"Established in August 1991, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples was tasked with a broad range of issues, many of which are complex and deal with long standing matters in the relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples in Canada. The Commission's investigation covered a broad spectrum of the Aboriginal experience in Canada including: the history of the relations between Aboriginal peoples, the Canadian government, and Canadian society as a whole; the recognition of self government; the land base for Aboriginal peoples; the constitutional responsibilities of the Canadian Crown toward Aboriginal peoples and the legal position of the Metis and off-reserve Indians; Aboriginal treaties and modern-day agreements; special difficulties of Aboriginal people who live in the North; the Indian Act and the role of the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs; social, economic, and cultural issues of concern to Aboriginal peoples; the position and role of Aboriginal elders and women and the situation of Aboriginal youth; and education and justice issues of concern to Aboriginal peoples"--Library and Archives Canada.