During the week second week of February, the Dene Nation's winter meetings took place in Deline. Leadership from across the territory met to talk about the the Assembly of First Nations child welfare ruling, housing, the boreal caribou initiative and the Dene Nation Constitution.
鈥淪ome have settled land claims for self-government, some are ongoing. If we鈥檙e going to be ready for tomorrow, as the Dene Nation, we have to find a common ground that will hold the Dene Nation together," Dene National Chief George Mackenzie said. "Just like the past self-government, the extinguishment clause held the Dene Nation together. Now, what is going to hold the Dene Nation together for today and for tomorrow? Important question. If we鈥檙e going to be ready for the political world that is around us today and tomorrow... we have to put in self-government for every region. We have to support their self-government, to complete their self government. The sooner we do that, the more ready we will be, together, not separate.
"We were told by the Elders, if you do things together, you can move things better than if you go it alone 鈥� through Dene Nation supporting self-government in each region, and each region supporting each other,鈥� he added.
Mackenzie spoke to the deeper question of 鈥渨hat is the purpose of Dene Nation鈥� that some people ask themselves, remarking that some members in his Tlicho region would say, 鈥淲e don鈥檛 really need Dene Nation because we鈥檙e self-governing.鈥� In some ways, it鈥檚 true 鈥� but the Dene Nation needs the Tlicho Government, and the Dene Nation needs Deline, said the national chief.
"So, the constitution for discussion has to reflect the Dene Nation," Mackenzie said. "The federal representative talked to us and he said, 鈥業f each region do things on their own, it鈥檚 not powerful enough, but if all five regions band together, do things together, it would be then more powerful.鈥� A small part of the constitution, I mentioned this morning 鈥� you might think its small, but it鈥檚 very important 鈥� that we start our gatherings with the drums, and we finish our gatherings with the drums. That is our way, that is going to be our constitution.鈥�
Chief Wilbert Kochon, of Colville Lake, replied, 鈥淚 just wanted to say that if Dene Nation really wants to work with the regions, they really have to decolonize. All it is is colonization still exists, and I see it all the time. We鈥檙e hesitating on that, so we really have to look at that. You want us to work as Dene 鈥� decolonize yourself. We鈥檒l work together and rope together and do things together. We don鈥檛 really have to go by the Mula (White person's) way...鈥�
Chief Danny Gaudet, from the host community of Deline, said, 鈥淲e have to think, in a way, 'What can Dene Nation do for us if we work together?鈥� What can they do? And then we set up a constitution just simply around the fact that we have a venue that we can use to help us with common issues. It keeps our people together. We start there.
鈥淥ne of the things I鈥檝e always told people: go finish your land claims, go finish your self-government agreement," Gaudet continued. "If one day we come back to work together, and we bring everybody back together 鈥� bring your new power with you, bring all your resources with you 鈥� because we should work together one day in this county. We need a well-organized venue to be able to do that. It might not happen in my lifetime. It鈥檒l take time to do that. If we build a constitution in and around a goal, an idea, a concept, then we can go far.
Lutsel K'e Elder J.C. Catholique also addressed the gathering.
鈥淏efore I begin, I want to thank the leaders here. Same time, I want to thank the Elders, just like Elder Charlie, for giving us a vision, guidance. We listen to Elders, when we have the opportunity. We listen. They have something to say," he said. "When Indian Brotherhood started a forum, then Dene Nation now today, there was a lot of reasons, yeah, to start Dene Nation 鈥� the way it was taught to protect our treaty. I think the treaty is very dear to our hearts, all of us here. That鈥檚 what made us come together: unity. That鈥檚 what happened. Dene Nation is going through a lot of changes. Through time, it鈥檚 been through a lot of change, but then it stopped for a while. People are questioning the role now 鈥� what鈥檚 the role? What鈥檚 Dene Nation doing? Even despite sometimes negative feedback, Dene Nation is still here today, still operating, still there. That was the vision of the Elders. When you get something like that, it鈥檚 very powerful.
鈥淒ene Nation speaks as a voice, and we speak for the ones that don鈥檛 have a voice, who don鈥檛 sit around here. The ones that are out there," Catholique added. "So sometimes I think like that because I was like that. I was on the outside, wishing my voice made a difference and wondering what it takes to do something like that. So, I think, for us, yeah, we鈥檙e trying to govern ourselves, the way that our forefathers did 鈥� inherent government. Inherent came from the Creator, who gave us that power to govern ourselves 鈥� that鈥檚 what鈥檚 our forefathers had.鈥�
