The ''First Nations Governance Act'' was a legislative initiative proposed by the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

in 2002 to reform the country's '' Indian Act''. Introduced by Robert Nault, then the minister of Indian affairs, it was met with opposition from several indigenous groups and, despite its name, was never passed into law. Chrétien's successor,

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. The son o ...

, abandoned the legislation shortly after he assumed office in 2003. The Act would have introduced a framework for

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

to design new codes for elections, financial management, and administration. It would have also brought bands under the ''

Canadian Human Rights Act The ''Canadian Human Rights Act'' (french: Loi canadienne sur les droits de la personne) is a statute passed by the Parliament of Canada in 1977 with the express goal of extending the law to ensure equal opportunity to individuals who may be vi ...

''. Nault's stated purpose in proposing the legislation was to make native reserves more democratic and accountable. He said that his proposals represented an "interim step towards self-government" and were a response to demands by indigenous activists who opposed secrecy and corruption in their communities. Nault also sought to have representatives of indigenous groups on the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

committee that reviewed the bill. Several chiefs across the country opposed the act, arguing that Nault had not undertaken proper consultations.

Matthew Coon Come Matthew Coon Come (born April 13, 1956) is a Canadian politician and activist of Cree descent. He was National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations from 2000 to 2003. Born near Mistissini, Quebec, Coon Come was first educated at LaTuque Ind ...

, then the leader of the

Assembly of First Nations The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) is an assembly of Canadian First Nations (Indian bands) represented by their chiefs. Established in 1982 and modelled on the United Nations General Assembly, it emerged from the National Indian Brotherhood, ...

, argued that the legislation was grounded in the same paternalistic model as the ''Indian Act''. Margaret Swan of Manitoba's Southern Chiefs' Organization said that indigenous communities were not opposed to greater accountability and transparency, but added that Nault had made a serious error in bypassing the elected leadership of these communities. Nault acknowledged in late 2003 that the legislation would not pass. In early 2004, Paul Martin formally announced that the legislation would be discarded.{{cite news , first=Kim , last=Lunman , title=Martin scraps bill to change Indian Act after natives staged angry protests , work=The Globe and Mail , date=9 January 2004 , page=A8

References

Canadian Aboriginal and indigenous law Proposed laws of Canada 2002 in Canadian law