First Nations chiefs have agreed to launch new negotiations with Canada over child welfare after voting down a $47.8 billion deal in October.

Chiefs at the Assembly of First Nations on Dec. 4 also voted to restart talks to include Northwest Territories in any new agreements at a special assembly in Ottawa. They also want the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, which helped launch the initial human rights case against Canada, back at the table.

SA国际影视传媒淭his process has been like a canoe thatSA国际影视传媒檚 been upside down and backwards,SA国际影视传媒� said Squamish Nation chairperson Khelsilem, who was a vocal critic of the previous deal and the negotiations that lead to its realization.

SA国际影视传媒淲hat weSA国际影视传媒檙e doing is we are taking that canoe, weSA国际影视传媒檙e flipping it backside up, weSA国际影视传媒檙e turning it back in the right direction, and weSA国际影视传媒檙e bailing out the water so that weSA国际影视传媒檙e all paddling together for our children.SA国际影视传媒�

The $47.8 billion was struck after decades of advocacy and litigation from First Nations and experts, seeking to redress decades of discrimination against First Nations children who were torn from their families and placed in foster care.

The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal said CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 underfunding was discriminatory because it meant kids living on reserve were given fewer services than those living off reserve.

The tribunal tasked Canada with reaching an agreement with First Nations to reform the system, and also with compensating children who were torn from their families and put in foster care.

The agreement was meant to cover 10 years of funding for First Nations to take control of their own child welfare services from the federal government, create a body to deal with complaints and set aside money for prevention, along with other items.

Chiefs and service providers critiqued the deal for months, saying it didnSA国际影视传媒檛 go far enough to ensure the discrimination stops. They have also blasted the federal government for what they say is its failure to consult with First Nations in negotiations.

They also said the Assembly of First Nations was attempting to sideline the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society from negotiations, and four members of the organizationSA国际影视传媒檚 executive wrote letters to the national chief critiquing the process.

Chiefs ultimately voted against it at a special assembly dedicated to the issue in October, with the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations SA国际影视传媒� whose campaign for the job focused heavily on child welfare SA国际影视传媒� visibly upset it didnSA国际影视传媒檛 move forward.

The new mandate passed on Dec. 4 calls for a national SA国际影视传媒渦mbrella agreementSA国际影视传媒� along with regional agreements SA国际影视传媒渢hat take full account of the childrenSA国际影视传媒檚 distinct circumstances, cultures and the inherent rights of the children and the First Nations they belong to.SA国际影视传媒�

Those regional agreements should be funded in a manner that safeguards First Nations children, youth and families from discrimination SA国际影视传媒渘ow and forever,SA国际影视传媒� and for Canada to consult with First Nations directly instead of through the Assembly of First Nations.

The Assembly of First Nations is not a rights-holding organization, but rather a forum where 630 rights-holding chiefs across Canada can advocate for their concerns.

The federal government has a duty to consult with First Nations when its actions could affect their rights.

Chiefs in assembly also voted in favour of the Assembly of First Nations to SA国际影视传媒渨ithdraw and apologize for any and all public statements that suggested or implied that First Nations Child and Family Service Agencies led the campaign to defeat the draft final settlement agreement.SA国际影视传媒�

It adds: SA国际影视传媒淪uch comments are disrespectful of our front-line workers and of the chiefs who exercised their due diligence to review the text of the draft (final settlement agreement) and rejected it on that basis alone.SA国际影视传媒�

NWT resolution

In her closing remarks during the October assembly, Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said the organization recognized the SA国际影视传媒渟uccess of the campaign that defeated this resolutionSA国际影视传媒� There is no getting around the fact that this agreement was too much of a threat to the status quo, to the industry that has been built on taking First Nations children from their families.SA国际影视传媒�

Cindy Blackstock, the executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, said at the time that was an SA国际影视传媒渦nfortunate characterizationSA国际影视传媒� of chiefs who found the agreement didnSA国际影视传媒檛 work for them.

In October, chiefs voted for the creation of a childrenSA国际影视传媒檚 chiefsSA国际影视传媒� commission comprised of leadership from all regions in the country to negotiate a new deal and provide oversight, along with a new legal team.

The resolution passed on Dec. 4 says the assembly should support the Caring Society to lead any processes.

Another resolution called for First Nations in the Northwest Territories, who were excluded from the previous deal, to be brought in. It also calls for Canada to acknowledge and take action to address the historical impact of the child welfare system on Indigenous children in the territory.

As it passed, several chiefs stood and applauded.

Chief Toni Heron of Salt River Dene First Nation told chiefs that together, they can change lives.

SA国际影视传媒淟et us commit ourselves to this cause SA国际影视传媒� not only for the children of today, but for all the generations to come,SA国际影视传媒� Heron said.

SA国际影视传媒擝y Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press