As Canada gets closer to starting free trade talks with the United States and Mexico, there’s a cautionary note from Ontario’s Regional Chief. Isadore Day says First Nation people need to be at the table to make sure their interests are represented. While Day welcomes that National Chief Perry Bellegarde will be included, he adds one person can’t represent all Indigenous people. Day says the various Indigenous communities expect to have their voices recognized otherwise they will see the NAFTA talks as illegitimate. Day also says First Nations are not looking for token representation when NAFTA negotiations begin later this month but rather meaningful recognition. Day says there are a number of issues that all three countries will raise that also have an impact on First Nations. Those include softwood lumber, agriculture, communications and gaming only to name a few. The Regional Chief says the negotiating countries must acknowledge that these issues are a matter of sovereignty. He says they have to recognize that these matters transcend the border between Canada and the United States. Day says trade and historical economies among First Nations existed centuries before North America was settled by Europeans and long before the Canada –U.S. border came into existence.
