B.C.'s child advocate calls on attorney general to intervene in Mtis toddler case

B.C.'s child advocate is calling onthe province'sattorney general to intervene in the case of a child known only asS.S. a Mtis toddler recently taken from her foster parents saying there is no existing framework or guidelines in an unusual case like this one.

Mary Ellen Turpel-LafondwantsAttorney General Suzanne Anton to ensure the girl's cultural rights are properly considered givenher placement with a family she's never known.

• B.C. foster parents lose Appeal Court battle for Mtis toddler

Turpel-Lafond is acting onadvice from three leadingMtiscultural experts andbelieves the child'sMtisheritage has not been given dueconsideration in the case.

The foster parents lost an appeal court battle, Sept. 13,to keep the child when the court rejected their bid to fight the provincial government'splans for her future.

Turpel-Lafondis asking Anton to return the child to herB.C. foster parents untilB.C.'s policies and laws can be reviewed in light of guidance fromDr. NicolasVrooman, Dr. Maria Campbell and Dr. PaulChartrand.

TonyBelcourt, the former president of theMtisNation of Ontario, isalso urging authorities take a second lookat the case.

"I strongly urge you to consider the modest request made by B.C.'s [child advocate] to permit the review of evidence," said Belcourt.

The child was recently removed from the home of her foster parents where she's resided since infancy, with plans to place her with a non-MtisOntario family who already care for siblings she has never met.

"I am asking for the attorney general to show leadership on a matter that is crucial to Indigenous legal issues," saidTurpel-Lafond.

"There is no existing practice, framework or guideline for such matters, and we need the attorney general to help ensurethis child's cultural rights are protected to the best standard possible."

The Mtis foster parents have beentold the three-year-old willbe flown to live with a non-Mtis family in Ontario.

The child's birth parents also live in B.C. and have mounted a charter challenge to the decision, according to the appealcourt ruling.

All involved can't be named under a court-ordered publication ban.

With files from Eric Rankin