Russ Diabo joins Assembly of First Nations as adviser to national chief

Russ Diabo, an Ontario-based Indigenous policy analyst and member of the Mohawk nation at Kahnawà:ke, is joining the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) in a special advisory role to National Chief RoseAnne Archibald.

Diabo will advise the national chief on AFN restructuring, self-government agreements and Bill C-15, the bill that seeks to align Canadian law with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, or UNDRIP for short.

When Diabo ran for national chief in 2018, he ran on a campaign to restructure the AFN, an assembly of all First Nations across Canada similar to the United Nations. The AFN is also steered by an executive committee composed of the national chief and regional chiefs from each province and territory.

Now, as adviser, Diabo is hoping the AFN will decentralize and move to a representation-by-population voting system. Under the current one-chief, one-vote system, votes are equally weighted despite some chiefs representing thousands, while others may represent 50.

“AFN has to be restructured to be more representative and to address the needs on the ground,” Diabo said.

On self-government agreements, Diabo will advise Archibald on how the AFN can support First Nation chiefs on the ground as they shift into self-government agreements or, in some rare cases, rally against them. Self-government agreements, without taking into account some autonomy over traditional territories, can harm the ultimate goal of self-determination, Diabo said.

The federal government is working on a plan to implement UNDRIP in Canada, which is due in June 2023, Diabo said. Diabo is a critic of Bill C-15, which will be debated in December during the special chiefs assembly in Ottawa.

Earlier this year, Archibald was suspended by the AFN’s executive committee over allegations of bullying. It wasn’t until July, during the AFN general assembly, that her leadership was upheld through a vote of First Nation leaders.

Archibald raised allegations of some in the AFN mishandling funds and engaging in corruption and has made it a priority to reform the organization.

Diabo didn’t agree with the executive committee’s decision to suspend her. From what Diabo has seen, she’s been a strong advocate for Indigenous Peoples who has focused on gender issues ever since she was a regional chief.

“She needs allies, and I agreed to support as much as I can,” he said.

Diabo and Archibald met in 1989 at a post-secondary school protest. The government was trying to cut and cap funding for the First Nation post-secondary assistance program. Archibald was a student protester and hunger striker at the time.

The protest succeeded in pushing the cuts down the line for 10 years, Diabo said.

Diabo will step into the special advisory role in Ottawa during the AFN’s special chiefs assembly, where he will observe and listen.

“I trust her and have confidence in her. She clearly has a backbone — she’s been standing up for the issues.”

Matteo Cimellaro / Local Journalism Initiative / Canada’s National Observer