time and opportunity to engage in negotiations and try to “achieve full, fair and equitable inclusion in this historic deal.”

The draft agreement stemmed from a 2016 ruling by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal that Canada had discriminated against First Nations children and their families by improperly funding child and family services on reserves and in the Yukon.

A related final settlement agreement providing $23.3 billion in compensation, which was approved in 2023, did not include NWT children and families.

Federal funding for child and family services in the NWT is provided from Canada’s Department of Finance through transfer payment agreements with the territorial government rather than the First Nations Child and Family Services Program, which is funded by Indigenous Services Canada. The territorial government then decides how to use those funds.

On Wednesday, Chief Mackenzie pointed to auditor general reports released in 2014 and 2018 that, he said, “painted a dark and sad picture” of child welfare services in the NWT.

“The children of the NWT have been left out, overlooked and left vulnerable in a system that should be safeguarding them,” he said.

“The current system is not working. Therefore, any money provided should go directly to the First Nation, not funnelled through the Government of the Northwest Territories.”

“As we move forward with child welfare compensation and reform, however that is going to look, it is crucial that we remember one fundamental truth: all our children must be at the heart of our discussion and decisions,” Heron said.

“We must ensure that the children of the Northwest Territories are included in all aspects of any agreement.”