Eeyou Istchee
Strong and United
ᐐᒋᑳᐳᐐᔥᑖᑐᑖᐅ
Accountability and Transparency
ᐁ ᑯᐃᔅᑯᐦᑖᓂᐎᒡ
Leadership is defined by the ability to bring people together and find a common path. This cannot happen without accountability or transparency:
Leaders cannot place themselves in a conflict of interest.
The people of the Cree Nation must have access to the information upon which leaders are basing their decisions.
There can be NO SECRETS.
There must be a way to hold leaders accountable for their decisions during their mandate.
Protecting Land and Culture
ᐁ ᓵᒋᐦᑖᑲᓂᐎᒡ ᐊᔅᒌ
Eeyou Istchee is the most precious gift entrusted to the Cree people, it shapes our language, our culture and our values. The continuation of the Cree way of life is critical to our ability to protect Eeyou Istchee:
We need to make every effort to guarantee future generations will live out on the land and practice the Cree way of life.
We need to treat the professions of tallyman, hunter, trapper, land user with the respect they deserve, which includes empowering the Cree Trappers’ Association.
There should always be public dialogue, impacted local Governments and Cree families must be prioritized in all discussions relating to environmental protection measures, development activities or wildlife protection measures.
Safe and Resilient Communities
ᐌᑖᒡ ᒉᒌ ᓴᑲᔅᒉᔨᒧᓈᓂᐎᒡ
The Communities of Eeyou Istchee continue to face challenges of:
Safety
Housing shortages
Lack of local employment and development opportunities
The financial resources in relation to housing and justice exist at the Cree Nation Government today and are not being used. Failure to use these funds immediately, efficiently and responsibly will hurt us in future Government negotiations.
Social problems are related to economic status and our governments have financial resources to increase the safety of our communities and personal wealth of our families.
United Cree Economy
ᐁ ᐐᒋ ᐋᐸᑎᓰᒥᑐᓈᓂᐎᒡ
The Canadian Indian Reservation system isolated all First Nations economically leading to impoverishment and under development across the country. We must unite the economies of Eeyou Istchee:
to prioritize Cree companies before we call on non-Cree companies to come into our market;
to ensure the prioritization of Cree companies and workers as per section 28 of the JBNQA;
to ensure that it is not private companies who decide who can have access to the Cree market.
Bringing Governance Home
ᐁ ᒌᐌᐦᑕᑖᓂᐎᒡᑎᐯᔨᐦᒋᒉᐎᓐ
The founding Chiefs of the Grand Council of the Crees in their own handwriting envisaged a Council whose mandates came from the people and the communities, not the other way around.
This needs to be enshrined in all constitutional documents and conventions of the Cree Nation Government.
A responsive Cree Nation Government needs to be present in Eeyou Istchee with an open door to ensure everyone has the opportunity to participate in the decisions of the Nation.
“When I started, I had a dream that the Cree would run their own show.”
-Robert Kanatewat