Résumé
“A number of Stand-Alone First Nations police services (SA’s) are regional and police multiple communities over wide stretches of land (mostly rural and remote, but some urban). There are currently 38 Self-Administered agreements covering 168 communities however First Nations police are not designated as an essential service. We can’t arrest our way out of problems; the true measure of success is the absence of crime. We want safe communities and we can take a role in that by working with youth and other vulnerable people, by developing restorative justice programs based on our traditions; all this complements the TRC recommendations. But right now we are understaffed and poorly financed. SAs require tripartite agreements and this leads to challenges in long-term planning. And these challenges have driven certain outcomes: For example, a number of weeks ago there was a strike threat in NAPS; this couldn’t happen if we were deemed an essential services. This affects quality of service and shakes the foundation of our existence. The First Nations Policing Program (FNPP) will be renewed in March 2018 and this is a significant undertaking. The FNPP has to keep up with the times and ensure that we meet needs of our community; the FNPP needs changes and investment.”--Pages 9-10.