Doing Things the Right Way: Dene Traditional Justice in Lac La Martre, NWT

Michael Payne is head of the research and publications program, Historic
Sites and

Archives Service, Alberta Community Development, and co-author of A
Narrative History of Fort Dunvegan.

Across Canada there is growing interest in devolving responsibility for
some aspects of the justice system to First Nations communities. There
are two possible ways this can be achieved. The current system of
police, courts, and punishments can be “adapted” to work more
effectively; this would involve hiring aboriginal police or judges or
encouraging sentences that require restitution or community service.
Joan Ryan and the people of Lac La Martre argue for a more fundamental
change: the re-establishment of a separate and distinct justice system
based on traditional knowledge and culture. For example, in traditional
Dogrib communities there was no concept of “not guilty.” People who
contravened community norms were known and determining guilt was not an
issue; instead, these individuals were expected to admit responsibility
for their actions and submit to a community-sanctioned punishment,
thereby beginning the process of reconciliation and atonement.

This book is bound together with a strong dose of policy advocacy.
While there is no question that the current criminal justice system does
not serve First Nations peoples very well, some may find the author’s
belief in the transforming power of traditional knowledge and custom a
bit too optimistic. Two of the three cases cited as practical
experiments in traditional Dogrib justice raise almost as many issues as
they resolve. Nevertheless, the case studies do suggest that, with
sufficient time and will, alternatives to imprisonment and other
draconian legal interventions can be found. It should also be noted that
the issues of justice, community control, and tolerance of diversity
that are raised in this book have significance well beyond aboriginal
communities and deserve general discussion among Canadians.