Charlottetown Accord
The Charlottetown Accord was a body of legislation proposed by Federal and Provincial governments in 1992. The changes proposed in the draft of the Accord would have meant drastic changes to the constitution of Canada. There were five major changes to the Accord. The first was a modified Triple-E Senate, which would require a seventy- percent majority to defeat most federal bills that were proposed. The second change that would occur was to increase the number of seats in the House of Commons from 295 seats to 312 seats. Of the additional seventeen seats, ten would go to Ontario, three each would go to both Quebec and British Columbia, and the final seat would go to Alberta. The third alteration proposed would be an amending formula, which would give provinces a veto over future constitutional changes, which was a direct demand of Quebec. The fourth change brought about the entrenchment of an inherent right to self- government for aboriginal Canadians. This would allow the Natives to ask the courts to enforce the right to self-government after a five-year negotiation period with federal and provincial governments. The last major amendment that was proposed was to implement a new distinct soci
As a sign of respect four national aboriginal groups were invited to attend and contribute to the drafts of the Accord. The Premiers from all provinces, including Quebec were also heavily involved. A series of meetings were held throughout 1991, and into the late summer of 1992. With the failure of the Meech Lake Accord back in 1988, the pressure was on both the Federal and Provincial Governments to show their competence by creating a body of legislation that the majority of politicians could agree with, while avoiding the mistakes made with the Meech Lake Accord. How will the Accord Affect the Natives?If the body of legislation passes the affect will be a positive one for the Natives. Future ProblemsFor the Natives the Charlottetown Accord is yet another example of their goal of self-government slipping away from them. Canadians from coast to coast were asked to deal with a very complex set of constitutional issues, with a simple "yes" or "no" answer. It will now be up to them to brainstorm and draft what they feel would be a suitable form of self-government, which the Governments of Canada and the people of Canada can live with. On the final day of the Oka Crisis, the current Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced his "Native Agenda" in the House of Commons. The major part of the Accord would be to ensure the Natives self-government. The Aboriginal leadership of Canada puts so much emphasis on the Charlottetown Accord, since it was overwhelmingly defeated by the majority of Canadians, including Natives on the reserves. On the other hand, many Canadians voted against the Accord, and the majority of the votes from reserves were against the Accord as well. They agreed that the accord itself represented a victory as far as the inherent right to native self government is concerned.
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