VZCZCXYZ0001
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHOT #0594/01 2111810
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 301810Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY OTTAWA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9715
INFO RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA PRIORITY 1438
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON PRIORITY
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 1352
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0584

UNCLAS OTTAWA 000594 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR DRL AND WHA/CAN 
STATE PASS TO DPT OF INTERIOR (ERIC WILSON, BUREAU OF 
INDIAN AFFAIRS) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV AS NZ CA
SUBJECT: CANZUS INDIGENOUS ISSUES CONSULTATIONS ADDRESS 
EDUCATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 
 
¶1. (SBU)  Summary.  Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, and 
U.S. (CANZUS) officials met recently in Ottawa for 
consultations on indigenous issues.  Governmental changes 
since the last meeting in July 2006 have resulted in a number 
of new policy directions on aboriginal issues.  Between now 
and the next CANZUS session, participants pledged to share 
best practices on performance measures and outcomes, economic 
development frameworks linking education and employment, and 
data collection to inform better policy-making.  CANZUS 
officials will review the work program during a January 2010 
conference call.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Senior government officials from Canada, Australia, 
New Zealand, and the U.S. (CANZUS) met in Ottawa in late May 
in an inaugural four-party forum to discuss indigenous 
peoples' issues.  Moderated by Canada's Assistant Deputy 
Minister for Indian and Northern Affairs Fred Caron, the 
consultations built upon on a July 2006 meeting in Canberra, 
which had brought together Australian, Canadian, and New 
Zealand officials.  The Ottawa meetings also aimed at better 
sharing of best practices in light of the global economic 
downturn. 
 
Consultative Agenda 
------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) The consultations addressed five topics: 
 
-- overall relationships between governments and indigenous 
peoples, the ways these relationships are defined ("Closing 
the Gap," "Realizing Maori Potential," "Reconciliation," 
"Nation to Nation") and consultative mechanisms; 
 
-- collaboration between different levels of government on 
indigenous issues, including indigenous governments and 
bodies themselves, and how issues are being addressed in 
urban areas through performance indicators; 
 
-- improving indigenous educational outcomes; 
 
-- indigenous economic development, especially in the wake of 
the global economic downturn, and how indigenous communities 
are engaging with businesses in resource development; and, 
 
-- the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and possible 
plans for the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous 
Peoples. 
 
Changes in Government and New Directions 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Changes in government have brought policy changes in 
all four countries. Australian officials described "major 
changes" under new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.  The new U.S. 
administration has increased funding for Indian programs.  In 
New Zealand, where government-tribal relations flow from the 
Treaty of Waitangi, which require meetings on key priorities 
areas, the Maori party was asked to join a government 
coalition.  Canada's fairly broad aboriginal agenda enjoys a 
wide consensus and is regulated by constitutional provisions 
and judicial involvement, although the main political parties 
do diverge on some issues.  Conservative Party Prime Minister 
Harper's government favors practical approaches and working 
with "willing partners." 
 
Relations with Aboriginal Organizations 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  National aboriginal organizations in Canada are 
powerful voices, and the federal government provides funding 
for aboriginal political organizations at all levels. 
Consultative mechanisms have expanded as a result of court 
decisions, as well as a general sense by all parties that 
they are conducive to good government.  Provincial and 
Qthey are conducive to good government.  Provincial and 
territorial governments have become increasingly involved in 
aboriginal issues.  Aboriginal governments are developing 
relations with provincial and territorial governments, and in 
some cases with private sector developers. 
 
¶6. (SBU) In Australia, the Commonwealth, state, and 
territorial governments have developed compacts and targets 
in program areas.  Since the 1980s, the federal focus has 
shifted from rights and self-determination to practical 
outcomes and finding the balance between rights and practical 
 
results.  No national consultative aboriginal body now 
exists, although Australian interlocutors said one might be 
re-established by 2010.  The private sector expects 
governments to be involved as partners in arrangements with 
tribal communities.  In New Zealand, Maoris expect 
consultation, although the nature of the consultations varies 
by issue. 
 
¶7. (SBU) The U.S. National Congress of American Indians 
(NCAI) does not receive federal government funding. The NCAI 
is in the process of establishing an embassy of tribal 
nations in Washington D.C.  In most cases, tribes have direct 
relations with the federal government, with little state 
involvement.  Some tribal leaders head multi-million dollar 
enterprises. 
 
Aboriginal Services and Programs 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  Service delivery in remote, urban, and tribal 
areas remains a challenge.  Governmental departments attempt 
to coordinate program delivery using program performance 
measures, accountability arrangements, and success 
indicators. In Canada, the Auditor General recently 
criticized the multiple reporting requirements for many First 
Nation communities. 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  Promising arrangements in Australia include 
research by the National Productivity Commission and the 
development of a National Indigenous Reform Agreement and 
other agreements.  In the U.S., tribes can  co-mingle funds, 
and submit a single report for large numbers of programs. 
Tribes entering this arrangement must meet certain criteria 
and be audited every three years.  Over the past 20 years, 
230 of 562 tribes in the U.S. have joined the Self-Governance 
Program. 
 
Education and Economic Empowerment 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU)  Participants agreed on the importance of 
education for individual success, and as a priority area for 
governments.  The discussion showed a variety of arrangements 
from the "dump and run" experiences of early devolution 
arrangements, to direct federal delivery, as well as federal 
funding arrangements to band/tribal or 
state/provincial/territorial levels.  Several governments are 
involved in developing new national educational strategies, 
such as the recent Inuit Education Agreement in Canada. 
Measuring and monitoring the educational success of students 
and schools were vital activities in some jurisdictions. 
Canada's First Nations Student Success Program (FNSSP) was 
designed to help schools develop success plans, conduct 
student assessments, and put in place measurement systems to 
monitor and report on school and student progress. 
Participants agreed that school success plans should focus on 
literacy and numeracy levels as well as student retention. In 
the U.S. -- in line with the federal "No Child Left Behind 
Act" -- performance is closely measured against state reading 
and mathematics standards.  The Department of Interior's 
Bureau of Indian Education has several initiatives to 
increase reading and mathematics instruction in Bureau of 
Indian Affairs-run or tribal-operated schools, including 
reading coaches, technology-based systems (to tailor teaching 
to student learning styles), and replacing teaching and 
administrative staff who do not meet standards. 
 
¶11.  (SBU)  Participants emphasized the importance of early 
childhood education, family and community involvement, and 
Qchildhood education, family and community involvement, and 
expectations for success and role models.  The Maori language 
nests and schools had started to revive the Maori language 
but also offered early childhood schooling and community 
involvement.  Family and school authority expectations for 
success of indigenous students have a profound impact.  In 
New Zealand, 90 percent of Maori secondary school students 
graduate.  Work opportunities for school graduates provide 
important models for students still in school. 
 
Confronting Unemployment 
------------------------ 
 
¶12. (SBU) The economic downturn in 2008 has increased 
unemployment in many indigenous communities and prompted the 
development of strategies to deal with the consequences. 
 
These include requirements for indigenous employment in 
government contracting, development of indigenous employment 
or job retention strategies, especially in remote areas, 
focus on green jobs, health care jobs, and the construction 
sector, as well as facilitating the transition from education 
to employment through internships and partnering with trade 
unions.  Partnership arrangements between business schools 
and the U.S. Native American Business Development Institute 
have been mutually beneficial, according to U.S. 
representatives. 
 
UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶13.  (SBU)  Participants shared their perspectives for the UN 
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and experiences to date 
with the Universal Periodic Review (Canada, New Zealand). 
They also discussed the Expert Mechanism on Indigenous 
Rights.  All agreed to maintain close contact on these 
international issues, primarily through CANZUS Foreign 
Ministries.  They noted that, in September 13, 2007, Canada, 
Australia, New Zealand and the U.S. had all voted against the 
UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) 
in the UN General Assembly. 
 
Follow Up Steps 
--------------- 
 
¶14.  (SBU)  Between now and the next CANZUS session, working 
groups will be established on the topics below and contact 
people identified for each working group: 
 
-- performance measures and outcomes for government programs 
in aboriginal communities; 
-- an economic development framework, looking at education 
through to participation in the economy; 
-- data collection to enable better policy work. 
 
Also, Canadian officials are exploring opportunities to visit 
peer countries to observe first-hand their work on education 
reform and to share experiences. 
 
¶15.  (U)  Canada's Department of Indian and Northern Affairs' 
contact persons are: Director General for External Relations 
and Gender Issues Line Pare; Director for International 
Affairs Marilyn Whitaker; Director General for Education 
Kathleen Keenan; Director General for Strategic Policy Allan 
Clarke (economic development); and, Director for Research and 
Analysis Dan Beavon (data collection).  A conference call is 
planned for January 2010 to review the status of proposed 
work.  Conference calls on international issues will continue 
as issues arise or on a quarterly basis. 
 
¶16.  (U)  Participants: 
 
Canada (selected) 
----------------- 
 
Neil Yeates, Assistant Deputy Minister, Department of Indian 
and Northern Affairs 
Fred Caron, Assistant Deputy Minister, Office of the Federal 
Interlocutor, Department of Indian and Northern Affairs 
Christine Cram, Assistant Deputy Minister, Education and 
Social Development and Partnerships Sector, Department of 
Indian and Northern Affairs 
Line Pare, Director General, External Relations and Gender 
Issues, Department of Indian and Northern Affairs 
Marilyn Whitaker, Director, International Relations 
Directorate, Department of Indian and Northern Affairs 
Paul Gibbard, Director, Aboriginal and Circumpolar Affairs 
Division, Department of Foreign Affairs and International 
Trade 
Elizabeth Sanderson, Assistant Deputy Attorney General, 
Department of Justice 
 
Australia 
---------- 
 
Bernie Yates, Deputy Secretary, Department of Families, 
Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs 
QHousing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs 
Greg Roche, Branch Manager, Indigenous Programs, Department 
of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous 
Affairs 
Shane Hoffman, Branch Manager, Indigenous Policy Branch, 
 
Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations 
Jody Hamilton, Group Manager, Indigenous Group, Department of 
Education, Employment and Workplace Relations 
 
New Zealand 
----------- 
 
Te Puni Kokirir, Ministry of Maori Development 
Lucy Te Moana, Acting Director, Culture, Ministry of Maori 
Development 
 
United States 
------------- 
 
Bart Stevens, Deputy Director, Bureau of Indian Education, 
Department of Interior 
Sharee Freeman, Director, Office of Self Governance, 
Department of Interior 
Robert Middleton, Director, Office of Indian Energy and 
Economic Development, Department of Interior 
Jerry Gidner, Director, Field Operations, Bureau of Indian 
Affairs, Department of Interior 
Eric Wilson, Program Analyst, Office of Indian Energy and 
Economic Development, Department of Interior 
Lynn Sicade, Multilateral and Global Affairs, Department of 
State 
Alexander Schrank, Political Officer, U.S. Embassy Ottawa 
 
Visit Canada,s North American partnership community at 
http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/nap / 
 
BREESE