Aboriginal Self-government
The question of how the Charter applies to Aboriginals and Aboriginal government has involved section 25. On the one hand, it has been argued that Aboriginal governments are not bound by the Charter. If section 35 includes a right to self-government, and section 25 ensures Aboriginal rights are not limited by the Charter, then section 25 would also guarantee that self-government is not limited by the Charter. On the other hand, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples once argued that while section 25 guarantees the existence of self-government itself, the powers of such Aboriginal governments will be limited to respect the Charter rights of individual Aboriginals.
Some bands receive a measure of autonomy under the Indian Act, and the consequent powers of the councils would be protected by section 25. Meanwhile, section 32, which bounds the federal and provincial governments to the Charter, may not include the band councils if their authority derives not only from the Indian Act but also tradition.
Read more about this topic: Section Twenty-five Of The Canadian Charter Of Rights And Freedoms
Famous quotes containing the word aboriginal:
“John Eliot came to preach to the Podunks in 1657, translated the Bible into their language, but made little progress in aboriginal soul-saving. The Indians answered his pleas with: ‘No, you have taken away our lands, and now you wish to make us a race of slaves.’”
—Administration for the State of Con, U.S. public relief program. Connecticut: A Guide to Its Roads, Lore, and People (The WPA Guide to Connecticut)