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'No history of colonialism'
Inuit leaders ask PM to clarify comment made at G20 press conference

Gabriel Zarate
Northern News Services
Published Thursday, October 8, 2009

NUNAVUT - Inuit groups want Prime Minister Stephen Harper to clarify what he meant at a G20 press conference last month in the U.S. when he said that Canada has no history of colonialism.

What Harper said:

"...We are one of the most stable regimes in history. There are very countries that can say, for nearly 150 years they have had the same political system, without any social breakdowns, political upheaval or invasion. we are unique in that regard. We also have no history of colonialism. So we have many of the things that people admire about the great powers but none of the things that threaten or bother them about the great powers. We also are a country, obviously beginning with our two major cultures, but also a country formed by people from all over the world that is able to speak cross-culturally in a way that few other countries are able to do at international forums."

"I don't know in what context he was saying this," said Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Mary Simon. "We were wondering if it's in the context of Canada not colonizing another country, but it's not clear."

In a letter to the prime minister on Oct. 1, Simon called the comment "historically inaccurate," and wrote it could "undermine future progress in the reconciliation of aboriginal and other Canadians."

“The prime minister needs to clarify what he means," stated Nunavut Tunngavik first vice-president James Eetoolook. "We took his apology on residential schools as genuine and sincere, but to say that Canada has no colonial history is to go in the opposite direction. This kind of statement arouses questions in our dealing with the federal government."

The Prime Minister's Office sent a prepared statement in response to an inquiry by Nunavut News/North. It said Harper's comment was specifically in regards to Canada's foreign relations.

“The marginalization, mistreatment and racism toward aboriginal people in the context of Canada’s domestic history, including of colonialism within Canada, has never been denied or minimized by our government," the statement reads.

Simon responded, "He has to make that public. If he says that publicly, people will understand that's what he's talking about.

"If he does clarify, the anger should go away. He needs to be clear that he recognizes the colonialism within Canada."

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