Manitoba First Nation chiefs oppose federal bill recognizing Red River Métis self-governance

First Nations leaders in Manitoba are voicing their opposition to a federal bill recognizing Red River Métis self-governance

First Nations chiefs in Manitoba are voicing opposition to federal legislation that would recognize the Red River Métis right to self-government, arguing the bill threatens existing treaty rights and was developed without adequate consultation.

Bill C-21 would give legal effect to a self-government treaty signed between the Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) and Canada in November 2024 — the first of its kind between a Métis government and Canada. The bill was introduced to the House of Commons in February and is currently in second reading.

If passed, it would replace a Self-Government Recognition and Implementation Agreement signed in July 2021, which first recognized the MMF as the sole national government of the Red River Métis.

On Tuesday, the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs joined calls to oppose the legislation as currently drafted, following Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, who last week called for the bill to be withdrawn entirely.

“This legislation raises serious legal, constitutional and jurisdictional concerns for First Nations here in Manitoba,” said Grand Chief Kyra Wilson of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, which represents all 63 First Nations in the province.

“Advancing such legislation without resolving outstanding legal and jurisdictional issues risks creating uncertainty, conflict and potential infringement on First Nations treaty and inherent rights.”

Wilson, joined alongside Manitoba First Nation chiefs, said the legislation lacks a clear framework to prevent overlap with First Nation territories, that First Nations had not been “meaningfully engaged,” and that it lacked “legally binding protections” to ensure First Nations treaty and inherent rights would not be affected.

Wilson noted that First Nations are not opposing Métis rights, which are recognized and affirmed alongside First Nations and Inuit rights under section 35 of the Constitution Act.

“But they cannot be advanced in a way that infringes upon, diminishes or creates uncertainty for First Nations treaty rights,” she said.

She added that outstanding treaty obligations—such as treaty land entitlement—must be addressed before Canada enters into treaties with other Indigenous groups within the country.

Ovide Mercredi, former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations who was present as the news conference, echoed those concerns, accusing Canada of going through the “back door” to recognize Métis rights while “ignoring treaty rights and First Nations rights.”

“You can’t pick and choose what rights you want to enshrine in the supreme law of this country, because if you do that, you will be entrenching on the rights of other people, and in this case, First Nations people,” he said.

A spokesperson for Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty said Bill C-21 applies only to the Red River Métis and their internal affairs and does not detract from the rights of any other Indigenous community.

The spokesperson added that the federal government consulted with potentially affected groups from August 2023 to October 2024, and in 2023 wrote to all First Nations in Manitoba to notify them of the draft agreement.

‘Nothing infringes on anybody else’s rights’

After the news conference, MMF president David Chartrand accused the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs of misleading the public, describing its actions as “shameful.”

“Nothing infringes on anybody else’s rights, it’s written black and white in there,” said Chartrand, who has served as president of the MMF since 1997. “It has nothing to do with land, nothing to do with hierarchy of rights.”

Chartrand told CTV News the self-government treaty “has all to do” with the right to self-governance—a right he said had been denied to the Red River Métis for 156 years—including the authority to make laws in core jurisdictions.

He accused the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs of using the legislation as a vehicle to advance their own unresolved treaty grievances.

“If you have a problem with your treaties, don’t use ours as your segue … to go ahead and bring your issues to the forefront,” he said.

The self-government treaty was unanimously ratified by thousands of Red River Métis citizens in June 2023, according to the MMF.

With files from The Canadian Press