Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami Proposals For UN Declaration Action Plan Include Legislation, Policy Measures

March 21, 2023

The Parliament of Canada passed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act in 2021. Full and effective implementation of the rights affirmed by the UN Declaration remain pivotal for ending and preventing human rights violations experienced by Inuit.

The federal government is obligated by June 2023 to develop an action plan “in consultation and cooperation with Indigenous peoples and with other federal ministers” that “achieves the objectives” of the UN Declaration. The Act also obligates the government to “take all measures necessary to ensure that the laws of Canada are consistent with the Declaration.”

In order to ensure that the action plan includes the measures needed to fulfil this obligation, ITK shared a series of actions with the federal government in May 2022 for possible inclusion in the action plan. These actions, compiled here in UN Declaration Action Plan Proposals, are focused on the legislative and policy measures required to close legislative and policy gaps that contribute to human rights violations experienced by Inuit.

The proposed actions address priorities such as the need for a law supporting the repatriation of Inuit human remains and objects from museums and federal agencies (Article 12), the need to amend Canada’s immigration legislation to support Inuit cross-border mobility and immigration (Article 36), and the need for an independent Indigenous human rights commission and tribunal to enforce implementation of our human rights (Article 2).

Actions are subject to change and at the time of writing, only one has been successfully co-developed with a federal department.

“These proposals reflect the ambition required to fully and effectively implement the Declaration,” said Natan Obed, President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. “They are premised on the fact that the UN Declaration affirms rights that must be implemented and enforced, rather than mere principles or aspirations.

“Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami expects the action plan to reflect concrete commitments by the government to enact the changes to Canadian law and policy that are required to align Canada’s laws with the UN Declaration as well as to achieve its objectives.”

Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) is the national representative organization for Inuit in Canada, the majority of whom live in Inuit Nunangat, the Inuit homeland. It is comprised of the autonomous regions of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (Northwest Territories), Nunavut, Nunavik (Quebec) and Nunatsiavut (Newfoundland and Labrador).

For more information

Patricia D’Souza
media@itk.ca; 613-292-4482

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