embly of First Nations as, at worst, a part of the government of Canada, or, at best, as a dupe being used by the government of Canada. The Assembly, of course, also has supporters among Canada's aboriginal peoples. The large proportion of aboriginal peoples that distrusts the Assembly of First Nations, however, not only saps the ability of that organization to influence the government of Canada, but also subverts the influence of other aboriginal groups in their attempts to influence the government of Canada.
The Assembly of First Nations, in negotiating the Charlottetown Accord provisions concerning aboriginal self-government, accepted the principle that First Nations peoples should negotiate directly with the provincial governments to settle land claims and other issues dividing the aboriginal peoples from other Canadians. Opposition groups among the aboriginal peoples in Canada, however, want to maintain the traditional "axis of relations between Indian nations and the Crown, as sometimes formalized in
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