NDP MP Georgina Jolibois stated a national action plan would be extensive. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

national inquiry

MP calls MMIWG report ‘very personal’ for northerners

Jun 3, 2019 | 5:00 PM

The final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) found there’s been a deliberate race, identity and gender-based genocide in Canada.

The report called the violence against Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA people a national tragedy of epic proportions. It also included a list of 231 Calls for Justice to end the genocide, which it states should be implemented by all governments and Canadians. Desnethé-Missinippi-Churchill River NDP MP Georgina Jolibois stated the report suggests to her there is still a lot of work that needs to be done as Canadians move forward towards reconciliation.

“For a lot northerners, this report and how we respond to it is very personal,” she said. “I think of Happy Charles and her family in La Ronge who are still looking for her and need all the support they can get. We cannot lose sight to the fact there are people and families and survivors in northern Saskatchewan, and across Canada, and that this isn’t just an empty policy document.”

Jolibois also promised to review the extensive document with her NDP colleagues and come up with a plan to push for changes based on the recommendations. Some of the recommendations include developing and implementing a National Action Plan to address violence against Indigenous women and girls, eliminating social, economic, cultural and political marginalization, establishing a National Indigenous and Human Rights Tribunal and more. All the Calls for Justice can be found here on the MMIWG website.

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The implementation of a National Action Plan would be extensive, Jolibois stated, as the report declared the level of violence in Canada as a genocide. Across Canada, she said there are many people who have stories about how they lost their loved ones to tragedy, adding governments need to make changes to their policies and laws, so families and communities can heal.

“Canadian history for Indigenous Peoples has not been kind and the onus is on all levels of government and Canadians,” Jolibois said. “All of Canada should continue or should be committed to reconciliation and look at policies, legislation and governments … to make the real changes required for Indigenous families across Canada.”

The national inquiry began in September 2016 and it included testimony from more than 2,300 Canadians. It found that Indigenous women and girls are 12 times more likely to go missing or be murdered than members of any of demographic group in Canada. Between 2001 and 2015, the report stated Indigenous women and girls consisted of 25 per cent of all female homicide victims.

Happy Charles disappeared April 3, 2017, in Prince Albert. (submitted photo/Prince Albert Police Service)

Carson Poitras, whose step-daughter Happy Charles went missing over two years ago, said the report is good but people who have loved ones missing need more resources.

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derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno