Position paper

VICTORIA: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation's (CTF) Centre for Aboriginal Policy Change (the Centre) today released an Aboriginal Position Paper entitled, A Lost Century - Moving Aboriginal Policy from the 19th Century to the 21st Century. "This position paper brings together a number of issues and positions the CTF has worked on since 1997," stated Tanis Fiss, director of the Centre.

"The paper illustrates that increased government spending has not improved health and other social indicators for native Canadians, and outlines the inequality current federal legislation and policy has created," continued Fiss.

The paper assumes that Canadians - all Canadians - are fundamentally alike. Therefore all legislation and government policy must be based on fairness and equality - not ethnicity.

"Good governance, accountability and transparency are minimal requirements for native communities to thrive. For native communities to compete successfully within the Canadian economic mainstream, the Indian Act must be phased out over a period of 20 years. To begin the process of eliminating the Indian Act, the current exemption from taxation must be phased out over a period of 10 years," Fiss added.

The paper contains eight recommendations on issues concerning taxation, private property rights, accountability and governance. Copies of The Lost Century - Moving Aboriginal Policy from the 19th Century to the 21st Century may be found on the CTF's website at www.taxpayer.com.