New chief focused on ‘building bridges’

Should focus on bridging divide between Aboriginals on reserves and those in urban areas, former opponent says

Since taking office, AFN Grand Chief Shawn Atleo has held conferences on H1N1 and plans to push for Canada’s signature on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Even though Assembly of First Nations (AFN) Grand Chief Shawn Atleo has travelled extensively to meet with government and First Nations community representatives since being elected July 23, governance experts say it remains to be seen how these travels will benefit those living on reserves.

Four months into his term, Atleo has focused on “organizing and building bridges,” said Frank Turner, political advisor to the grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs. As part of this process, Atleo held a virtual summit on H1N1 and signed an H1N1 communications protocol with the government.

Atleo is working on more issues in the coming months, said AFN communications manager Karen Pugliese. This includes ongoing research on the McIvor case, in which the British Columbia Supreme Court ruled that amendments in 1985 to the Indian Act went against the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Atleo will also seek Canada’s signature on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The major challenge Atleo faces, according to Turner, is the government’s willingness to work with the AFN national leader, regardless of who that leader is.

I have yet to get a sense of how the AFN has changed.

Lorena Fontaine, University of Winnipeg Aboriginal Governance Program

Not everyone has been impressed by Atleo’s work so far.

“I have not noticed Atleo’s presence at all,” said Lorena Fontaine, faculty member with the University of Winnipeg Aboriginal Governance Program. “I have yet to get a sense of how the AFN has changed.”

This perceived lack of presence has less to do with Atleo himself and more to do with the larger issue of “disconnect between aboriginal organizations and people in the communities,” said Bill Wilson, who ran against Atleo in the July AFN election.

More than half of Canada’s Aboriginal people live in urban centres as opposed to on reserve, according to 2006 census data. This leaves a large portion of Canada’s Aboriginal population unrepresented by the chiefs that make up the Assembly of First Nations.

Wilson points to this demographic shift to suggest that one of the AFN’s greatest challenges in the coming months will be to reaffirm its relevance in the lives of Aboriginal peoples across Canada.

It may be early to ask what Atleo has achieved after only four months in office, but according to Turner, Atleo received good feedback from First Nations on how to move forward in meeting their needs.

However, Wilson had hoped that Atleo would take up the cause of clean water.

“If your actions don’t improve life of the average individual in the community, then you’re not doing anything,” he said.

Published in Volume 64, Number 13 of The Uniter (November 26, 2009)

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