Settlement Agreement Parties and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples - TRC Calls 48-49

We read about two more Calls to Action, this time 48-49, directed specifically at the church parties to the Residential Schools Settlement Agreement. This time, the churches are called upon to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) as a rights-based framework for reconciliation, and to repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery and Terra Nullius. Since respect for human dignity is a fundamental value in the Gospel and in Catholic Social Teaching, these Calls to Action demand that the churches and their members be consistent in practice. 

Settlement Agreement Parties and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples                   

48. We call upon the church parties to the Settlement Agreement, and all other faith groups and interfaith social justice groups in Canada who have not already done so, to formally adopt and comply with the principles, norms, and standards of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a framework for reconciliation. This would include, but not be limited to, the following commitments:

    i. Ensuring that their institutions, policies, programs, and practices comply with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

    ii. Respecting Indigenous peoples’ right to self determination in spiritual matters, including the right to practise, develop, and teach their own spiritual and religious traditions, customs, and ceremonies, consistent with Article 12:1 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

    iii. Engaging in ongoing public dialogue and actions to support the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

    iv. Issuing a statement no later than March 31, 2016, from all religious denominations and faith groups, as to how they will implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

49. We call upon all religious denominations and faith groups who have not already done so to repudiate concepts used to justify European sovereignty over Indigenous lands and peoples, such as the Doctrine of Discovery and terra nullius.