Inuit welcome federal promise to endorse UN Declaration on Indigenous Rights

March 3, 2010 – Ottawa, Ontario – National Inuit Leader Mary Simon, president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, congratulated the federal government for committing to take steps to endorse the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in today’s Speech from the Throne.

“The Declaration is the product of over 20 years of negotiations and I am pleased that Canada has finally offered its support of this important international instrument,” said Mary Simon.

 

She was also heartened by the government’s promise to work with Aboriginal communities, provinces and territories to reform and strengthen education, and to support student success and provide greater hope and opportunity.

 

That is also the goal of the multi-party National Committee on Inuit Education, chaired by Simon and now in active development of a National Strategy on Inuit Education.

 

“Inuit graduation rates are the lowest in Canada,” said Simon. “If we are going to fully participate in the emerging opportunities in Canada’s Arctic, we must eliminate that achievement gap. Inuit education systems are in a period of rebuilding, and to improve outcomes, we must make targeted investments in teacher training, leadership development, curriculum development for bilingual education and early childhood development.”

 

Simon also called attention to a brief mention of Arctic sovereignty and a commitment by the federal government to work with other northern countries to settle boundary disagreements.

 

However, she pointed out that any discussion of Canada’s Arctic – in particular the upcoming Arctic Summit in Chelsea, Quebec, which is to deal with issues of natural resources, public safety and continental shelf delineation – must include Inuit at the table.

 

“I want to remind the government that Inuit are the original inhabitants of the Canadian Arctic – and discussions of our land and people must not be held in our absence,” she said. “We look forward to working with the Prime Minister on the key issues set out in this Speech from the Throne and to learning the details of tomorrow’s federal budget.”