MNO President Lipinski with Special Representative PelletierOn March 13, 2015, MNO President Gary Lipinski met with Benoit Pelletier who has been appointed as the Federal Government’s Special Representative in the ongoing review of Canada’s current Specific Claims Policy. Mr. Pelletier is a former Minister in the Quebec Government and is currently a professor at the University of Ottawa. Mr. Pelletier’s report to Canada on its Specific Claims Policy will be finalized in the summer. Additional information about the ongoing review of Canada’s Specific Claims Policy is available by clicking here
At the meeting, President Lipinski provided an overview of the MNO’s governance structure, the Powley case, the existence of Métis rights throughout the province as well as the histories of the outstanding Ontario Métis community claims that exist. President Lipinski’s presentation emphasized that Canada’s ongoing exclusion of Métis from both the Specific and Comprehensive claims processes was inconsistent with decisions from the Supreme Court of Canada, the rule of law and the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The MNO is optimistic that Mr. Pelletier’s report will raise the need for Canada to finally create a policy that allows for outstanding Métis claims to be addressed.