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Falk’s high-five raises eyebrows after vote against Indigenous rights bill

Jun 4, 2018 | 3:13 PM

A local member of Parliament’s jubilation in the House of Commons has come under questioning after she and a fellow M.P. high-fived as they voted against a bill which focuses on Indigenous peoples’ rights.

Rosemarie Falk (Battlefords-Lloydminster, Sask.) and Dane Lloyd (Sturgeon River-Parkland, Alta.) shared the high-five after voting against Bill C-262, an act to ensure that the laws of Canada are in harmony with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

 

The bill was sponsored by NDP M.P. Romeo Saganash (Abitibi-Baie-James-Nunavik-Eeyou) and was touted by the party as “the first piece of legislation to explicitly reject colonialism.”

Falk was not available for comment as she remains in House meetings for the duration of the day, but her office released a brief statement addressing the incident.

“This was in response to the conclusion of nearly an hour of voting in the House of Commons, and not the specific vote in question,” a spokesperson for Falk wrote in an emailed statement to battlefordsNOW. “Conservatives continue to support ongoing efforts to reconcile with Canada’s Indigenous communities.”

More to come.

 

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