First Nations weigh in on Quebec sovereignty debate

A First Nations leader has a message for anyone talking up the issue of Quebec independence during the province's election campaign: don't forget about us.

Ghislain Picard, chief of the Assembly of First Nations of Quebecand Labrador, says First Nations have the right to determine theirown future and aren't bound to the result of another referendum vote.

It's useless to consider Quebec sovereignty while there's stilluncertainty about the place of Aboriginal Peoples, Picard said.

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"We have the right to self-determination and this right is not negotiable," Picard said in a statement.

Let us be even more clear: Quebec can decide what it wants interms of its culture, its identity and its development, but itcannot claim sovereignty over a territory which is still,fundamentally, First Nation.-GhislainPicard, chief of the Assembly of First Nations of Quebecand Labrador

If the Parti Quebecois succeeds in getting a majority in theApril 7 vote and works toward calling another referendum, Picardsays First Nations will take steps to protect the interests of theirmembers.

"Let us be even more clear: Quebec can decide what it wants interms of its culture, its identity and its development, but itcannot claim sovereignty over a territory which is still,fundamentally, First Nation."

Similar concerns were raised in the lead up to the lastreferendum in 1995.

In that year, Quebec's Cree and Inuit both held referendums oftheir own and voted overwhelmingly against Quebec becomingindependent.

Sovereignty became a major focus of the current campaign aftermedia baron Pierre Karl Peladeau joined the Parti Quebecois lastSunday, when he raised his fist and declared he wanted to help makeQuebec a country.

But PQ Leader Pauline Marois has moved away from the issue in recent days.A new poll released Saturday suggests Peladeau's entry into thecampaign, and the heightened focus on sovereignty, has favoured theLiberals more than the PQ.

On Saturday, Marois focused on the PQ's plan to address homelessness, while continuing to attack Liberal Leader PhilippeCouillard for his approach to getting Quebec's distinctivenessrecognized by the rest of Canada.She even suggested Couillard call a referendum of his own on hisconstitutional plans.

For his part, Couillard appeared to back away from an earlierstatement that as premier he would push federal, provincial andterritorial officials to take Quebec's unique status into account inany constitutional talks.

Couillard said Saturday his priority in any relations with therest of Canada would be the economy.

Saturday's Leger Marketing poll for Montreal's Le Devoir newspaper found the PQ and Liberals tied with 37 per cent of thevote, with Francois Legault's Coalition dropping to 14 per cent.The poll suggests the PQ retains a lead over the Liberals amongstkey francophone voters.

The poll also said 59 per cent of respondents would vote no in areferendum and 69 per cent want less talk of it during the campaign.The online survey of 1,205 people between March and 13 has amargin of error of plus or minus 2.8 per cent, 19 times out of 20.