A huge health risk’: First Nations pressured to hold elections amid COVID-19 pandemic, say experts – CBC
Federal government email instructs First Nations to bring own pencils, keep distance from elders
Mar 26, 2020
First Nations are being pressured by the federal government to hold elections in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, say legal experts and band officials.
One Saskatchewan First Nation is going ahead Friday despite pleas from its own emergency management team to postpone for 30 days.
“They’re forcing First Nations into a really awful dilemma. This is a huge health risk,” said lawyer Maggie Wente, whose Ontario firm works with Indigenous communities across Canada.
A number of First Nations across Canada are scheduled to go ahead with their votes in the coming weeks. Others, such as the Red Pheasant Cree Nation, already have. A few, such as the Lac la Ronge Indian Band, are postponing but many questions remain.
