Education and Justice
Text
SECTION 16
Cree Education
16.0.1 For the purposes of this Section, the following words and phrases shall mean :
a) “Native person” is a person who qualifies as a Cree in accordance with the criteria for eligibility established in Section 3 of the Agreement.
16.0.2 The Education Act, (1964 R.S.Q., c. 235 as amended) and all other applicable laws of general application in the province shall apply in the areas covered by this Section save where these laws are inconsistent with this Section in which event the provisions of this Section shall prevail.
16.0.3 The Category I land areas of the Cree communities of Chisasibi, Wemindji, Eastmain, Waskaganish, Waswanipi, Mistissini, Whapmagoostui, Nemaska and Oujé-Bougoumou are constituted as a single school municipality.
JBNQA, par. 16.0.3
Compl. A. no. 22, sch. 3, s. 5
16.0.4 A Cree School Board, which shall be a school board under the Education Act, shall be established forthwith upon the execution of the Agreement and shall exercise powers and functions in the said school municipality and for the persons described in paragraph 16.0.6.
16.0.5 Every child shall be entitled to receive moral and religious instruction in accordance with a program approved by a clergyman or priest serving the community and by the Protestant or by the Catholic Committee of the Superior Council of Education. Any child, upon request of his parents for reasons of conscience, shall be exempted from such moral or religious instruction.
16.0.6 To the exclusion of all other school boards, the Cree School Board shall have jurisdiction and responsibility for elementary and secondary education and adult education :
a) Within the territorial limits of the municipality contemplated by paragraph 16.0.3, in respect to all persons who qualify as Crees in accordance with the criteria for eligibility established in Section 3 of the Agreement, as well as in respect to all persons who do not so qualify and who are ordinarily residing therein or who are ordinarily residing within Category III lands surrounded by Category I lands except for the Inuit of Great Whale;
b) in Category II, in respect to all persons who qualify as Crees in accordance with the criteria for eligibility established in Section 3 of the Agreement.
16.0.7 The Cree School Board shall not have jurisdiction over non-Native settlements in Category II lands.
16.0.8 Subject to the laws covering such powers and duties, the Cree School Board will have all the powers and duties given to a school board including the powers :
a) to make agreements for educational purposes with any person, group, community, institution or corporation;
b) to make agreements with other school boards in the province in virtue of which such school boards would allow some of their teaching personnel a leave of absence for the purpose of working for the Cree School Board and guaranteeing the re-employment of such personnel at the expiration of their contract with the Cree School Board;
c) to determine the use of standardized tests.
16.0.9 The Cree School Board shall also have the following special powers, subject only to annual budgetary approval :
a) to make agreements with Canada for education and training programs not provided by Québec, in accordance with the laws and regulations relating to such agreements;
b) to determine, in conjunction with the Québec Department of Education, the school year and school calendar limited only by the total number of days per year required by law and regulations;
c) to make agreements for post-secondary education for the persons specified in paragraph 16.0.6; d) to acquire, build and maintain residential facilities for its teachers;
e) to determine, in conjunction with the Québec Department of Education, the number of Native persons and non-Native persons required as teachers in each of its schools;
f) to arrange, with the Québec Department of Education, for the hiring of Native persons as teachers notwithstanding that such persons might not qualify as teachers in accordance with the standard qualifications prevailing in the other areas of the province;
g) to select courses, textbooks and teaching materials appropriate for the Native people and to arrange for their experimental use, evaluation and eventual approval;
h) to develop courses, textbooks and materials designed to preserve and transmit the language and culture of the Native people;
i) to make agreements with universities, colleges, institutions or individuals for the development of the courses, textbooks and materials for the programs and services that it offers;
j) to give instruction and guidance to its teachers in the methods of teaching its courses and in the use of the textbooks and teaching materials used for such courses;
k) to establish courses and training programs to qualify Native persons as teachers; l) to establish courses and training programs for non-Native persons who will teach in its schools;
m) to make agreements with universities, colleges, institutions or individuals to provide training for the Cree School Board’s teachers and prospective teachers.
JBNQA, par. 16.0.9
A. corr.
16.0.10 The teaching languages shall be Cree and with respect to the other languages in accordance with the present practice in the Cree communities in the Territory. The Cree School Board will pursue as an objective the use of French as a language of instruction so that pupils graduating from its schools will, in the future, be capable of continuing their studies in a French school, college or university elsewhere in Québec, if they so desire.
After consultation with the parents’ committee, and having regard to the requirements of subsequent education, the commissioners shall determine the rate of introduction of French and English as teaching languages.
16.0.11 The by-laws of the Cree School Board which require the approval of the Minister, in virtue of the Education Act, shall come into force forty (40) days after a copy of such by-laws has been transmitted to the Minister unless within that period the Minister disallows in writing any such by-law.
16.0.12 Notwithstanding the provisions of the Education Act concerning school commissioners :
a) The Cree School Board will be composed of one (1) school commissioner appointed by or elected from each of the nine (9) Cree communities listed in paragraph 16.0.3 of this Section and of one (1) commissioner designated by the Cree “Native party” from among its members;
b) the Cree School Board shall determine the date when elections of such school commissioners shall take place;
c) the qualifications for being eligible to vote for and to hold office as a school commissioner shall be : 1) membership in a Cree community;
2) to be of the age of majority;
3) not to be affected by legal incapacity.
However non-Natives who are entitled to the services from the Cree School Board and who meet the qualifications specified in the Education Act for electors shall be entitled to vote for school commissioners;
d) such school commissioners shall be elected or designated, as the case may be, for a term of three (3) years. Three (3) of the first commissioners elected shall serve for one (1) year and three (3) of the first commissioners elected shall serve for two (2) years with the first commissioners having such abbreviated terms of office being designated by the drawing of lots at the first meeting of the Cree School Board;
e) if during his term of office the school commissioner designated by the Grand Council of the Crees (of Québec) or its successor loses his office as a member of the Grand Council of the Crees (of Québec), the Grand Council will appoint another commissioner for the remainder of the term of such disqualified commissioner.
JBNQA, par. 16.0.12
A. corr.
Compl. A. no. 22, sch. 3, s. 6
16.0.13 The commissioners of the Cree School Board shall be entitled to receive the representation allowances provided pursuant to section 205 of the Education Act, and shall be reimbursed by the Board for all expenses actually incurred for travel, lodging and meals when attending official meetings of the Board in accordance with the regulations that the Board shall adopt for such purpose.
16.0.14 School buildings, facilities, residences and equipment of Québec and Canada shall be transferred or leased, at nominal cost, to the Cree School Board for their use by it. The means and procedures for such transfer or lease shall be arranged by agreement between the Cree School Board and the said governments and will include the right to modify the said buildings, facilities, residences and equipment as may be necessary to fulfil the educational purposes of the Board.
16.0.15 The Cree School Board shall not be the proprietor of any lands. The Board will be allocated building sites within Category I which are required for its educational purposes by means of agreements to be entered into between the Board and the local governments. Such agreements shall be for a nominal monetary consideration, by long term lease or other similar contract, to enable the said Board to receive the transfers or leases to it of the buildings, facilities, residences and equipment specified in paragraph 16.0.14, and to enable the said Board to construct any buildings that it may require for its purposes. Any allocation made pursuant to this paragraph shall not be construed to exclude such allocated land from Category 1.
16.0.16 The Cree School Board shall establish elementary and high school committees which shall be consultative and which shall have the functions delegated to them by the said Board. Nevertheless the Cree School Board must consult their committees with respect to the following :
a) selection of teacher(s) and principal(s);
b) school calendar and year;
c) changes in curriculum.
16.0.17 There will be one (1) elementary school committee for each community in which there is at least one (1) such school and one (1) high school committee for each community in which there is at least one (1) high school.
16.0.18 Each school committee shall be composed of from five (5) to eleven (11) members, including one (1) member of the band council or one (1) person appointed by the band council of the community in which the school is located. The number of parents on the school committee shall be fixed annually by a general assembly of the parents of the students attending the schools concerned, providing one (1) parent representative from each school concerned is elected to the committee, and providing, if there are six (6) or more students attending the school who normally reside in a community other than that in which the school is situated, at least one (1) parent representative of such students be elected to the committee.
16.0.19 The terms and conditions of the establishment, operating and financing of the school committees shall be determined by the said Board.
16.0.20 The Cree School Board shall have the right to hire a community education administrator for a community pursuant to a recommendation from the elementary school or high school committee in such community.
16.0.21 The Cree School Board shall reimburse members of the school committees for their expenses for travel, lodging and meals incurred when attending official meetings of their school committee held outside the community in which they reside in accordance with regulations that the Board shall adopt for such purpose.
16.0.22 Programs and funding by Québec and Canada, and the obligations of such governments in favour of the James Bay Crees, shall continue, subject to the Agreement. As a result thereof there shall be no decrease in the quality and quantity of educational services presently available to Native persons for their education and the operational and capital funding necessary to ensure services will be provided by Québec and Canada.
16.0.23 The funding by Québec and Canada referred to in paragraph 16.0.22 shall be provided to the Cree School Board in accordance with a formula to be determined by the Québec Department of Education, the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and the Crees.
16.0.24 Québec and Canada shall jointly ensure the continuation of existing educational services and programs presently available to the Native people, including :
a) allowances to students in accordance with established regulations;
b) students “room and board” allowances;
c) maintenance of foster homes for students;
d) living, tuition and transportation allowances for post-secondary students.
16.0.25 The services and programs referred to in paragraph 16.0.24 may be provided through agreements to be entered into between Québec and Canada and the Cree School Board acting in accordance with the needs of the communities involved.
16.0.26 The Cree School Board will not be obliged to levy school taxes.
16.0.27 The budget of the Cree School Board shall take into account the unique characteristics of the Cree School Board’s geographical location and of its student population. It shall provide for items such as the following :
a) the cost of the construction, maintenance and replacement of buildings, facilities and equipment; b) increases in the student population and the need for adequate teaching facilities;
c) the cost of transportation of students and teaching staff including transportation for students to and from schools in other parts of the province;
d) the development of a special curriculum provided for in paragraph 16.0.9;
e) the maintenance of hostels and residences for its students attending schools outside their community; f) the establishment and maintenance of kindergarten school programs and facilities; g) the operation of physical education and sports programs;
h) the provision of adult education programs;
i) the payment of northern allowances where applicable;
j) the provision of working conditions and benefits to attract competent teaching personnel and to encourage such personnel to remain in their position for extended periods of time, taking into consideration the conditions and benefits offered in surrounding areas.
16.0.28 Based on annual budgets, providing for operating and capital costs, approved by Québec and Canada, each of the said governments shall contribute to the approved budget of the Cree School Board on the following basis :
Québec : 25%
Canada : 75%
This provision shall take effect two (2) years after the execution of the Agreement.
Commencing in 1982 and every five (5) years thereafter, the percentage contribution of Québec and Canada shall be reviewed taking into account changes in the ratio of Native students to non-Native students under the jurisdiction of, and receiving services from, the Cree School Board.
JBNQA, par. 16.0.28
A. corr.
16.0.29 The provisions of this Section shall come into full effect at the beginning of the school year 1978-1979.
JBNQA, par. 16.0.29
A. corr.
16.0.30 During the first year, (1976-1977, transition period) in accordance with the provisions of this Section, the following will be done :
a) the members of the Cree School Board will be elected and designated, as the case may be; a director general of the Board will be appointed, and the elementary and high school committees will be established;
b) the School Board of New Québec and the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development will continue to operate their existing schools;
c) the Cree School Board will plan its operations for the second year of the transition period and, with the assistance of the School Board of New Québec and the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, it will draw up an operating budget and the capital assets budget for the second year of the transition period;
d) the Cree School Board will arrange to engage teachers as of the time when its schools shall commence to operate.
16.0.31 During the second year, (1977-1978, transition period), in accordance with the provisions of this Section, the following will be done :
a) a tri-partite committee shall be established, composed of the administrator of the School Board of New Québec, a member of the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, and a member of the Cree School Board for the purpose of the financial administration of the schools under the jurisdiction of the Cree School Board and for the purpose of the construction of, or major repairs to, buildings required;
b) subject to all of its resolutions being approved by the said tri-partite committee, the Cree School Board shall administer the schools in Categories I and II lands falling under its jurisdiction.
Commencing with the year 1978-1979 all teachers and principals of the School Board of New Québec and of the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development assigned to schools in the school municipality shall become employees of the Cree School Board. The School Board of New Québec and the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development shall withdraw from the operation of schools in the school municipality.
16.0.32 The schedules during the transition periods provided for in paragraphs 16.0.30 and 16.0.31 may be revised by agreement among Québec, Canada and the Cree School Board.
16.0.33 The provisions of the Education Act respecting elections, school taxes and valuation of property, and school and parents’ committees shall not apply to the Cree School Board.
16.0.34 Notwithstanding section 300 of the Education Act, the publication of public notices for school purposes may be made in accordance with by-laws that the Cree School Board shall adopt for such purposes and submit to the Minister of Education for approval.
16.0.35 The parties undertake to negotiate a modification of the provisions of law respecting compulsory school attendance.
16.0.36 In all of the Category I lands of the communities set forth in paragraph 16.0.3 of this Section, Québec and Canada shall take all measures necessary to implement this Section.
16.0.37 The Cree School Board shall, in consultation with the Minister of Education, negotiate the working conditions of its employees, except basic salary, basic marginal benefits and basic work loads which are negotiated at the provincial level.
16.0.38 The provisions of this Section can only be amended with the consent of Québec and the interested Native party, save for the provisions of paragraphs 16.0.14, 16.0.22, 16.0.23, 16.0.24, 16.0.28, 16.0.30b, 16.0.31, 16.0.32 and 16.0.36 which in addition shall require the consent of Canada.
Legislation enacted to give effect to the provisions of this Section may be amended from time to time by the National Assembly of Québec.
SECTION 17
Education – Inuit
17.0.1 There shall be one school municipality for the whole territory north of the 55th parallel under the control of a school board called the Kativik School Board.
Notwithstanding the foregoing,
a) any future municipality, not contemplated by the provisions of the Agreement, may be constituted as a separate school municipality, after prior consultation between the Department of Education and the Kativik School Board;
b) the Cree population of the community of Great Whale River shall be under the jurisdiction of the Cree School Board; and
c) the Inuit population of the community of Fort George shall have the option to be under the jurisdiction of the Kativik School Board.
17.0.2 The Kativik School Board shall be governed by the provisions of the Education Act (1964 R.S.Q., c. 235, as amended) and all other applicable laws of general application in the Province, save where these laws are inconsistent with this Section, in which event the provisions of this Section shall prevail.
17.0.3 The Kativik School Board shall have jurisdiction and responsibility for elementary and secondary education and adult education.
17.0.4 The Kativik School Board shall be represented and its affairs administered by its council. Such council shall be know by the name of : “The Council of the Kativik School Board.”
17.0.5 Ordinances, resolutions and other enactments of the Kativik School Board must be passed by the Council in session.
17.0.6 Each municipality, whether erected under Schedule 2 of Section 12 of the Agreement or any general law or special act, shall be represented by one commissioner to the Kativik School Board. In addition, the council of the Regional Government shall delegate by resolution one regional councillor to represent it to the Kativik School Board.
17.0.7 The Council of the Kativik School Board shall determine annually by ordinance the time, place, frequency and procedure respecting its meetings.
17.0.8 Each member of the Council shall have one vote and one additional vote if he represents more than 500 inhabitants and two additional votes if he represents more than 5,000 inhabitants according to the last official census.
17.0.9 If there are no longer any commissioners or if there is no longer a sufficient number of them to constitute a quorum, the powers of the Kativik School Board shall be exercised by the Minister who may, after prior consultation with the Regional Government, delegate them to an administrator appointed by him, until the Kativik School Board is re-organized.
17.0.10 There shall be an executive committee responsible for the management of the affairs of the Kativik School Board. It shall see that the law, the ordinances, the resolutions and decisions of the Council and contracts are complied with and carried out.
Such executive committee shall consist of five (5) members appointed as follows, including a president and a vice-president designated as such by the council :
a) four (4) members shall be appointed annually by resolution of the Council from among the commissioners; and
b) the fifth member shall be ex officio the regional councillor delegated by the council of the Regional Government under paragraph 17.0.6.
17.0.11 The president and vice-president of the executive committee shall ex officio discharge the duties of president and vice-president of the Council.
17.0.12 The executive committee, with the approval of the Council, may make a resolution respecting its government and its internal management.
17.0.13 Three (3) members shall constitute a quorum of the executive committee. Each member of the executive committee shall have one vote.
17.0.14 The executive committee shall direct the affairs and activities of the Kativik School Board and shall see that its ordinances and decisions are faithfully and impartially observed and carried out.
17.0.15 During the first five (5) years following the first election of the commissioners, and afterwards if deemed necessary after prior consultation between the Minister and the Kativik School Board, the president of the executive committee must devote all his time to the service of the Kativik School Board, and shall not have any other remunerative employment or occupation or hold any other public office, except as member of the parents committee of the municipality which he represents or as regional councillor. The president of the executive committee shall be entitled to the remuneration fixed by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council.
17.0.16 Every physical person of full age and Canadian citizenship who is not legally disqualified may be nominated, elected or appointed a commissioner of the Kativik School Board representing the municipality wherein he resides if he has been domiciled or ordinarily resident in the school municipality for at least thirty-six (36) months. In the case of a newly erected municipality, the Minister of Education may, for the first thirty-six (36) months following the date of erection, change the said requirements with respect to domicile and residency.
17.0.17 The following persons shall not be nominated for, elected or appointed a commissioner : a) persons mentioned in paragraphs (3), (4) and (5) of section 123 of the Cities and Towns Act;
b) any person who has, directly or indirectly, by himself or his partner, any contract with the Kativik School Board unless the description of all such contracts has been publicly posted in the office of the Kativik School Board and of the municipality at the time of his nomination, election or appointment and remains so posted, with all additions or deletions, if any, at all times during his tenure of office. This paragraph does not apply in the case of the consort of a teacher.
Nevertheless, a shareholder in any incorporated company which has any contract or agreement with the Kativik School Board or which receives any grant or subsidy therefrom shall not be disqualified from acting as a commissioner; but he shall be deemed to be interested if any discussion should arise before the Council or a committee with reference to any measure relating to such company, save when such company is the Inuit Development Corporation or one of the local Inuit community corporations to be formed or one of their subsidiaries, in which case he shall only be deemed to be interested if he is an officer or director of such corporation;
c) any person convicted of an act punishable under a law of the Parliament of Canada or of the National Assembly of Québec by imprisonment for one year or more. Such disqualification shall continue for three (3) years after the term of imprisonment fixed by the sentence and, if only a fine was imposed or the sentence is suspended, for three (3) years from the date of such condemnation;
d) any person convicted of an indictable offence punishable by imprisonment for five (5) years or more after having previously been convicted of two (2) indictable offences so punishable; such disqualification
shall continue for ten (10) years after the term of imprisonment fixed by the sentence and, if only a fine is imposed or the sentence is suspended, for ten (10) years from the date of the conviction;
e)
i) any persons who are responsible for moneys belonging to the Kativik School Board, or ii) who are sureties for any employee of the Council or
iii) who receive any pecuniary allowance or other consideration from the Kativik School Board for their services, otherwise than under a legislative provision, save, in the case of (iii), when a description of the pecuniary allowance or other consideration has been publicly posted in the office of the Kativik School Board and of the municipality at the time of his nomination, election or appointment and remains so posted, with all additions or deletions, if any, at all times during his tenure of office.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.17
A. corr.
17.0.18 No person may act as commissioner nor hold any other office in the Kativik School Board unless he is eligible and possesses at all times the qualifications required by law.
17.0.19 Every person, commercial partnership or association entered on the electoral list in force and used at the poll and, in the case of a physical person, not affected during the preparation of the electoral list and at the time of voting by any disqualification contemplated by law, shall be entitled to vote at an election.
17.0.20
a) Every physical person of full age and Canadian citizenship shall be entitled to be entered on the electoral list if he has been domiciled or ordinarily resident in the municipality for at least twelve (12) months before the date of the election.
b) Corporations, commercial partnerships and associations shall also be entered on the electoral list if they have had their head office or principal place of business in the municipality for at least twelve (12) months before the date of the election.
They shall vote through a representative authorized for that purpose by a resolution of the board of directors, a copy whereof shall be filed at the office of the municipal corporation within thirty (30) days from the date of publication of the election notice.
17.0.21 In the case of a newly erected municipality, the Minister of Education may, for the first twelve (12) months following the date of erection, change the delays mentioned in paragraph 17.0.20.
17.0.22 The general election for commissioners shall be held every two (2) years on the first Wednesday of September.
In the case of a newly erected municipality, the first general election shall be held on the tenth Wednesday following the erection of such municipality.
17.0.23 The secretary-treasurer of the municipality shall be the presiding-officer for any election held under this Section. The presiding-officer may appoint a deputy presiding-officer and as many election clerks as he deems fit to assist the presiding-officer in discharging his duties.
In the case of the first general election, the duties and obligations of the presiding-officer shall be discharged by a person appointed by the majority of the inhabitants in each municipality in the manner approved by the Minister responsible.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.23
A. corr.
17.0.24 The presiding-officer shall prepare the list of electors in the municipality between the first of July and the following first of August, and shall, on the first of August, deposit the electoral list in the office of the municipal corporation for public reference.
During the period extending from the first to the fifteenth of August, the electoral list shall be revised by a board of revision composed of the presiding-officer and two (2) persons entitled to be entered on the electoral list and appointed by him.
17.0.25 Any person, commercial partnership or association who believes that his name or that of any other person has been omitted from the list or wrongfully entered thereon may file in the office of the municipal corporation, between the first and the fifteenth of August, application in writing to have the name entered or struck off, as the case may be.
17.0.26 The board of revision shall consider the written application, hear the parties concerned and, if it deems necessary, take their evidence on oath.
The board of revision, by its final decision on each application, may confirm or revise the list. Every insertion in, erasure from or correction of the list shall be authenticated by the initials of the presiding officer.
The electoral list shall come into force as soon as it has been prepared and revised in accordance with this Section and shall be kept among the archives of the municipal corporation.
17.0.27 No informality in the preparation, completion, revision or putting into force of the list shall invalidate the same unless an actual injustice results therefrom.
17.0.28 On the first of July of the year in which the election is held, the presiding-officer shall, by public notice, publish :
a) the place, day and hour fixed for the nomination of candidates;
b) the day of the opening of the polls for taking the votes of the electors in case a poll is held; and c) the appointment of the deputy presiding-officer and of the election clerks.
The election period shall begin on the day of publication of the notice of the election and end, for each candidate for any office, on the day on which the presiding-officer declares the candidate for such office elected.
17.0.29 The nomination of candidates for election shall be held on the last Wednesday of August between the hours of one (1)and five (5) o’clock in the afternoon.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.29
A. corr.
17.0.30 Five (5) electors qualified to vote and whose names are entered on the electoral list in force in the municipality may nominate a candidate for the office of commissioner.
17.0.31 With each nomination paper there shall be filed a declaration by the candidate that he is a Canadian citizen and duly qualified, accompanied by the consent in writing of the person therein nominated.
17.0.32 If at the expiration of the delay fixed for the nomination of candidates for the office of commissioner only one candidate has been nominated, such candidate shall ipso facto be elected and the presiding-officer forthwith proclaim such candidate elected.
When several persons are nominated for the office of commissioner, the presiding-officer shall announce that a poll will be held.
17.0.33 Any candidate nominated may withdraw at any time before the closing of the poll by filing with the presiding-officer a declaration to that effect; and any votes cast for the candidate who has so withdrawn shall be null and void; and if after the withdrawal there remained but one candidate for the office of commissioner, the presiding-officer shall return as duly elected the candidate so remaining.
17.0.34
a) If at the expiration of the delay prescribed for the nomination of candidates no person has been nominated or if all the persons nominated have withdrawn before the close of the poll, the presiding officer shall immediately send notice thereof to the Regional Government which shall forthwith transmit its recommendation to the Minister of Education for the nomination of a commissioner.
b) If the nomination of candidates could not be held because the electoral list was not put in force in time, the presiding-officer shall immediately recommence the election proceedings to fill the office and give for such purposes the notice prescribed by paragraph 17.0.28. In such case the presiding-officer must see that the election proceedings already commenced are continued if they were validly made.
17.0.35 When a poll is necessary, the presiding-officer shall give a public notice thereof, establish a polling station and cause the necessary number of ballot boxes to be made. The ballot paper shall be a paper on which the names of the candidates, together with their syllabic transcription, are alphabetically arranged.
17.0.36 The poll shall be opened at the hour of nine (9) o’clock in the forenoon and kept opened until six (6) o’clock in the afternoon the same day. The Kativik School Board may, by resolution, fix a later hour than six (6) o’clock in the afternoon, but not later than eight (8) o’clock on the same day, for the closing of the poll.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.36
A. corr.
17.0.37 In addition to the presiding-officer, the only persons who shall be permitted, during the time that the polling station is open, to remain in the room where the votes are given, shall be : the election officers, the candidates and not more than two (2) duly appointed agents or representatives of the candidates.
17.0.38 An elector shall vote by secret ballot only once for the election of the commissioner.
17.0.39 The presiding-officer, upon the application of any voter who is unable to read or is incapacitated by any physical cause from voting in the manner prescribed, shall assist such elector by marking his ballot paper in the manner directed by such elector in the presence of the candidates or their agents or representatives.
17.0.40 The presiding-officer shall enter in the poll book opposite the name of each elector voting the word “voted” as soon as his ballot paper has been deposited in the ballot box.
17.0.41 Every employer on polling day must allow each elector in his employ at least four (4) hours to vote beside the time usually allowed for the midday meal and shall make no deduction from the salary of such elector.
17.0.42 At six (6) o’clock in the afternoon, or at the hour determined by the Kativik School Board under paragraph 17.0.36, the poll and the voting shall be closed and the presiding-officer shall open the ballot boxes and proceed to count and draw up the list of the number of votes given for each candidate.
17.0.43
a) As soon as the final result of the polls is known, the presiding-officer shall at once proclaim elected for the office of commissioner the candidate who is found to have obtained the greatest number of votes and give public notice thereof.
b) In the case of equality of votes, the presiding-officer shall proceed by a public drawing of lots and proclaim elected the person whom the drawing has favoured.
c) Copy of the public notice shall be inserted in the books of the Kativik School Board and of the municipal corporation.
17.0.44 Every candidate, election officer, agent or representative of a candidate, in attendance at a polling station, shall maintain and aid in maintaining the secrecy of the voting at such polling station; and no such candidate, officer, agent or representative shall, before the poll is closed, communicate to any person any information as to whether any person on the list of electors has or has not applied for a ballot paper or voted at that polling station.
17.0.45 No candidate, election officer, agent, representative or other person shall interfere with or attempt to interfere with an elector when marking his ballot paper, or otherwise attempt to obtain at the polling station information as to the candidate for whom any elector at such polling station is about to vote or has voted.
17.0.46 No candidate, election officer, agent, representative or other person shall communicate at any time to any person any information obtained at a polling station as to the candidate for whom any elector is about to vote or has voted.
17.0.47 Every candidate, election officer, agent or representative of a candidate in attendance at the counting of the votes shall maintain and aid in maintaining the secrecy of the voting; and no such candidate, officer, agent or representative shall attempt to obtain at such counting any information or communicate any information obtained at such counting as to the candidate for whom any vote is given in any particular ballot paper.
17.0.48 No election shall be declared invalid by reason of any want of qualification in the persons signing a nomination paper received by the presiding-officer under the provisions of this Section.
17.0.49 No election shall be declared invalid by reason of non-compliance with the provisions of this Section as to the taking of the poll or counting of the votes if it appears to the Court having cognizance of the question that the election was conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in this Section, and that such non-compliance or mistake did not affect the result of the election.
No election shall be declared invalid by reason of non-compliance with the provisions of this Section regarding delays, unless it appears to the Court that such non-compliance may have affected the result of the election.
17.0.50 Any election of a commissioner by the electors may be contested by any elector on the ground of violence, corruption, fraud or incapacity or on the ground of non-compliance with the necessary formalities by filing a notice of contestation with the Regional Government.
17.0.51 Such contestation is brought before the Court by an ordinary action which on pain of nullity must be served upon the interested parties within forty-five (45) days from the date of the election.
17.0.52
a) The commissioner may resign his seat in the Council by transmitting his resignation signed by himself to the director-general; the term of office of the commissioner shall expire upon the delivery of the writing to the director-general who shall transmit it to the Council at the next sitting.
b) The death of the commissioner shall terminate his term of office.
c) The term of office of the commissioner shall also terminate if he has failed to attend at least three (3) consecutive regular sittings of the Council.
d) Whenever the Provincial Court annuls the election of the commissioner or a commissioner loses the elegibility or qualification required by law during his tenure of office, such office shall ipso facto become vacant.
17.0.53 Subject to the provisions of paragraph 17.0.54, when the term of office of a commissioner expires more than six (6) months before the general election fixed by paragraph 17.0.22, the Council may, within fifteen (15) days following the vacancy, elect a person who has the qualifications required by paragraph 17.0.17 to fill the office of such member for the remainder of the term.
Such election shall be by secret ballot and the director-general of the Kativik School Board shall proclaim elected the person who obtains the majority of the votes of the members of the Council present. In case of a tie vote, the president must give a casting vote.
17.0.54 Proceedings for a new election to fill vacancies in the Council shall be taken within eight (8) days if :
a) the election of commissioner has not taken place within the time prescribed by this Section; or b) by reason of vacancies, there remains less than a quorum of the members of the Council in office; or c) the Council has not availed itself of the provisions of paragraph 17.0.53.
Such election must be conducted in the same manner, in all respects, as a general election. The secretary treasurer of the municipality shall not recommence these election proceedings more than once.
17.0.55 Whenever the election contemplated by paragraph 17.0.54 is not held within the time prescribed by this paragraph, notice thereof shall be forthwith sent to the Regional Government which shall forthwith transmit its recommendations to the Minister of Education for the nomination of a commissioner.
17.0.56 Every member of a Council elected or appointed to replace another holds office only for the remainder of the term for which his predecessor had been elected or appointed.
17.0.57 There shall be a parents’committee in each municipality.
The parents’committee shall be composed of five (5) to eleven (11) parents as determined by the Kativik School Board according to the size of the municipality.
The commissioner of the municipality shall be ex officio a member of the parents’committee without having the right to vote or to be appointed chairman thereof.
The principal and one or more teachers, as determined by the parents’committee, shall be members thereof. They shall not have the right to vote unless the parents’committee so decides.
The parents’committee shall be consultative bodies with advisory powers except for responsibilities that may be delegated to them by ordinance of the Kativik School Board. Sections 66 to 70 of the Education Act shall not apply.
17.0.58 Every child shall be entitled to receive moral and religious instruction in accordance with a program approved by a clergyman or priest serving the municipality and by the Protestant or by the Catholic Committee of the Superior Council of Education. Any child, upon request of his parents for reasons of conscience, shall be exempted from such moral or religious instruction.
17.0.59 The teaching languages shall be Inuttituut and with respect to the other languages, in accordance with the present practice in the territory. The Kativik School Board will pursue as an objective the use of French as a language of instruction so that pupils graduating from its schools will, in the future, be capable of continuing their studies in a French school, college or university elsewhere in Québec, if they so desire.
After consultation with the parents’committee, and having regard to the requirements of subsequent education, the commissioners shall determine the rate of introduction of French and English as teaching languages.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.59
A. corr.
17.0.60 Travelling expenses and a per diem allowance covering all other expenses such as meals and lodging shall be paid to committee members when attending meetings outside of their municipality.
17.0.61 The Kativik School Board may, for educational purposes, enter into agreements with Canada or with any school board, educational institution or individual, subject to the laws governing such agreements.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.61
A. corr.
17.0.62 The delegation of powers under sections 202b and 202d of the Education Act shall be made by ordinance of the Kativik School Board.
17.0.63 The Kativik School Board may establish a curriculum development centre whose functions shall be to select courses, text books and materials appropriate for the Native people and arrange for their experimental use, evaluation and eventual approval.
17.0.64 The Council may by ordinance provide for the establishment of programs, the teaching of subjects and the use of course materials based on Inuit culture and language.
17.0.65 All ordinances shall be forthwith transmitted to the Minister of Education upon their passing. The Minister shall review such ordinances within forty (40) days and, except where the matters dealt with therein are based on Inuit culture and language, may disallow same in writing. Unless disallowed, all ordinances shall automatically come into force forty (40) days after the date of their passing or at any earlier date indicated by the Minister.
17.0.66 It shall be the duty of the Kativik School Board to engage teachers duly qualified to teach in the schools under its control. No commissioner shall vote on any questions regarding a member of his family. Section 203(1) of the Education Act shall not apply.
17.0.67 The Kativik School Board may establish by ordinance one or more school calendars, the existing rules serving as guidelines.
17.0.68 The Kativik School Board shall, in consultation with the Minister of Education, negotiate the working conditions of its employees, except basic salary, basic marginal benefits and basic work load which are negotiated at the provincial level.
17.0.69 The Kativik School Board may establish by ordinance special training courses for its teachers.
17.0.70
a) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs 17.0.14 and 17.0.15, the Council of the Kativik School Board shall appoint a director-general, and, under his direction, may appoint an assistant director-general and a secretary-general.
b) It shall also appoint under the director-general the senior and management staff and all other staff required for administration.
c) If the director-general is absent or unable to act, the assistant director-general shall exercise his functions and powers.
d) The director-general and the assistant director-general may be designated from among the persons holding senior positions, excluding that of secretary-general, and may perform all or some of the duties of senior officers.
e) Subject to the by-laws made under sub-paragraph 1 of Section 16 of the Education Act, the Council of the Kativik School Board shall establish by by-law the functions of the senior staff.
17.0.71 The commissioners shall be indemnified for expenses such as transportation, meals, lodging, actually incurred when attending meetings of the Kativik School Board. In addition, representation allowances provided under the Education Act shall be paid to the commissioners.
Alternatively, the commissioners may choose to be indemnified for expenses such as meals, lodging and travel expenses actually incurred when attending meetings of the Kativik School Board and in addition, be indemnified for loss of income they suffered as a result of attending such meetings, in accordance with the regulations to be adopted by the Kativik School Board. Such regulations shall take into consideration the prevailing conditions in the territory as well as the following :
a) commissioners’meetings shall be scheduled, whenever possible, to avoid conflict with the remunerated work of the commissioners and to take advantage of convenient or inexpensive transport;
b) if, in spite of the foregoing, individual commissioners suffer loss of income, the Kativik School Board may indemnify such commissioners for such loss, upon application therefor and where :
i) the commissioner represents or normally resides in a municipality other than that in which the meeting is held, and
ii) the commissioner is either employed on a full time basis or employed under conditions which preclude continuation of remuneration during time absent to attend such meetings, and
iii) loss of remuneration is clear and unequivocal rather than potential.
17.0.72 The Kativik School Board may provide for the transportation of children to a school under its jurisdiction subject to budget approval for this service.
17.0.73 Commissioners, after having decided by resolution at a regularly held meeting not to re-engage for the following year a person holding a pedagogical or educational position, shall, at least sixty (60) days before the date of expiration of the engagement of such person or, in the case of an engagement terminating at the end of a school year, sixty (60) days preceding the end of such school year, notify such person in writing of their intention to terminate the said engagement, but need not in such notice assign any cause therefor.
17.0.74 The Council may establish by ordinance qualifications and employment criteria for Native teachers involved in the teaching of Inuit culture and language. Such teachers shall not be subject to the provisions of the regulations in effect concerning teachers’qualifications.
17.0.75 The Kativik School Board may incur expenditures for the construction, improvement or enlargement of buildings for educational purposes, including residences for teachers, provided that such expenditures are included in the approved capital assets budget. Section 225 of the Education Act shall not apply.
17.0.76 All buildings used for educational purposes, including residences for teachers, belonging to the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development or to the School Board of New Québec and all material and other assets located in such buildings as part of the regular equipment shall be taken over by the Kativik School Board in accordance with a procedure to be determined and at nominal cost.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.76
A. corr.
17.0.77 Buildings transferred by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development to the Kativik School Board shall not be sold, leased, exchanged or alienated and shall again revert to the Crown if and when they cease to be used by the Kativik School Board for educational purposes.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.77
A. corr.
17.0.78 the Kativik School Board shall not be obliged to prepare evaluation rolls or to levy school property taxes to cover operating expenses or for the construction of schools.
17.0.79 The manner of conducting the annual school census shall be determined by ordinance of the Kativik School Board.
17.0.80 Any child who maintains or helps to maintain his family may be declared exempt from compulsory school attendance by the Kativik School Board.
17.0.81 The Kativik School Board may determine by ordinance the manner of posting public notices required by law.
17.0.82 The School Board Grants Act (S.R.Q., 1964, chapter 237) shall not apply.
17.0.83 Subject to budgetary approval, provisions shall be made for maintaining the necessary levels of financial aid to students attending school outside the territory when following courses not offered by the Kativik School Board.
17.0.84 Québec and Canada will jointly maintain, through the Kativik School Board, adequate funding for educational services and programs presently available to the population in the territory.
17.0.85 Based on annual budgets providing for operating and capital costs approved by a joint committee named by Québec and Canada, each of the said Governments shall contribute to the approved budget of the Kativik School Board on the following basis :
Québec : 75%
Canada : 25%
This provision shall take effect two years after the execution of the Agreement.
Commencing in 1982 and every five (5) years thereafter, the percentage contribution of Québec and Canada shall be reviewed taking into account changes in the ratio of Native students to non-Native students under the jurisdiction of, and receiving services from, the Kativik School Board.
JBNQA, par. 17.0.85
A. corr.
17.0.86 The Kativik School Board may make recommendations to the Lieutenant-Governor in Council to declare inapplicable, in whole or in part, any regulation enacted under the Education Act which may affect it.
17.0.87 This Section shall come into force gradually over a minimum transition period of two (2) years to be jointly determined by the Kativik School Board and the Minister, beginning with the first complete school year following the execution of the Agreement in accordance with the provisions of Schedule 1 of this Section.
17.0.88 The provisions of this Section can only be amended with the consent of Québec and the interested Native party, save for the provisions of paragraphs 17.0.76, 17.0.77, 17.0.84 and 17.0.85 which in addition shall require the consent of Canada.
Legislation enacted to give effect to the provisions of this Section may be amended from time to time by the National Assembly of Québec.
Annex 1
During the first year, the parents’committees shall be constituted, the commissioners elected and the director general appointed by the commissioners. The School Board of New Québec and the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development shall continue to operate the schools they now administer. The Kativik School Board will plan the operations for the second year and, with the assistance of the School Board of New Québec and the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, will draw up the operating and capital assets budget for the second year.
During the second year, the Kativik School Board will administer all schools in the territory. All its decisions shall be subject to the approval of a tripartite committee composed of the director-general, the administrator of the School Board of New Québec and an appointee of the Federal Government.
As of the third year, all teachers and principals of the School Board of New Québec and of the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development assigned to schools in the territory shall become employees of the Kativik School Board. The School Board of New Québec and the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development shall withdraw from the operation of schools in the territory.
SECTION 18
Administration of Justice – Crees
18.0.1 The Minister of Justice of Québec shall be responsible for the administration of Justice throughout the Territory.
18.0.2 The actual judicial district of Abitibi is modified in order to include the territory of Abitibi, Mistassini and New-Québec, including Great Whale River and the area covered by the James Bay Region Development Act (S.Q., 1971, c. 34), but not including Schefferville, Gagnonville and Fermont, hereinafter called the “judicial district of Abitibi”. The adjacent judicial districts shall be modified accordingly.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.2
A. corr.
18.0.3 All concurrent jurisdictions of other judicial districts existing in virtue of the Courts of Justice Act are abolished.
18.0.4 The Minister of Justice of Québec shall not effect any changes to the territorial limits of the “judicial district of Abitibi” without consulting the local authorities of Cree communities that would be affected by any such changes.
18.0.5 The courts to be established, judges and legal officers who will be designated for the “judicial district of Abitibi” have jurisdiction in all civil, criminal, penal and statutory matters.
18.0.6 Appeals from judgments rendered in the “judicial district of Abitibi” are presented before the Court of Appeal sitting in Québec.
18.0.7 The Minister of Justice of Québec shall designate one or more judges or other persons required to dispense justice in the “judicial district of Abitibi”. The said judges or persons must be cognizant with the usages, customs and psychology of the Crees.
18.0.8 The persons appointed to dispense justice shall be empowered and have the combined duties of a judge of the Provincial Court, of a judge of the Social Welfare Court, of a judge of the Court of Sessions of the Peace, with powers to hear infractions punishable under the Summary Convictions Act of the Province of Québec, of a magistrate under Part XVI of the Criminal Code, of a magistrate under Part XXIV of the Criminal Code and of a justice of the peace appointed under section 107 of the Indian Act. They may have special or administrative jurisdictions.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.8
A. corr.
18.0.9 Justices of the peace, preferably Crees, are appointed in order to deal with infractions to by-laws adopted by Cree local authorities and other offences contemplated in section 107 of the Indian Act. These appointments are subject to the approval of the interested Cree local authority.
18.0.10 With the authorization of the Deputy Minister of Justice of the Province of Québec, the justices of the peace referred to in paragraph 18.0.9 in addition to their regular functions are empowered to receive oaths and informations, issue summonses, confirm or cancel appearance notices and recognizances, issue subpoenas, proceed to the adjournment of appearances and of cases, order the release of persons upon the signing of a promise to appear, or upon recognizance or bail.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.10
A. corr.
18.0.11 The chief place of the “judicial district of Abitibi” is situated at Amos or at such other place that the legislator may designate.
18.0.12 The Lieutenant-Governor in Council may, by proclamation, authorize the court, tribunals, bodies and commissions whether or not they have been constituted by the Courts of Justice Act, to sit outside the chief place of the “judicial district of Abitibi” in the various Cree communities and Cree permanent establishments of the said district.
18.0.13 The tribunals are itinerant and the judges mentioned in paragraph 18.0.8, each time as the circumstances permit it, shall hold hearings in the various Cree communities and other Cree permanent establishments of the district.
18.0.14 The judges and other persons designated to render justice in the “judicial district of Abitibi” may establish from time to time rules of practice required for the proper administration of justice after having consulted with the Cree Regional Authority.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.14
A. corr.
18.0.15 The rules of practice for the “judicial district of Abitibi” must take into consideration the particular circumstances of the district, the customs, usages and way of life of the Crees in order to facilitate the administration of justice and render justice more accessible to the Crees. The said rules of practice should stipulate special provisions respenting :
a) the accessibility to records and registers;
b) the postponement for hearings and trials;
c) the days and hours for hearings, trials and examinations on discovery;
d) the procedures for the filing of proceedings and the issuance of writs.
18.0.16 The Minister of Justice of Québec shall establish insofar as it is practical to do so and as quickly as it is feasible to do so, buildings, premises and the facilities required for the proper functioning of the tribunals, courts, bodies and commissions in the “judicial district of Abitibi”.
18.0.17 The Minister of Justice of Québec shall establish from time to time programs to train non-Native persons who are designated as judges or public officers, responsible to render justice in the said judicial district, including the non-Native personnel and staff of the courts, tribunals, bodies and commissions, in the particular problems of the “judicial district of Abitibi” as well as respecting the usages, customs and psychology of the Crees in the said district.
18.0.18 Subject to the amendments required to give effect to the provisions of the present Section, the Code of Civil Procedure, as amended from time to time, shall apply in the “judicial district of Abitibi”.
18.0.19 The provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, the Criminal Code and the Canada Evidence Act shall be amended, insofar as this may be necessary to adopt such provisions to the circumstances, usages, customs and way of life of the Crees and in order to deal adequately with the difficulties of the “judicial district of Abitibi”. In particular, for cases where a Cree is the defendant or the accused, amendments shall be adopted to qualify Crees as jurors, notwithstanding that such Cree might not qualify accordingly to the applicable laws and rules and notwithstanding that such Cree might not speak French or English.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.19
A. corr.
18.0.20 In accordance with paragraph 18.0.12, sub-offices of the courts for the “judicial district of Abitibi” shall be established, as required, within the Cree communities and Cree permanent settlements of the district after consultation with the interested Cree local authorities or with the Cree Regional Authority. To the extent feasible, Crees shall be engaged on a part-time or full-time basis and trained as deputies to the clerks of the Provincial Court, of the Social Welfare Court, of the Court of Sessions of the Peace, as well as deputy to the sheriff of the said “judicial district of Abitibi”.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.20
A. corr.
18.0.21 The officers of the itinerant court are accompanied by officers having authority to issue writs of the Superior Court. Where the Superior Court is empowered to sit elsewhere than in the chief place of the “judicial district of Abitibi”, the issuance of writs is authorized.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.21
A. corr.
18.0.22 The Minister of Justice of Québec must establish from time to time programs to train Crees to act initially as stenographers of the itinerant Provincial Court and eventually for the other courts, tribunals, bodies and commissions of the “judicial district of Abitibi”.
18.0.23 In the “judicial district of Abitibi”, in all civil, criminal, penal and all statutory matters where a Cree person is a party to the suit, case of proceedings, or is the accused, the following provisions apply :
a) intepreters shall be provided as of right without costs to such Cree party;
b) on demand of either one of the two parties, the written motivated judgments, which were not rendered orally at the sitting of the court, tribunal, body or commission, are translated as of right into Cree without cost to the Cree parties for information purposes only;
c) all verbal decisions and judgments or pronouncements, rulings, statements and comments of the presiding judge shall be simultaneously translated into Cree at no cost and for information purposes only;
d) all of the depositions, admissions, objections to evidence and the decisions thereon shall be simultaneously translated into the Cree language at no cost and for information purposes only;
JBNQA, par. 18.0.23
A. corr.
18.0.24 The attorney-general of Québec shall designate Crown attorneys for the “judicial district of Abitibi” for such term of office and upon such conditions as are required to meet the circumstances in the said district.
18.0.25 It is recognized that most of the Crees in the “judicial district of Abitibi” qualify at the present time for the benefit of legal aid services. The Crees as individuals are entitled as of right to receive legal aid services in all matters provided they meet the criteria of the Québec Legal Services Commission, which criteria shall be modified to take into consideration the cost of living, the distances involved and other factors particular to the said judicial district.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.25
A. corr.
18.0.26 As quickly as possible after the execution of the Agreement and after consultation with Cree local authorities, the appropriate detention institutions will be established within the “judicial district of Abitibi” so that Crees subject to imprisonment, committal or detention, shall not emprisoned, committed or detained in any institution below the 49th parallel of latitude, except where they are detained pending trial or pending their sentence or judgment before a court having jurisdiction below the 49th parallel of latitude. However, Crees who, after their sentence, are imprisoned, committed or detained in any place whatsoever, have the right, if they so desire, to be imprisoned, committed or detained in small institutions situated within the territory of James Bay, if such institutions are appropriate taking into consideration all circumstances.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.26
A. corr.
18.0.27 All institutions, penitentiaries and places of detention in the “judicial district of Abitibi” for the Crees and non-Native persons shall be staffed totally or in part by Crees taking into account the available Cree manpower suitable. For such purposes, programs shall be established to train Crees as staff, correctional or detention officers and as officers required for probation, parole, rehabilitation and aftercare services.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.27
A. corr.
18.0.28 When a Cree is arrested or detained, he must be informed in the Cree language, if he does not comprehend either French or English, of his basic rights and has a right to communicate with his family and to obtain the services of a lawyer of his own choice.
18.0.29 In accordance with a federal-provincial agreement with respect to costs of the programs of services referred to in this Section, it shall be provided:
a) that Crees who are sentenced by any court to imprisonment for life or for a number of years not less than two (2) or for imprisonment to less than two (2) years may be detained in a place of detention situated and established in the James Bay Territory, including Great Whale River after consultation with the Cree local authority of the “judicial district of Abitibi”;
b) that Crees who are found to be or become mentally ill at any time during their confinement in a penitentiary or place of detention be detained in the appropriate facilities in the James Bay Territory, including Great Whale River;
c) that suitable facilities be provided within the James Bay Territory including Great Whale River to receive and care for persons detained who, during their term of detention, become seriously ill or contract infectious or contagious diseases;
d) that facilities be provided for detention, training and rehabilitation of young Cree offenders under the age of twenty-one (21) years and under the age of sixteen (16) years;
e) that establishments for the temporary detention of persons, public prisons, rehabilitation and reformatory institutions, almshouses, workhouses, refuges for women, reformatory institutions for women and other institutions for training, rehabilitation and readaptation of persons detained be provided for;
f) that special rehabilitation programs be created for the treatment, training and rehabilitation of detained Crees taking into account the age and conditions of the persons detained, as well as their way of life and culture;
g) that special programs, both during detention and after release, be created in order to facilitate the return of the Crees to, and their reintegration into, their families and communities.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.29
A. corr.
18.0.30 Probation, parole, rehabilitation and aftercare services are provided to Crees, in the Cree language, if possible, taking into account their culture and way of life.
18.0.31 Studies for the revision of sentencing and the detention practices of Crees should be undertaken with their cooperation, taking into account their culture and way of life.
18.0.32 The presiding judge of the itinerant court of the “judicial district of Abitibi” shall have available, when necessary or when appropriate, probation officers, preferably Crees, trained for and cognizant of the problems in the said judicial district and problems concerning the Crees who live therein.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.32
A. corr.
18.0.33 In order to ensure that Cree people do not misunderstand the intervention of the judicial authority or of the legal system, Crees will receive special training to act as information officers and be stationed in the Cree communities.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.33
A. corr.
18.0.34 After consultation with the Cree local authorities or Cree Regional Authority, and when it will be appropriate to do so, Crees will be recruited, trained and hired in order to assume the greatest number possible of positions in connection with the administration of justice in the “judicial district of Abitibi”.
18.0.35 Information programs shall be established and financed by Québec to help Crees understand the law, to train court workers and detention liaison officers in order to help Crees obtain legal advice and to assist them in all of the phases of the judicial process and to give the Cree communities information concerning the law. Crees shall be engaged and trained for these purposes as soon as possible after the execution of the Agreement.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.35
A. corr.
18.0.36 Programs must be provided for non-Native persons engaged in the various aspects of the judicial and legal system of the said district so that such persons be familiar with the language, customs, needs and aspirations of the Crees.
18.0.37 A judicial advisory committee will be established and financed by Québec after the execution of the Agreement. It will be composed of representatives of Québec, the Crees and other specialists whose participation is deemed necessary. The said committee shall advise on a permanent basis the authorities with respect to the administration of justice respecting Crees in the “judicial district of Abitibi” including the following:
a) the participation of Crees in all the phases of the judicial, para-judicial or legal process, including the planning and delivery of judicial services which are destined for them;
b) the studies and research projects required to properly implement the provisions of the present Section; c) the courts, officers and staff required;
d) the buildings and facilities required:
e) the laws from time to time required or their amendments in order to give effect to the provisions of this Section;
f) the establishment of more frequent and more systematic communications with the Crees; g) the establishment of a system of legal education, information and discussion with the Crees.
JBNQA, par. 18.0.37
A. corr.
18.0.38 The provisions of this Section can only be amended with the consent of Canada and the interested Native party, in matters of federal jurisdiction, and with the consent of Québec and the interested Native party, in matters of provincial jurisdiction.
Legislation enacted to give effect to the provisions of this Section may be amended from time to time by the National Assembly of Québec in matters of provincial jurisdiction, and by Parliament in matters of federal jurisdiction.
18.0.39 However, the native interested party hereby recognizes that for a sound administration of justice, the provisions of this Section and of Section 20 shall be read together and, to the extent possible, administered and implemented uniformly.
A. corr.
SECTION 19
Police – Crees
(Chapter 19 of the JBNQA was replaced in its entirety by section 1 of Complementary Agreement no. 19.)
19.1 The Cree Regional Authority is authorized to establish under its administration a regional police force to be called the ''Eeyou-Eenou Police''. To this end, the existing Cree Local Community Police Forces shall be merged into the regional police force. With the agreement of Québec, the Cree Regional Authority may designate another entity to administer the Eeyou-Eenou police force.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.2 The Eeyou-Eenou police force will be a police force within the meaning of the Police Act and its members will be police officers within the meaning of that Act. Its mission and responsibilities and those of each of its police officers include maintaining peace, order and public security, preventing and repressing crime and offences under the law, apprehending offenders, and enforcing the by-laws and regulations of the Cree authorities.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.3 The Eeyou-Eenou police force shall:
a) be responsible for police services within the following territorial areas :
i) the Category IA lands;
ii) the Category IB lands, including Special Category IB lands, as well as any other lands forming the territory of a Cree village within the meaning of the Cree Villages and the Naskapi Village Act (R.S.Q., c. V-5.1);
iii) the Category II or Category III lands situated within the perimeter of the Category I lands of a Cree community;
iv) if the Category I lands of a Cree community are bounded on any side by navigable or other waters, or by the bank or shore of such waters, the expanse in front of those lands, to the middle of such waters, including the islands and outcrops in such waters, if it is not already part of Category I lands of a Cree community; if, however, the waters fronting those lands are wider than 3 kilometers, this responsibility shall not be exercised beyond 1.5 kilometers from the bank or shore without the agreement of the Cree Regional Authority and Québec;
v) and any path or road determined by agreement between the Cree Regional Authority and Québec, as well as the adjacent lands.
b) assume a role and responsibilities for police services, in collaboration with the Sûreté du Québec, on Category II lands and on Category III lands contemplated by paragraph 22.1.6 in accordance with arrangements to be agreed upon the Cree Regional Authority and Québec, in consultation with the concerned police forces.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.3.1 For greater certainty, paragraph (a) of Sub-Section 19.3, and as the case may be, paragraph (b) of Sub-Section 19.3, apply to Oujé-Bougoumou.
Compl. A. no. 22, sch. 2, s. 9
19.4 In order to carry out their mission, the Eeyou-Eenou police force and its police officers shall provide police services as set out in the Police Act and as determined through agreement between Québec and the Cree Regional Authority.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.5 The hiring requirements for the police officers of the Eeyou-Eenou police force shall be determined through agreement between the Cree Regional Authority and Québec.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.6 Canada and Québec shall each fund the Cree Regional Authority for the Eeyou-Eenou police force in accordance with a tripartite funding agreement to which the Cree Regional Authority shall be a party. The funding agreement shall have a minimum duration of five (5) years, unless otherwise agreed to by the parties to such agreement.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.7 The respective shares of the total funding contribution provided by Canada and Québec pursuant to subsection 19.6 will be fifty-two percent (52%) and forty-eight percent (48%), respectively, unless otherwise agreed between Canada and Québec.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.8 The number of police officers funded pursuant to sub-section 19.6 for the Eeyou-Eenou police force is set, as of April 1st, 2007, in accordance with a ratio of one (1) police officer for every two hundred and fifteen (215) Cree and non-Cree residents on the lands contemplated by paragraph 19.3 a).
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.9 For the application of sub-section 19.8, the population level shall be measured at December 31, 2006 through statistical sources agreed to by the Cree Regional Authority, Québec and Canada. Subsequently, the population level will be measured every five years in accordance with the same modalities, provided however that the number of police officers funded pursuant to this sub-section cannot be reduced to less than sixty-five (65) police officers.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
19.10 The provisions of this section can only be amended with the consent of Canada and the Cree Native Party, in matters of federal jurisdiction, and with the consent of Québec and the Cree Native Party, in matters of provincial jurisdiction.
Legislation enacted to give effect to the provisions of this section may be amended from time to time by the National Assembly of Québec in matters of provincial jurisdiction, and by Parliament in matters of federal jurisdiction.
Compl. A. no. 19, s. 1
SECTION 20
Administration of Justice – Inuit
20.0.1 The existing judicial district of Abitibi is modified to include the territories of Abitibi, Mistassini and Nouveau-Québec, including Great-Whale River and the area covered by the James Bay Region Development Act (L.Q. 1971, c. 34) but not including Schefferville, Gagnonville and Fermont. The contiguous judicial districts are modified accordingly.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.1
A. corr.
20.0.2 All concurrent jurisdictions with the other judicial districts which may exist under the Courts of Justice Act are abolished.
20.0.3 The Minister of Justice of Québec shall not effect any changes in the territorial limits of the judicial district of Abitibi for the territories of Mistassini and Nouveau-Québec without prior consultation with the Regional Government.
20.0.4 The Lieutenant-Governor in Council may authorize by proclamation the courts, the tribunals, bodies and commissions constituted or not under the Courts of Justice Act to sit outside the chief-place in the various permanent Inuit communities and settlements of the judicial district of Abitibi.
20.0.5 There shall be an itinerant court for the judicial district of Abitibi. The itinerant court shall sit in each community where a sub-office has been established under paragraph 20.0.4 and shall be presided over by judges having the combined jurisdictions of :
a) a judge of the Provincial Court,
b) a magistrate under part XVI of the Criminal Code,
c) a magistrate under part XXIV of the Criminal Code,
d) a judge of the Court of the Sessions of the Peace,
e) a judge of the Social Welfare Court, and
f) one or two justices of the peace.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.5
A. corr.
20.0.6 The judges and persons appointed to dispense justice in the judicial district of Abitibi shall, after prior consultation with the Regional Government, make from time to time the rules of practice judged necessary for the proper administration of justice in the said district.
20.0.7 The rules of practice established for the judicial district of Abitibi under paragraph 20.0.6, shall take into consideration the particular circumstances of the district, the customs, usages and ways of life of the Inuit, in order to facilitate and render justice more accessible, and may, in particular, include special rules respecting the following :
a) accessibility to records and registers,
b) postponement of hearings and trials,
c) days and hours for hearings, trials and examinations on discovery, and
d) procedures for the filing of proceedings and the issuance of writs.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.7
A. corr.
20.0.8 All judges and other persons appointed to dispense justice in the judicial district of Abitibi shall be cognizant with the usages, customs and psychology of the Inuit people.
20.0.9 There shall be appointed a clerk of the itinerant court.
Assistants to the clerk of the itinerant court shall also be appointed to manage the sub-offices established under paragraph 20.0.4.
The clerk and assistant-clerks of the itinerant court shall be empowered to act as deputy-sheriff, issue writs and discharge the duties of a deputy-prothonotary of the Superior Court.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.9
A. corr.
20.0.10 A qualified interpreter and an official stenographer qualified to take down shorthand in both French and English shall accompany the itinerant court.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.10
A. corr.
20.0.11 The Minister of Justice of Québec must see to it that, upon demand from any Inuit party, the judgments with reasons of the courts, judges, tribunals, bodies and commissions that are not rendered orally and in open court, but in writing, are translated as of right into Inuttituut without cost, for purposes of information only.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.11
A. corr.
20.0.12 Non-Inuit court staff shall be cognizant with the usages, customs and psychology of the Inuit people.
20.0.13 The Department of Justice of Québec shall, after prior consultation with the Regional Government, establish formation and training programs for Inuit for the positions of clerk and assistant clerk of the itinerant court, sheriff, deputy-sheriff, stenographer and interpreter.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.13
A. corr.
20.0.14 The itinerant court shall be assisted, in the exercise of its powers respecting supervised probation, by probation officers. The names of the candidates to become probation officers of the itinerant court shall first be proposed by the Regional Government to the Probation and Houses of Detention Service of the Department of Justice of Québec or by such Service to the Regional Government for consideration and approval.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.14
A. corr.
20.0.15 Information officers shall be stationed in municipalities designated by the Department of Justice of Québec after prior consultation with the Regional Government. The names of the candidates to become information officers shall first be proposed by the Regional Government to the Department of Justice of Québec or by the Department of Justice of Québec to the Regional Government for consideration and approval.
20.0.16 Non-Inuit probation and information officers shall be cognizant with the usages, customs and psychology of the Inuit people.
20.0.17 The Department of Justice of Québec shall, after prior consultation with the Regional Government, establish according to needs, educational and training programs for Inuit for the functions of probation and information officer.
20.0.18 The Department of Justice shall appoint Crown attorneys for the judicial district of Abitibi for such terms of office and upon such conditions as are required to meet the circumstances in the said district. Such appointees shall be cognizant with the usages, customs and psychology of the Inuit people.
20.0.19 All residents of the judicial district of Abitibi shall be entitled as of right to receive Legal Aid services in all matters, provided they qualify in accordance with the criteria of the Québec Legal Services Commission which shall be modified for this district insofar as this may be necessary, to take into consideration the cost of living, the distances involved and other factors particular to the said district.
20.0.20 The provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, the Criminal Code and the Canada Evidence Act shall be modified, if deemed necessary, to suit the particular difficulties of the judicial district of Abitibi and to take into account the circumstances, usages, customs and way of life of the Inuit and to render justice more accessible to them.
20.0.21 The Criminal Code should be amended to allow that six jurors only be sworn in the territories of Abitibi, Mistassini and Nouveau-Québec in the judicial district of Abitibi.
20.0.22 Amendments should be adopted to allow Inuit, in cases where the defendant or accused is an Inuk, to be sworn as jurors according to applicable laws and regulations, even though they cannot speak French or English fluently.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.22
A. corr.
20.0.23 The Lieutenant-Governor in Council shall appoint for the judicial district of Abitibi a coroner cognizant with the usages, customs and psychology of the Inuit people.
20.0.24 Sentencing and detention practices should be revised to take into account the culture and way of life of the Inuit people, and this, with their cooperation.
20.0.25 As quickly as possible after the execution of the Agreement and after consultation with the Regional Government, the appropriate detention institutions shall be established within the judicial district of Abitibi so that Inuit should not be, unless circumstances so require, detained, imprisoned or confined in any institution below the 49th parallel.
20.0.26 All Inuit persons, wherever they are sentenced or confined, shall, if they so desire, have the right to be detained, imprisoned or confined in small institutions located within the territory of the Regional Government if such institutions are adequate for these purposes having due regard to all circumstances.
20.0.27 The provisions of this Section can only be amended with the consent of Canada and the interested Native party, in matters of federal jurisdiction, and with the consent of Québec and the interested Native party, in matters of provincial jurisdiction.
Legislation enacted to give effect to the provisions of this Section may be amended from time to time by the National Assembly of Québec in matters of provincial jurisdiction, and by Parliament in matters of federal jurisdiction.
JBNQA, par. 20.0.27
A. corr.
20.0.28 However, the native interested party hereby recognizes that for a sound administration of justice, the provisions of this Section and of Section 18 shall be read together and, to the extent possible, administered and implemented uniformly.
A. corr.
SECTION 21
Police – Inuit
21.0.1 Subject to the laws of Québec of general application, the Regional Government is hereby authorized to establish by ordinance and maintain a Regional Police Force in its territory.
21.0.2 The Regional Police Force shall be governed by the provisions of the Police Act (S.Q. 1968, c. 17) and all other laws of Québec of general application, save where these laws are inconsistent with this Section, in which event the provisions of this Section shall prevail.
21.0.3 Members of the Regional Police Force shall be posted in the most populated municipalities based on the criterion of one member for every five hundred (500) inhabitants including the floating population in the territory.
21.0.4 The Regional Government has the authority to make ordinances to :
a) provide for the organization, equipment and maintenance of a Regional Police Force and the discipline of its members;
b) prescribe the duties and powers of the members of such force and prescribe the penalties applicable in case of infringement of the ordinances respecting discipline;
c) provide for the imposition of penalties, including dismissal or fine, upon any member of the Regional Police Force who accepts or demands, directly or indirectly, any sum of money, favour or alcoholic beverage as a consideration for the exercise of influence or for an act or omission in the discharge of his duties;
d) determine the places where the members of the Regional Police Force may reside, classify them, specify the ranks that may be assigned to them and prescribe the inspections to which they shall be subject.
Such ordinances shall apply subject to the provisions of this Section and to the by-laws of the Québec Police Commission made under section 17 of the Police Act.
After an ordinance dealing with any subject contemplated in this paragraph has been passed, the Secretary of the Regional Government must send a copy thereof to the Québec Police Commission within fifteen (15) days following its coming into force.
21.0.5 The Regional Government must at the request of the Québec Police Commission pass and forward to it within sixty (60) days of such request an ordinance providing for the discipline of the members of the Regional Police Force and providing for the penalties applicable in the case of infringement of such ordinance; such an ordinance shall come into force upon approval by the Québec Police Commission.
21.0.6 It shall be the duty of the Regional Police Force and each member thereof to maintain peace, order and public safety in the territory, to prevent crime and infringements of the by-laws of the municipal corporations, the ordinances of the Regional Government and the laws of the Province of Québec and to seek out the offenders.
21.0.7 The Regional Police Force shall be under the control of a director or chief who shall command it.
No person can fulfill the duties of director or chief or member of the Regional Police Force until he has taken the oaths prescribed in section 4 of the Police Act.
21.0.8 The Secretary of the Regional Government shall keep a register of all the policemen who are members of the Regional Police Force and of the special constables appointed by the chairman of the Executive Committee under paragraph 21.0.13; each such policeman and special constable may require of the Secretary a certificate attesting his appointment.
21.0.9 Sub-paragraphs (d) and (e) of section 3 of the Police Act respecting qualifications to become a Police Force cadet, a member of the Police Force or a municipal cadet or policeman shall not apply to Inuit members of the Regional Police Force.
21.0.10 With respect to Inuit members of the Regional Police Force, any by-law of the Québec Police Commission made for the purposes of qualifications required for admission in the said Police Force shall be made after prior consultation with the Regional Government.
21.0.11 The names of the candidates to become members of the Regional Police Force shall first be proposed by the Regional Government to the Department of Justice or by the Department of Justice to the Regional Government for consideration and approval.
After attending the Québec Police Institute and completing their courses, such candidates shall be appointed members of the Regional Police Force by the Regional Government.
21.0.12 The director or chief of the Regional Police Force is appointed by the Attorney-General on the recommendation of the Regional Government, and shall take the oaths prescribed in section 4 of the Police Act before any judge contemplated in section 64 of the Police Act; other members of the Regional Police Force and special constables appointed under paragraph 21.0.13 shall take the oaths prescribed in section 4 of the Police Act before the chairman of the Executive Committee of the Regional Government pursuant to the approval of the Attorney-General.
The approval of the Attorney-General shall not be necessary for special constables appointed under paragraph 21.0.13.
21.0.13 The Council of the Regional Government may, by ordinance, authorize the chairman of the Executive Committee to appoint in writing, in case of emergency and for a period not exceeding seven (7) days, persons called special constables, to maintain peace, order and public safety in the territory of the Regional Government, to prevent crime and infringements of the by-laws of the municipal corporations, the ordinances of the Regional Government, and the laws of the Province of Québec and seek out the offenders.
Any ordinance adopted under the preceding paragraph may prescribe the maximum number of persons whom the chairman of the Executive Committee may appoint as special constables and establish the maximum remuneration that they may be paid.
21.0.14 The writing attesting the appointment of a special constable shall be made in duplicate and one of the duplicates shall be given to the person so appointed.
JBNQA, par. 21.0.14
A. corr.
21.0.15 Any member of the Regional Police Force and any special constable appointed under paragraph 21.0.13 may be dismissed by any judge contemplated in section 64 of the Police Act when an application to that effect is made to him by the Attorney-General.
JBNQA, par. 21.0.15
A. corr.
21.0.16 Training and course programs shall be established pursuant to the provisions of the by-laws that shall be enacted by the Québec Police Commission under paragraph (b) of section 17 of the Police Act, after consultation with the Regional Government. Québec shall pay for training and course fees and lodging for the candidates at the Québec Police Institute.
21.0.17 The Regional Government may establish by ordinance and maintain a police school. Such ordinance, to be valid, must be approved by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council.
21.0.18 Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2.9 of Schedule 2 of Section 12 and of paragraph 2.9 of Schedule 2 of Section 13 of the Agreement, any ordinance passed by the Regional Government under this Section shall apply within the whole territory of the Regional Government and its application shall not be limited to municipalities.
21.0.19 Inuit people who do not meet the qualifications for admission in the Québec Police Force may be appointed special constables under section 64 of the Police Act, in which case paragraphs 21.0.9 and 21.0.10 shall apply, mutatis mutandis.
The names of the candidates to become special constables shall first be proposed by the Regional Government to the Department of Justice or by the Department of Justice to the Regional Government for consideration and approval.
21.0.20 The provisions of this Section can only be amended with the consent of Québec and the interested Native party.
Legislation enacted to give effect to the provisions of this Section may be amended from time to time by the National Assembly of Québec.
Analysis
Summary
The Cree Education Act provides for a single school municipality in the Cree communities of Quebec. The Education Act and applicable laws will apply in the areas covered by this Section. The Cree School Board will have jurisdiction and responsibility for elementary and secondary education and adult education. It will also have the power to make agreements for educational purposes with any person, group, community, institution or corporation. The school year and school calendar limited only by the total number of days per year required by law and regulations. Every child shall receive moral and religious instruction in accordance with a program approved by a clergyman or priest serving the community.
Keywords
