By Canadian Press

Don’t blame us, Hajdu says of Chrétien-era effort to soften UN’s Indigenous language

Jan 16, 2024 | 1:39 PM

OTTAWA — The current federal Liberal government is trying to distance itself from the one that reportedly conspired with Australia to weaken United Nations language on Indigenous Peoples in the early 2000s.

Newly released Australian cabinet documents from 2003 show the two countries worked together on putting forward a softer version of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The idea of a more state-friendly version originated with Jean Chrétien’s Liberal government, the documents say, and was backed by Australia at the time. 

Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu says every Liberal government is different, but that every act of colonization and undermining Indigenous rights leaves a “stain” on the country. 

The documents, first disclosed by the Guardian newspaper, show the two governments worked in secret to weaken the declaration, while acknowledging their efforts would face stringent Indigenous opposition.

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The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was amended before it was adopted by the UN in 2007, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government passed legislation in 2021 to bring it into law.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 16, 2024.

The Canadian Press