Olthius and Townshend are in favour of native sovereignty within Canada based on historical and moral grounds. These authors believe there is a difference in perceptions between native and non-native Canadians regarding the jurisdiction over Canadian territory. In their essay, they write that Aboriginal people believe the Canadian state is oppressive and usurps the powers of Aboriginal people, while most non-aboriginals would be unlikely to question the status of the Canadian state. The essay contends that before European settlement, First Nations people had stability in their economic and political str

The Charlottetown Accord provided for aboriginal self-government as one of the three orders of government, but Flanagan points out that the Accord made no mention of sovereignty. Flanagan debates the necessity of a third order of government in Canada. He supports two levels of government for the following reasons. Canada is made of so many people of different countries and ethnic groups that it is necessary to have a territorial imperative so that all people can participate cooperatively as Canadians. The Ottoman Empire had many religious denominations that controlled their own customs and private law, within their own separate communities. However, this model was in no way democratic; there were no elections and no representative government, making it one Canada would not want to imitate. Political rights should hinge on residence within that territory, not because of ethnic origin. If the provisions of aboriginal self-government, detailed in the Charlottetown Accord had been realized, it would not have made aboriginal people part of our current system of liberal democracy. Instead, they would be plunged into a world of dependence on government hand- outs, and not take advantage of Canadian society and economy. It is likely that if special provisions were granted, then other groups would soon follow, demanding special political powers for themselves and resulting in an end of equality.

Olthius and Townshend point out that once European's were firmly settled in Canada, the policy towards aboriginals was that of assimilation into the rest of Canadian society. Attempts at assimilation were done primarily on an individual level. Examples of the Canadian government's efforts are creation of the residential school system, where aboriginal children were taken away from their families and forbidden to speak in their native tongue, and the attempt to make Aboriginal religious practices criminal. Attempts to terminate Indian statu

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Approximate Word count = 1313
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)