Safeguarding Sacred Water

Assembly of First Nations Exchange of Water Ceremony

I have to like a national gathering which begins with a canoe on a river. The Assembly of First Nations convened in Fredericton, New Brunswick  yesterday with an "exchange of water" ceremony, where six participants travelled by canoe along the St. John River to give thanks to the body of water. 

Perry Bellegarde, the national chief of the AFN, pointed out that talks on water protection and climate change will take priority on the first day of its 40th annual general assembly. He spoke of the importance of water as a vital resource and a powerful force in the form of flooding during his opening speech in Fredericton on Tuesday, the first day of the three-day event: "Water is going to be such a precious resource. People are going to be fighting over water. And now we have to use our sacred knowledge to safeguard that. Protect that."

Clean, potable water is a scarce commodity in many Indigenous communities across Canada. On the weekend Seamus O'Regan Minister of Indigenous Services, was in the Northern Ontario community of  Attawapiskat to address the water crisis it is facing. 

While O'Regan was there he was confronted by a distraught eight-year-old girl "She was quite shaken and and burst into tears," he told CBC's Morning North. "I went over and comforted her as best I could and said, 'You know, Canada does care about you. We do care about you, and we want to make sure that we do right by you. This sounds like a compassionate response but there have been many assurances and broken promises to Native communities by federal governments for decades. 

Just down the road from Belleville in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory work will soon be getting underway for a new water system for a significant number of households. This will bring to an end the regular boil-water advisories. But again, how can the miserable conditions exist just down the road from a city where everyone takes clean water for granted? 

Perry Bellegarde spoke the truth when he said that water is sacred. It is for Christians and in many other religions. Perhaps First Nations will lead the way into a more wholistic appreciation of water as a source of life. Meanwhile, let's ensure that all Canadians have access to clean water. 

Chief of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte R. Don Maracle. (Photo: John Spitters/Quinte News)