NWAC Releases Report On Matrimonial Real Property

NWAC Releases Report On Matrimonial Real Property

Tuesday, October 16, 2007 at 15:03

 

 

 

The president of the Native Women’s Association of Canada says traditional practices may help solve a current problem.

 

The NWAC released a report yesterday examining the question of how married couples on reserve can fairly decide who gets to live in the home if they split up.

 

The issue has been a thorny one because there are no clear guidelines in the Indian Act or federal law on how to deal with it.

 

One of the key conculsions in the 40-page document is that federal government policies have crippled First Nations’ abililty to solve the issue themselves.

 

NWAC president Bev Jacobs says many of the women her group surveyed feel the problem could be settled if traditional practices were truly respected and followed.

 

Jacobs says a lot of the women told her group they should return to those basic principles.

 

She says her next step is to formulate a national strategy.