Tansi Nîtôtemtik,
Having established in our introductions last week that our theme this year is Indigenous Governance, you may now be wondering what exactly is “Indigenous Governance”.
The term “Indigenous Governance” is a term that, on its face, seems rather self-explanatory. To put it very, very simply, “governance” is a term that describes “how society[,] or groups within it, organize to make decisions.”[1] When you pair this cursory definition of “governance” with the “Indigenous” descriptor, you are left with a phrase that concerns itself with how Indigenous Peoples and their communities organize themselves and make decisions. That is, Indigenous Governance is governance from the Indigenous perspective. It must be emphasized, however, that “governance” is not the same as “government.” Rather, “governance” is a broader concept that is “highly relevant to people and organizations whatever their involvement with government.”[2] As such, “Indigenous Governance” goes beyond the political, extending into and shaping other facets of Indigenous social life, including the private sector and civil society.[3]
And yet, Indigenous Governance is more than simply how Indigenous Peoples make and act on decisions. “Indigenous Governance” is, in fact, a principle that has greater depth, and one which comes with its own complexities and implications.
At its foundation, “Indigenous Governance” involves the recognition that Indigenous Peoples have historically had – and still continue to exercise – their own systems and powers of governance, beyond that of the Canadian State. The fact remains that neither Canada, its government, nor its governance began at the date of Confederation in 1867. Centuries of history occurred on this land long before the white, European colonists arrived. Before European contact, Indigenous Nations were self-sustaining and self-governing, their societies founded on – and governed by – their respective laws, values, traditions, stories, and oral histories.[4] After contact, and through generations of European imperialism, paternalism, and assimilation, these Indigenous systems of self-governance were displaced and eroded by the Canadian State’s own powers of governance.
That is not to say that when we speak of Indigenous Governance, we speak only in the past tense. Today, Indigenous systems and methods of governance are being revived and reignited. Indigenous Governance continues to survive, emerging as an alternative system of governance within Canada, one that is employed by Indigenous Nations and their people, for their communities. Now, in this post-colonial era, “Indigenous Governance” is inherently tied to ideas of Indigenous sovereignty and self-determination, recognizing that Indigenous Peoples are, in fact, their own people, with their own communities, who should have the ability to decide and dictate what is best for them, and how to conduct and organize themselves. Of course, given the diversity of Indigenous Peoples across Canada, what governance looks like and how it is applied varies across each community, and the manner in which it is delivered is dependent on a Nation’s language, history, culture, and legal frameworks. This is the leading reason why it is so difficult to definitively explain what “Indigenous Governance” is, and what it looks like.[5]
That being said, Indigenous Governance does not merely work to organize individual Indigenous communities; such governance also affects Nation-to-Nation relationships, be it between Indigenous Nations themselves, or between Indigenous Nations and the Canadian State. Following this, the study of Indigenous Governance acts as a key piece of the Reconciliation puzzle, as our exploration of the topic will ask us to look back on our histories, encourage us to question how we govern ourselves, and offer us new tools with which to govern, lead, and structure our communities and relationships as we move forward.
Until next time,
Team ReconciliAction YEG
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[1]Institute on Governance, “What is Governance?”, online: <https://iog.ca/what-is-governance/>.
[2]First Nations Governance Project, “Phase I Governance Report” (August 2018) at 10, online: <https://fnfmb.com/sites/default/files/2018-09/2018_FN-Governance_Project_phase1-low-res_update.pdf>.
[3]Ibid at 10.
[4]There is a story shared by the Chiefs of the Shuswap, Okanagan and Couteau Tribes of BC that explains how the Creator, following the suggestion of the Mole, placed the gift of knowledge of Truth and Justice within Man himself, thereby placing within human beings the power, and freedom, to discover who and what we are, and therefore, how to govern theselves. This story is reproduced in the “Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples: Restructuring the Relationship, Vol. 2” (Ottawa: Ministry of Supply and Services, 1996) at 102-103, online: <http://data2.archives.ca/e/e448/e011188230-02.pdf>.
[5]“Phase I Governance Report”, supra note 2 at 12.
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