Longtime Inuk politician Jack Anawak represented the electoral district of Nunatsiaq in the House of Commons from 1988 to 1997 as a member of the Liberal Party of Canada.
During his time in the House of Commons, Anawak served first as the Liberal Party's opposition critic for Northern Affairs and then as parliamentary secretary to the minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development.
He also served a term in the legislative assembly after Nunavut's creation in 1999.
But Anawak is no fan of having a special day to recognize truth and reconciliation. As far as he's concerned, it doesn't exist. In fact, Anawak takes issue with how truth and reconciliation is being perceived today.
“When we talk about reconciliation between the Government of Canada and the Indigenous people, I really have some issues with that because they don't seem to conform at all to the real issue of reconciliation from the government side,” said Anawak.
“People seem to have short memories these days, but I remember when the prime minister made a campaign statement about dealing with Indigenous people in the sense of nation to nation. But, so far, I have not seen any evidence of that.
“So, if there's going to be true reconciliation, the government will have to come through and see the Indigenous people as equals in nation-to-nation negotiations.”
Anawak said the government will make some small measures when dealing with Indigenous people, such as naming some new icebreakers with Inuit names, but that doesn't really mean anything unless it's going to come through from the top and actually come through on any of the real issues that Inuit are faced with, which, to date, it has not.
He also said at the top of that list is the government claiming land.
“You know, Inuit have been in Nunavut for thousands of years, yet, through the so-called process of honestly dealing with Inuit, (the government) gave Inuit two per cent of outright ownership and 16 per cent surface rights on our own land.
“And, all the game laws are still originating from the southern perspective. With all the issues of justice, we're still dealing with the southern perspective and our child-care laws originate from the southern perspective.
“Until they start really coming through by saying, 'OK, you deal with your own form of justice, child-care laws and game laws' and go through the process of doing something more about the residential school abuses that occurred instead of just making statement about it, it's all just for show.
“So, I am not truly convinced that the government is coming through with true reconciliation. That's as far as I'm concerned.”
Anawak said Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and other Inuit organizations don't seem to have the necessary commitment to understand that they exist only because of Inuit.
He said they all seem to be dealing more with concern about their existence and their image, but they don't seem to be following through on what having, in the case of Inuit, Nunavut, truly means.
“It's either they don't have the commitment or, as kabloonaq would say, they've reached their level of incompetence. Again, at the risk of repeating myself, but the point must be fully understood: they don't seen to have the commitment to fully understand that the only reason they exist is because of Inuit. They think and act like the government is our friend. The government is not our friend.
“The government sits across the table and tells us what they want to give us instead of saying, 'OK we're on equal sides, so let's start debating about what equal sides means, what equality truly means when it comes to what reconciliation truly means.
“I'm not impressed with the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and other regional Inuit organizations that exist. The leadership just simply does not seem to have the vision and the understanding of why, in our case, Nunavut exists. Or even, for that matter, why there have been so many issues with dealing with Inuit for land rights, game rights, justice, child care and housing for starters. They seem just to be more concerned about existing and the benefits that provides to them rather than actually accomplishing anything.
“So, if you're talking to me about true reconciliation, I just don't see it happening.”
