Globalization and self-government: Impacts and implications for first nations in Canada

Abstract

This paper argues that self-government negotiated within the parameters of globalization, under the auspices of corporate dominance, does not represent decolonization but neocolonialism. Focussing on the condition of "resource-rich" Aboriginal communities within Canada, this paper considers why some First Nations appear to embrace self-government as a means of political autonomy and the partnering of their communities with corporations as a form of economic independence. It concludes by considering some potential consequences of globalization for First Nations. These conclusions envision the possibility of increased social pathologies for Aboriginal peoples if social-service needs are not met; the division of communities internally as they struggle to survive in a capitalist world while maintaining their traditional values; conflict between First Nations and other Canadians as they struggle to gain access to resources; and the intensification of Aboriginal nationalism generally. This paper is not a critique of self-government, per se, but rather of the way it is being conceptualized and constructed, since it locks Aboriginal peoples in an unequal relationship as they pass from government paternalism to corporate dependency. As government yields to corporate pressures, it similarly subsumes the welfare of Aboriginal peoples to the demands of the market. Thus self-government today further subjects First Nations to corporate rule and solidifies their assimilation.