Justice Minister Don Morgan says he is happy to have had a meeting with the protester representatives from the Justice For Our Stolen Children camp and hopes they will take their teepees down now from the Legislature grounds in good faith.
The protesters have said the teepees will remain and have asked for a second meeting in 2 weeks.
Morgan doesn’t know if there will be one, and adds that their next step is to go to the various Tribal Councils and the FSIN and ask what they would like, whether it’s to work with the province or whether the protesters would be the ones to talk to.
One of the requests was for a moratorium on adoptions and instead increase foster care and home supervision as opposed to apprehension.
Morgan says if a child is in need, they will take action.
Right now the government has 17 agreements with First Nations Child and Family Service Agencies for them to deliver child protection services on-reserve and 3 agreements to deliver services off-reserve.
Morgan says he understands and appreciates the concerns being raised.
For the issues that were more individual, they will be addressed, but others are larger, more systemic issues and they will take time.
Along with the agreements with the 17 First Nations Child and Family Service Agencies, the government has also talked with First Nations leaders about increasing support for on-reserve policing and Aboriginal justice programs and continuing to invest in community justice and alternative measures programs.
A third initiative is increasing support for community based organizations serving Indigenous communities in the north.