The federal government’s plan to extend its First Nations Policing Program is not welcoming news to Nishnawbe Aski Nation.
The $122 million a year program was set to expire at the end of this month until federal public safety minister Vic Toews announced Monday that it would be extended for another five years. The program helps pay for policing in hundreds of First Nations communities across Canada including Nishnawbe Aski Police Service, which polices 30 Northern Ontario communities.
“We just see it as a status quo. It’s an extension of the failed model that’s been in place for NAPS since 1994,” NAN deputy grand chief Alvin Fiddler said.
The announcement has few details in it Fiddler said, and no one the ministry of public safety has even discussed it with NAN. The government also continues to ignore First Nations demands for organizations like NAPS to fall under the Police Services Act and have a standardized regulatory framework for equipment and even buildings.
“It’s putting lives in jeopardy,” Fiddler said. “We cannot ensure public safety for our communities nor our officers.”
Fiddler points to a fatal fire at the NAPS Kashechewan detachment, which claimed the lives of two men in 2006, as one example where the current framework has failed First Nations communities. It’s been made rather clear that neither the provincial or federal government want First Nations police put under regulations because it would mean an increase in budgets.
NAN is sending a letter to Toews’ office to get some clarification.
“We’re a bit in the dark here,” Fiddler said.
