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March 17, 2010
WHITEFISH RIVER-Frustrated with the lack of communication from government agencies regarding the harmonized sales tax (HST), the Whitefish River First Nation (WRFN) will look to its membership to determine a course of action to protest the issue.
Since the government's introduction of the tax last fall, First Nations have argued that the HST, which will come into effect on July 1 for a combined 13-percent tax on most goods and services throughout the province, is a contravention of long-established treaties that don't require status Indians in Ontario to pay certain taxes at the point of sale.
Suggestions by the province that the situation could be remedied by having First Nations peoples pay the tax outright and then file receipts at the end of the year for a refund have further angered Aboriginal leaders. Pat Madahbee, Anishnabek Nation grand chief, has described the HST scheme as "the last straw for our leaders and communities," and hundreds of First Nation protestors gathered on Parliament Hill last Wednesday to voice their frustration.
On the Whitefish River First Nation, Chief Shining Turtle (Franklin Paibomsai) says he has tried every diplomatic method he can think of to get an audience with representatives of the federal and provincial governments to discuss his community's concerns about the HST. Since September, when the First Nation initially passed a motion indicating its opposition to the new tax, Chief Shining Turtle has personally sent more than 400 emails and dozens of letters to various government representatives, including Prime Minister Stephen Harper, federal Aboriginal Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl, and federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty.
"They've given me no concrete answer," he says. "It's a game, and it's sick."
The chief is referring to a series of letters he received in response to his queries, through which he says he was passed from ministry to ministry without any tangible movement made on the issue.
In a letter dated January 4, for example, Minister Strahl writes that "I am very interested in being informed of general taxation concerns raised by First Nations. However, the specific issue of harmonization of the provincial sales tax falls within the responsibilities of the Honourable James Flaherty, minister of finance."
The reply that came to the chief more than a month later is a mere two lines long and simply acknowledges receipt of the letter, suggesting it will be "brought to the minister's attention as soon as possible."
Signed illegibly by a member of the departmental correspondence unit, Chief Shining Turtle says is an insult and shows that the federal government is not taking the matter seriously.
In one of his most recent missives to Prime Minister Harper, the chief notes that earlier treaties provide his community with the right to negotiation, rather than enforced policy, to discuss terms surrounding issues such as the HST.
"We signed a treaty with the British Crown in 1850 on a nation-to-nation basis," he writes. "At that time, your government did not exist. We are under no obligation to accept any policy made by your government unless we decide to accept through negotiation."
The chief cites the Royal Commission on Aboriginal People and the recently released Ipperwash Inquiry in Ontario as guidelines for interaction with and respect of First Nations in Canada, but suggests the government has already forsaken promises it made with Aboriginal peoples.
"In your apology to Aboriginal people involved in the residential school era, you spoke of respect, healing, reconciliation and a new relationship," Chief Shining Turtle writes. "Is this the new relationship you spoke of: taxing Aboriginal people, the most marginalized nations in Canada?"
The issue, the chief contends, could be solved easily by a mere change in policy, and he questions the government's move to "bury everything in red tape" rather than honour the treaties by engaging in discussions with the First Nations of Ontario.
The community has found at least one ally in the battle against the HST and the government's attitude towards negotiations. Last Friday, Algoma-Manitoulin MP Carol Hughes stood in the House of Commons to condemn the tactics that have been used to date. Government should be meeting with First Nations and the province to come up with a solution for the dilemma, rather than ignoring them, she suggested.
"The Union of Ontario Indians and the United Chiefs and Councils of Manitoulin have been trying for months to meet with the minister of finance to discuss the loss of point-of-sale exemptions under the new tax," she said. "The premier of Ontario also wants to meet with the federal government and First Nations on this issue."
For the chief, the final straw came when he was asked by staff at the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs to stop sending emails to the office. A staff member then hung up on him.
"It's very frustrating," he says. "Humiliation is the word, and this prevailing attitude of colonialism that is being propelled by the government."
Ms. Hughes echoed his frustration, saying she was shocked that a staff member would have "the gall to hang up on him" when he's simply looking to set up discussions with the government.
Chief Shining Turtle said he's dismayed at the federal government's insistence on running the country with a corporate mindset. The government's plan for First Nations people is not pragmatic, nor is it mindful of the First Nations people, many of whom are already living on social assistance. A 13-percent tax on many items will introduce further hardships for those First Nations people who already cannot afford to live comfortably, he argues.
"No-one is speaking for them," he says. "Their social safety net is being disintegrated by the government. It's awful what these people are facing."
Now the chief says the membership will decide what steps to take next in the battle against the implementation of the HST. Community members were to have an opportunity to speak their minds at a council meeting in an effort to find a resolution.
While the chief did not speculate about any possible solutions to the issue, he suggested that a new technique is needed, since requests for negotiations have thus far gone unanswered.
"I've tried to be diplomatic, I've tried to be pragmatic, and I've tried to be supportive of the Chiefs of Ontario building a dialogue with the government, but I may as well be talking to a brick wall," he said.