Prof says U.S. threats to Canada will dominate federal election at the expense of Indigenous issues
A First Nations professor at McGill University says people shouldn’t expect Indigenous issues to play a prominent role in the upcoming federal election.
“Right now, in an unprecedented political climate that it is in international relations and foreign affairs that dominate conversations in politics these days,” Veldon Coburn, a member of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan and part of the Indigenous Relations Initiative at McGill told Nation to Nation. “All across Ottawa, it is the reorganization and realignment of trade alliances, shoring up our allies where we have good friends in the international community and our domestic affairs are focused on essentially buttressing the economy.”
Coburn said that, as was the case during the Liberal leadership race, U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to annex and impose tariffs on Canada will take up most of the campaign oxygen at the expense of other issues.
After being as much as 20 points or more behind the Conservatives for most of the past year, recent polls show the Liberals surging after the departure of former prime minister Justin Trudeau and under new leader Mark Carney.
Coburn said Indigenous voters who are used to being threatened by colonial powers, may see the Liberals as better able to defend their interests against the Trump administration as opposed to the Conservatives who have been more traditionally aligned with the Republicans.
Several media sources are reporting the election could be called as early as Sunday.
Oil and Gas pipelines
Another academic says renewed interest on building oil and gas pipelines in Canada could present new opportunities for Indigenous communities.
“That (pipelines) will not happen without Indigenous involvement,” Ken Coates, a professor at Yukon University who is the chair of the Bachelor of Arts in Indigenous Governance Program, said. “Quite frankly, it won’t happen without Indigenous ownership. Not necessarily 100 per cent ownership but a significant equity sort of position.”
With Trump continuing to talk about annexing Canada, there has been a number of discussions at both the federal and provincial levels of establishing the country as a sovereign energy leader.
This would mean more of a focus on building pipelines east and west allowing domestic oil and gas producers to access markets in Europe and Asia.
Much of current production flows south to the United States.
Coates said a Conservative government might be able to better capitalize on these opportunities rather than the Liberals who have shown over the last ten years that oil and gas production was not one of the government’s top priorities.
Nevertheless, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May says Indigenous people should be wary of the promises of economic benefits made if they let these pipelines run through their territories.
“The first thing to say to any order of government and sovereign nations in particular is, ‘Show us the business case,’” she said. “Do pipelines make any sense in this country and you can’t find one with both hands and a flashlight.”
May said this is because Canada does not refine much of its oil and ships it as crude oil to the United States. She said in order to ship to other foreign markets it would have refine a much greater share of the product which is a capacity the country currently does not have.”
No comments:
Post a Comment