Hello everyone,
Hope you are all well. I've been gardening lately, instead of writing anything.
It's not often that I can
honestly say I'll look forward to reading the full text of a report!
Having just read the
"end of mission" report about Canadians food security, by the United
Nations Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Olivier de Schutter, I am looking forward to reading
the full report.
You may be hearing de Schutters "end of mission" statement about the food
security situation in Canada. No doubt this is being covered by news media
all across Canada. For myself, I heard a professor of food
justice (or some such studies) interviewed on the 4-6 p.m. CBC 1 radio show Wed. May 16/12. And the 6:30 As it Happens show interviewed 2 people, including de
Schutter (who speaks really well). And the Toronto Star and
Globe&Mail newspapers are covering this. The prof commented that, (to
paraphrase) if the Feds had wanted to counter the report, it would have
reflected better on them if they had highlighted the Federal positives which de
Schutter mentioned, you know ... divert (he didn't use that term ... it's my word.)
The "end of mission" statement is preliminary to a longer report that
won't be out for months. The "thank you for your help" section
of the end of mission statement takes up a full page. De Schutter had a
full schedule of meetings across the country. His first thank you is to
the Canadian government, which invited him to come to Canada; the Foreign Affairs Department and International
Trade Canada coordinated his agenda.
I anticipate that the groups de Schutter visited while in Canada will use his visit and eom statement to highlight
their undertakings. This is a great opportunity. Thankfully, the
people and organizations around the country know that statements coming from
the Prime Minister's Office via his ministerial minions are diversion
tactics. It's just such a shame that they will all have to spend extra
time countering their statements.
To focus just on one Federal
Minister's comment: Health Minister
Leona Aglukkaq (MP Nunavut) is quoted in the Toronto Star article
(cited below) as saying: " 'the food security issue is not about access to
(food). It’s about fighting environmentalists trying to put a stop to our way
of life,' a reference to non-Canadian activists who oppose the hunting of polar
bears and seals and want to limit fishing."
The actual final line in the eom statement is: "The
Special Rapporteur believes that continued and concerted measures are needed to
develop new initiatives and reform existing ones, in consultation and in real
partnership with indigenous peoples with the goal of strengthening indigenous
peoples’ own self-determination and decision-making over their affairs at all
levels."
De Schutter's other points in regards to aboriginal peoples:
history: "A long history of political and economic
marginalization has left many indigenous peoples with considerably lower levels
of access to adequate food relative to the general population."
positive in regards to traditional food and cultural identity: "
indigenous peoples are also uniquely positioned with respect to food by virtue
of their relationship with traditional lands and the natural resources therein,
which is a central component of their identity."
concerned with factors which affect this, including changing environmental
factors not caused by indigenous people: "Although communities can,
and often do, pursue a diet based on traditional/country foods, obtaining this
food is not without cost. Issues with accessing traditional foods include:
limited availability of food flora and fauna; environmental contamination of
species; flooding and development of traditional hunting and trapping
territories; lack of equipment and resourcing to purchase equipment necessary
for hunting/fishing/harvesting; and lack of requisite skills and time. Many
aboriginal communities expressed concerns regarding federal government policies
that have disrupted and, in some cases, devastated the traditional practices of
indigenous people, including through removing control over land and natural
resources."
Recognition of land
disputes, food subsidy program problems, and reference to agreements and rights
are also in the eom statement. In
mentioning that the United Nations has a Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples, I (Maureen) thought it was rather polite/politic of de
Schutter to not mention that Canada is a country that has not
signed on to this (along with U.S., Australia and New Zealand).
Given the range of de
Schutter's comments the only reason that I can see for
Agglukak's attack on environmentalists in her public statement is that she was
handed a speech by the PMO guys who saw this as another opportunity to go after
"environmentalists." (Did you know that the Harper regime just
cut funding to The Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL) in
Eureka, Nunavut- Agglukak's home town. This is - was,
it closed April 30 - one of the world's best known and respected such research
facilities, and, of course, its information is directly involved with climate
change, one of the Harper regime's favorite topics of denial.
Well, this got long! And the references follow! Got to get up from the
computer.
Best regards and hope you
have a good day,
Why's Woman
* Excerpt from
end of mission statement - VIII. Indigenous Peoples *
In Canada, indigenous peoples comprise First Nations, Inuit and Métis. There are roughly 1 million status “Indians”
from 630 First Nations; 45,000 to 55,000 Inuit across 53 communities; and
around 400,000 Métis. Like others, the Special Rapporteur welcomes the decision
by Canada in November 2010 to lend its support for the United Nations Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This is a positive step, whereby Canada joined global consensus.
A long history of political
and economic marginalization has left many indigenous peoples with considerably
lower levels of access to adequate food relative to the general population. In
addition, indigenous peoples are also uniquely positioned with respect to food
by virtue of their relationship with traditional lands and the natural
resources therein, which is a central component of their identity.
1. Nutrition North Canada
Recognizing the importance of access to nutritious food in isolated communities
in the North, the Government launched the Food Mail programme in the 1960s.
Concerns regarding the escalating costs of the Food Mail programme led to a
series of reviews that resulted in a decision to replace the programme with a
more focused food subsidy programme called Nutrition North Canada in April
2011.
The objective of the
Nutrition North Canada programme is to improve access to perishable healthy
foods in isolated Northern communities, and the Special Rapporteur welcomes
this initiative. Yet, the Rapporteur also has concerns about its implementation.
In particular, he is concerned that the retail subsidy is not being fully
passed on to the consumer and that in the absence of adequate monitoring by
those it is intended to benefit, the programme is not achieving its desired
outcome. Furthermore, he is concerned that it was designed and implemented
without an inclusive and transparent process providing the Northern communities
with an opportunity to exercise their right to free, active and meaningful
participation. Concerns were raised in particular regarding the eligibility
criteria of which communities fall within the scope of the programme and which
items are subsidized.
2. Access to
traditional/country foods
Historically, indigenous peoples have had their own food systems, relying on
traditional knowledge of hunting, fishing, trapping and gathering. Although
communities can, and often do, pursue a diet based on traditional/country
foods, obtaining this food is not without cost. Issues with accessing
traditional foods include: limited availability of food flora and fauna;
environmental contamination of species; flooding and development of traditional
hunting and trapping territories; lack of equipment and resourcing to purchase
equipment necessary for hunting/fishing/harvesting; and lack of requisite
skills and time.
Many aboriginal communities
expressed concerns regarding federal government policies that have disrupted
and, in some cases, devastated the traditional practices of indigenous people,
including through removing control over land and natural resources.
3. Access to
land
In many parts of Canada access to country foods requires access to land. As such, on-going
land claims across the country have implications for the right to food among
aboriginal Canadians.
Concerns have been raised that although aboriginal title is recognized under
Canadian law, the Government has made attempts to extinguish title through
onerous negotiations and terms of modern land claims and self-government
agreements, as well as through a narrow and reductionist reading of historical
Treaties, agreements and other constructive arrangements. The Special Rapporteur
recalls that article 8.2(b) of the Declaration provides that States shall
provide effective mechanisms “for prevention of, and redress for…[a]ny action
which has the aim or effect of dispossessing them of their lands, territories
or resources.”
The Special Rapporteur notes
the existence of “Aboriginal Consultation and Accommodation: Updated Guidelines
for Federal Officials to Fulfill the Duty to Consult,” a Government policy
document on aboriginal consultation and accommodation. In this context, he recalls
article 19 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples, which establishes that, in general, consultations with indigenous
peoples are to be carried out in “good faith … in order to obtain their free,
prior and informed consent.”
The Special Rapporteur
believes that continued and concerted measures are needed to develop new
initiatives and reform existing ones, in consultation and in real partnership
with indigenous peoples with the goal of strengthening indigenous peoples’ own
self-determination and decision-making over their affairs at all levels.
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