Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde says the word "veto" doesn't appear in the declaration.CHRIS WATTIE/Reuters
The head of the country's largest aboriginal organization is urging calm as politicians and resource companies contemplate the potential effects on resource development of Canada's unqualified endorsement of a United Nations declaration on indigenous rights.
The non-binding United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP) says, among other things, that indigenous people have the right to "free, prior and informed consent" over development on their traditional lands. The previous Conservative government refused to fully endorse the document, fearing that meant indigenous communities would claim to have a veto over projects such as pipelines, mines and hydro dams.
But Perry Bellegarde, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN), said on Friday that the announcement that the governing Liberals had dropped all of Canada's qualifications to the support of the declaration will merely lead to a "mutually beneficial" situation in which indigenous people and the rest of Canada share in resource wealth.
Conservative opposition members voiced concerns about the potential of vetoes after Mr. Bellegarde said in a statement to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York on Thursday that free, prior and informed consent means "the right to say yes, and the right to say no. It is much more than a process of consultation."
When asked to explain on Friday what he meant by "the right to say no," the AFN leader would only say he was referring to the "right to self-determination" and would not elaborate further.
But Mr. Bellegarde pointed out that the word "veto" does not appear in the declaration, or in the groundbreaking 2014 Tsilhqot'in decision in which the Supreme Court of Canada said the government must seek the consent of aboriginal communities when it intends to interfere in lands to which they have title, unless it can make a strong case that the infringement is in the public good.
Both the declaration and the Tsilhqot'in decision talk about consent, and that is what is now required, Mr. Bellegarde said.
"What I would encourage people – the federal government, provincial governments, First Nation governments and industry – to do is to slow down, calm down, stop spreading fear about this free, prior and informed consent," he said.
"I would encourage people to start creating processes and tables for talking and dialogue about rights and title," he said. "Basically, people should be saying again, before building anything, build the relationship and build the relationship based on respect. And build a relationship that's open and honest and transparent …"
Resource groups, so far, have been positive about the government's full endorsement of the declaration.
The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers issued a statement saying the petroleum industry is "proud to endorse UNDRIP as a framework for reconciliation in Canada. We support the implementation of its principles in a manner consistent with the Canadian Constitution and law."
Others have been even more emphatic.
Pierre Gratton, president of the Mining Association of Canada, said his industry recognizes that it is important to engage with aboriginal groups early on and to have them as partners in development.
The new Liberal government seems to be assessing the quality of the engagement, Mr. Gratton said.
"What I see happening, compared to the previous government, is they're looking, not just to see that the consultation took place and that you can have your checklist that shows you met the minimum legal threshold of consultation," he said, "but they're checking to see that the effort was meaningful and respectful and serious."
Alan Young, director of the Secretariat of the Boreal Leadership Council, a collection of conservation groups, First Nations, resource companies and financial institutions with a stake in Canada's boreal forest, said the term "veto" is unhelpful and "has been used as a bogeyman to shut down discussion."
Obtaining the consent of affected indigenous groups before starting a resource project is now considered best practices, Mr. Young said. "It's how you avoid delays. It's how you build lasting stable relationships. That is the view of many [industry] leaders now and it's welcome that the government has caught up."