What Does It Mean For the Liberals to Adopt the UN’s Declaration on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights?

On Tuesday, the Liberal government announced it will “fully adopt” the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), the most significant international agreement that specifically sketches out what it would look like to treat Indigenous peoples like, well, people.

Actually endorsing and implementing the non-binding declaration, not just insultingly dubbing it an “aspirational document” like the Conservatives did in 2011 after refusing to adopt it for four years, would seem like a pretty giant leap for humankind.

“We want to demonstrate today and in these coming weeks our commitments to ensure that all Canadians have a truly concrete roadmap to reconcile with Indigenous people,” said Indigenous and Northern Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett on Monday, the first day of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York City.

Unfortunately, it’s almost certainly a vapid rhetorical exercise that reinforces an understanding of “reconciliation” as defined by the Canadian government.

It’s not like the 46 articles that make up UNDRIP are really that hard to wrap one’s head around.

Recognize the self-determination and autonomy of Indigenous peoples. Don’t keep fucking with their cultures or livelihoods. Avoid plowing through their territories with resource extraction projects if they haven’t given free, prior, and informed consent (which assumes that factors like poverty and unemployment won’t be taken advantage of).

Just be respectful neighbours, something to actually justify the use of the phrase “nation-to-nation.”

But it’s a tad difficult to pull that off when Canada refuses to grant actual sovereignty to Indigenous communities.

It was very telling, for instance, that Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett and Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould both emphasized that UNDRIP will be implemented via the Canadian Constitution. Specifically Section 35, which “recognized and affirmed” existing Aboriginal and treaty rights and was only included by the first Prime Minister Trudeau after years of protests and lobbying by Indigenous peoples.

Clearly, it’s good that Section 35 exists in some capacity, as it protects Indigenous peoples from being further fucked over (which given recent calls for relocation is a very clear and present danger).

But the terms of the Constitution were entirely defined and controlled by Canada. The government has never properly honoured the way that Indigenous peoples understand treaties, which are widely viewed as agreements to share territory and maintain mutual respect as opposed to forfeiting land and the ability to practice a distinct way of life.

The fact UNDRIP will be implemented through such a lens will almost certainly condemn it to failure from an Indigenous sovereignist perspective, well represented on Twitter by Métis writer Chelsea Vowel, Anishinaabe scholar Hayden King, and Mohawk policy analyst Russ Diabo.

Pipelines and other resource projects such as BC’s Site C dam are perfect litmus tests for this.

Julia Kennedy-Francis, a Calgary-based consultant who works with First Nations, says Canadian case law doesn’t specifically state that consent must be obtained and that the current “duty to consult” doesn’t go as far as what the UNDRIP requires with “free, prior and informed consent.”

“Due to the fact that consent needs to be obtain in situations related to lands and territories, this can be interpreted as a means of having veto power,” she told VICE. “If a community refuses to provide consent then they are essentially vetoing or rejecting the proposal.”

There’s massive opposition from Indigenous communities to Enbridge’s Northern Gateway, Kinder Morgan’s Trans-Mountain, and TransCanada’s Energy East pipeline projects. Many have called for the National Energy Board to suspend and restart its approval process for the projects.

Yet Trudeau’s government has continually reassured industry that “no project proponent will be asked to return to the starting line.” Last month, the National Post reported that Trudeau has commissioned senior cabinet members to draw up a pipeline implementation strategy.

It’s unclear how this pipeline strategy will integrate with the government’s plans to take “free, prior and informed consent” seriously.

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers—a massive lobby group obviously interested in Indigenous peoples not being able to veto their members’ projects—doesn’t seem to think so either given its statement on Tuesday: “Our industry is proud to endorse UNDRIP as a framework for reconciliation in Canada.”

Only adding to the backhanded nature of it all was when Bennett casually dismissed a bill recently introduced by Romeo Saganash—a Cree NDP MP who worked on the develop of UNDRIP for two decades—by suggesting “I don’t think we can go forward based on a private member’s bill without proper consultation.”

True “reconciliation” or “decolonization”—or whatever the word of the year happens to be—will only occur when Indigenous peoples call the shots on what it looks like. The process will likely come at the expense of the Crown’s land and authority, not to mention the illusion of national unity that Liberals fantasize about. And despite what Bennett says, it might be scary for white settlers who aren’t used to losing power.

Real change is going to be a lot more involved—and lot messier—than just signing on to a UN document.

Follow James Wilt on Twitter.