Assembly of First Nations in uncharted territory as annual assembly begins in Halifax

The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) kicks off its 44th annual general assembly in Halifax on Tuesday, and it remains to be seen whether it will get back to business, or if the group's fractious leadership dispute will dominate the agenda.

National Chief RoseAnne Archibald was ousted at a June 28 virtual assembly in a vote attended by 231 delegates — less than half the 634 First Nations eligible. There are still 400 eligible chiefs who didn't have their say.

Archibald, who is Cree, from Taykwa Tagamou Nation in northern Ontario, and the first woman to win the job, suggested her ouster was a coup fuelled by Liberal partisans and her predecessor's loyalists. She has urged sympathetic chiefs to head for Halifax and reverse the decision, and has called for a probe into government meddling in assembly affairs.

Declining interview requests, Archibald vowed in a statement issued late Monday night to attend Day 1 of the meeting online, and potentially still travel to Halifax later this week. She called the appointment of New Brunswick Regional Chief Joanna Bernard as interim national chief "marred by conflict of interest and a laterally violent coup against me as the first duly elected female National Chief."

To remove a national chief, the AFN charter requires 60 per cent of those in attendance to adopt a non-confidence motion. It doesn't mention the prospect of appeal. The group's corporate bylaws say the removal of a board member is final.

Given the lack of precedent, some Archibald supporters were speculating that a resolution endorsing her leadership — tabled on June 28 but scrapped after the non-confidence motion — may resurface. 

Scott McLeod, chief of Nipissing First Nation in Ontario and a leading Archibald opponent, said it would be "redundant" to re-table the resolution.

"That was already addressed," he said Monday from Halifax.

"I don't know how many times we have to do this. Right now, that resolution doesn't even make sense because she is not the national chief anymore. I would suggest that that resolution is resolved."

Joe Alphonse, chief of the Tl'etinqox-t'in Government and chair of the Tŝilhqot'in National Government, seconded the June 28 resolution in support of Archibald. He said he was disgusted by the way the AFN executive handled Archibald's impeachment.

He urged her to fight on. 

"Hire a legal team. Challenge them," he said. "I'll bet on RoseAnne. She's an honourable person. Pack rats like to run with pack rats."

Bernard, appointed Monday by the regional chiefs, was a vocal Archibald opponent, slamming her in the June 28 meeting as failing to live up to the high expectations women leaders had for her.

"It is crucial that the Assembly of First Nations resume its important work of advancing First Nations' priorities," Bernard said in a news release.