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Representing First Nations across the country, the Assembly of First Nations is preparing to file a human rights complaint against the federal government dealing with the under funding of child welfare support. See the two news articles below ...

From today's Globe and Mail front page ...

Natives to hit Ottawa with rights complaint
CAMPBELL CLARK - Posted on 05/02/07

OTTAWA -- The Assembly of First Nations is preparing a human-rights complaint against the federal government alleging that the systematic underfunding of child-welfare services on reserves has fuelled a crisis that sees 27,000 aboriginal children in foster homes.

AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine will signal that Canada's aboriginal leadership is moving to a more confrontational approach on the issue when he warns in a speech today that his organization is preparing to file the rights complaint.

One in 10 aboriginal children is in foster care, compared to one in 200 non-aboriginal children, and the AFN argues the problem is exacerbated because child-welfare agencies for first nations get 22 per cent less money than those that deal with non-aboriginal children, despite deep poverty in many aboriginal communities.

"Our children need action now. So I am announcing today that we are putting governments on notice that a lack of action should be viewed as putting children at risk," according to the text of Mr. Fontaine's speech, to be delivered to the International Congress on Ethics in Gatineau, Que.

The increasingly confrontational approach to aboriginal child-poverty issues is part of a climate of frustration that exists one year after the Conservatives took power and scrapped former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin's $5-billion Kelowna accord on improving the quality of life in first nations communities.

"We've always believed that it's better to negotiate appropriate arrangements. But when we discover an unresponsive government, as we have in this case, then we have to take action," Mr. Fontaine said yesterday.

The Globe and Mail reported Saturday that the deep child poverty on first nations reserves in Canada is now attracting the attention of international children's charities such as Save the Children, which typically focus their efforts on helping children in areas that have been racked by war or disaster.

Two Save the Children aid workers visited two troubled communities in Ontario, Webequie First Nation and Mishkeegogamang First Nation, to write a report aimed at launching a campaign to pair reserves with non-profit aid agencies -- an initiative born out of frustration at government inaction.

In an interview yesterday, Mr. Fontaine said that first nations leaders have tried to move the federal government through good-faith arguments based on the evidence, but can no longer wait while the crisis grows.

"The underlying problem is the impoverished state of first nations communities. The families are suffering," Mr. Fontaine said.

"We exist with poor housing, poor schools, poor access to quality health care, poor drinking water, and the pressure as a result of this grinding poverty is just overwhelming for too many of our people."

That leads to the despair that causes other problems such as suicide and alcohol addiction, which experts say is a major factor in child neglect, the AFN argues.

And Mr. Fontaine said that because child-services agencies are underfunded, there are not enough social workers to help families they know are at risk -- and the agencies instead spend their resources on taking children away from their parents.

"When you don't have the support, the immediate decision is to remove children, so we end up with the numbers that we have -- and this is 27,000 children in care," Mr. Fontaine said.

The AFN sees the human-rights complaint, already drafted and expected to be filed this month, as the first step in a strategy of legal actions against the federal government, which could be followed by class-action lawsuits on behalf of children and Charter of Rights challenges in the courts.

And although the Canadian Human Rights Commission cannot order the government to spend the extra money, the AFN hopes that a ruling that the underfunding is discriminatory would prod the government to act.

"Such systemic discrimination must end. This situation for children in care must end. I have always said that I would rather negotiate than litigate or demonstrate. But if this is the only way to bring attention and action to the situation, so be it," the text of Mr. Fontaine's speech reads.

Calls to aides to Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice were not returned yesterday.

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From CTV News online ...

AFN to launch complaint over child-welfare crisis
Feb. 5 2007 - CTV.ca News Staff

The Assembly of First Nations is set to file a human rights complaint against Ottawa over underfunding of child-welfare services on reserves, according to a newspaper report.

The assembly's national chief, Phil Fontaine, will outline the group's plan in a speech on Monday to the International Congress on Ethics in Gatineau, Que.

The complaint, which has already been drafted, is expected to be launched later this month.

It's the first step in a strategy of legal actions against the federal government, The Globe and Mail reported.

Fontaine will say the federal government has contributed to a crisis that sees some 27,000 aboriginal children in foster homes, the newspaper reported.

One in 10 aboriginal children is living under foster care, while the same is true of one in 200 non-aboriginal children.

The assembly says child-welfare agencies for first nations are struggling to work with 22 per cent less money than those that work with non-aboriginal children.

"Our children need action now. So I am announcing today that we are putting governments on notice that a lack of action should be viewed as putting children at risk," according to the text of Fontaine's speech, to be delivered to the International Congress on Ethics in Gatineau, Que.

The newspaper reported Saturday that child poverty on reserves is attracting the attention of international children's charities such as Save the Children.

Two aid workers from the organization have visited two communities in Ontario -- Webequie First Nation and Mishkeegogamang First Nation -- to write a report aimed at launching a campaign to pair reserves with non-profit aid agencies.

Many governments have programs to address health inequalities experienced by aboriginal peoples, the Health Council of Canada said in a report earlier this month.

But it is unclear whether Stephen Harper's Conservatives will revive any part of the Blueprint on Aboriginal Health and the Kelowna Accord put forward in 2005 under the previous Liberal government.

After taking office, Harper scrapped the $5.1-billion plan, which was meant to improve native education, housing and economic conditions.