Canada will create a legal framework to guarantee the rights of indigenous people in all government decisions, doing away with policies built to serve colonial interests, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday.
In a sweeping speech that condemned past governments for failing to do enough to protect the rights of aboriginals, Trudeau said the planned legislation would ensure "rigorous, full and meaningful" implementation of treaties and other agreements.
"We need to get to a place where indigenous peoples in Canada are in control of their own destiny, making their own decisions about their future," Trudeau said in a speech to the House of Commons.