AFN mulls lodging complaint with Human Rights Commission

A prominent Aboriginal leader is comtemplating taking Indian Affairs to the human rights commission.

Assembly of First Nations (AFN) National Chief Phil Fontaine recently announced that the AFN is considering filing a Canadian Human Rights Complaint against the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) based on discriminatory funding of First Nation Child Welfare Agencies, he said in an AFN news release.

"It is unfortunate that the Minister will not acknowledge the true extent of the problem, and instead chooses to focus on the exact number of on-reserve First Nation children in state care. As the Minister responsible for status Indians in Canada it is disappointing that the Minister is not concerned with the total number of First Nations children in care. Whether it is 27,000 or 37,000, it is tens of thousands too many," said Fontaine, in the AFN news release.

AFN said that "to set the record straight," the following is based on indisputable evidence generated by third party AND joint INAC-AFN collaborative studies, said AFN.

- INAC funded a national research published report called Wen: de in 2005, based on three sample provinces where First Nation children are tracked in off-reserve agencies confirm the total number to be 27,000.

- Total conservative estimate is 27,000 First Nation children in provincial and First Nation agencies overall.