Ottawa [Canada], November 30: The Canadian federal government will sign its first-ever modern treaty with a Metis government, CBC News reported Friday.
Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree will be in Winnipeg, the capital city of Manitoba, on Saturday to finalize the agreement which formally recognizes the Manitoba Metis Federation (MMF) as the government of the Red River Metis, the report said.
According to the report, the Red River Metis actually negotiated a treaty with Canada back in 1870, the Manitoba Act, which led to Manitoba joining Confederation. It was supposed to provide Metis with land and economic opportunities, but the federal government didn't follow through on those commitments.
The MMF began discussions with Ottawa on the agreement in 2021. An estimated 4,000 MMF delegates unanimously approved the treaty in a June 2023 vote.
The agreement doesn't come with a list of benefits for the Red River Metis, but opens the door to future agreements with the federal government on fishing and harvesting rights, education, child welfare, land claims and health coverage, the report said.
The Metis are the only distinct Indigenous people excluded from the federal health benefits provided to Inuit and First Nations, CBC news reported.
Source: Xinhua