Ottawa releasing details of $40B First Nations child welfare agreement today
CBC
The federal government will today announce details of a $40 billion dollar agreement-in-principle to reform the on-reserve child welfare system and compensate the First Nations children who were part of it.
The First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, the Assembly of First Nations and lawyers for several related class action lawsuits completed negotiations with the federal government late the night of Dec. 31, after nine weeks of intense talks.
The non-binding agreement sets aside $20 billion for compensation and $20 billion for long-term reform of the on-reserve child welfare system.
Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, told CBC News she hopes the agreement will provide a "roadmap" to satisfy the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) order to end discrimination against First Nations children.
"No child's life is better today than it was yesterday because of these words on paper," Blackstock said. "We have to see the government actually deliver this stuff."
The agreement must be approved by the CHRT and the Federal Court before it is finalized.
The CHRT ordered Canada to compensate any child who has been in the care of the on-reserve child welfare system at any point between Jan. 1, 2006, and whenever the tribunal decides discrimination against First Nations kids has ceased.
If approved, the agreement could end a 15-year legal battle and provide compensation for tens of thousands of people.
A final agreement is expected to be approved in late 2022.
The First Nations Child and Family Caring Society and the Assembly of First Nations filed a complaint under the Canadian Human Rights Act in 2007 alleging the federal government discriminated against First Nations children by underfunding the on-reserve child welfare system and by not complying with Jordan's Principle — a policy that states the needs of a First Nations child requiring a government service take precedence over jurisdictional disputes over who pays for it.
In 2016, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal found the federal government discriminated against First Nations children and said Canada's actions led to "trauma and harm to the highest degree, causing pain and suffering."
The tribunal ordered Ottawa to pay $40,000 — the maximum allowed under the Canadian Human Rights Act — to each child affected by the on-reserve child welfare system, along with their primary guardians, as long as the children weren't taken into foster care because of abuse.
It also directed the federal government to pay $40,000 each to all First Nations children, along with their primary guardians, who were denied services or forced to leave home to access services covered by Jordan's Principle from Dec. 12, 2007 — when the House of Commons adopted the policy — to Nov. 2, 2017, when the tribunal ordered Canada to change its definition of Jordan's Principle and review previously denied requests.
"This $40,000 is not a lot of money for a lost childhood, but it's some recognition to them and hopefully it provides a little foothold for them to have a brighter future," Blackstock said.