AFN national chief Perry Bellegarde walks tightrope on divisive pipeline projects

Perry Bellegarde, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, admits it will be tough to find common ground among Indigenous communities when it comes to major pipeline projects.

"We're diverse in Canada as Indigenous people. So the point that we're supporting as the Assembly of First Nations is right the very important right of self determination," Bellegarde said in an interview with CBC Radio's The House.

"And that means the ability to say yes and/or no."

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On Tuesday, the government granted conditional approval to a major liquefied natural gas hub on the British Columbiacoast.

Pacific NorthWest LNG,backed by Malaysian-owned energy giant Petronas,signed impact agreements with four First Nations near the site of the proposed gas terminal, which will result in cash payments to those whose territory is significantly impacted by the project.

But other communities vehemently oppose the idea of pipelines. Donald Wesley, a hereditary chief withthe Gitwilgyoots tribe, called it "the biggest mistake of [Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's]career."

A group of six First Nations from the area issued a statement Tuesday saying the project "does not meet the test" for respecting Indigenous rights and would be challenged in court.

"They're on different ends of the sphere already," said Bellegarde.

As an advocate for634First Nation communities,Bellegarde said his role on controversial energy files will be to push the government to consult with affected communities.

"[Environment Minister Catherine McKenna] isdoing the best she can, and I lift her up, because last year's COP 21 in Paris is the first time there's ever (been) a reference to Indigenous people and Indigenous people's rights," he said.

"It's a start, but to give it practical teeth and practical measures here in Canada, there should be a more robust consultation of Indigenous peoples and elders."

Frustrations mounting

The LNG announcement wasn't the only point of friction between Indigenous communities and the government this week.

On Monday, Stewart Phillip, grand chief of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, boycotted a reconciliation ceremony attended by the visiting royal couple, citing "the ongoing negligence of Indigenous child welfare policies across this country."

"Patience is running out in our First Nations communities, because what I'm hearing across Canada from the chiefs [is], 'Perry, Chief Bellegarde, yes thank you for lobbying to get that $8.4 billion but we don't see it in our communities yet,'" he said.

Bellegarde says Trudeau has made progress on the five promises he made to First Nations chiefs back in December, but said the government still needs to work on repealing legislation imposed on Indigenous people by the previous government.

"We have lots of work to do," he said. "He came out last year and made some strong statements. We have to keep pushing.

"We've always got to keep having that hope. When was the last time we've had $8.4 billion invested in First Nations people? That'sanother issue of getting [it]out to our communities, but that's unheard of, that's unprecedented."

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