Intertribal Life Newspaper -

OTTAWA—In a speech to the United Nations, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that Canada has let down its 1.4 million indigenous people and that his government would do better to improve their lives.

When the prime minister was elected in 2015, he pledged that his administration would work on its relationship with aboriginals.

In his September 21, 2017 speech, Trudeau noted to the U.N. General assembly the history of Canada’s colonization as being filled with “humiliation, neglect and abuse.”

Indigenous Canadians, comprised of the First Nations, Inuit and Métis people, who make up about 4 percent of the population and face higher levels of poverty and violence and shorter life expectancies. Suicides have plagued some of these communities and many do not have access to safe drinking water.

“We have been working hard . . . to correct past injustices and bring about a better quality of life for indigenous peoples in Canada,” Trudea said. He acknowledged bringing up a domestic issue in an international setting because, “This is something that is universal and important.”