44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 4, 2022 02:00PM
- May/4/22 8:04:38 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I would be open to hearing anything that helps solve this problem and makes it safer for indigenous women and girls anywhere. As we did here in committee, there are a number of changes that can be made so that indigenous police services have a level playing field with non-indigenous police services. That might help people feel safe and change that relationship a bit. I would support that, and any other measures that might help the situation.
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- May/4/22 8:22:55 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for that impactful speech.
I am aware of what is happening because indigenous women in my riding, Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, are experiencing the same thing. Women are still disappearing in Val-d'Or. Sometimes they are found, sometimes not. How can this still be going on? I cannot understand it.
We know the government is not doing anything. It is not walking the talk, as they say, nor is it listening to what indigenous women and communities want. I would like my colleague to tell me what she thinks of this government's response to everything that happened with the national inquiry into indigenous women and girls.
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- May/4/22 8:40:24 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague, with whom I serve on the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. I must say that it is an honour to work with her.
She was appointed to the committee in the new Parliament. Since I joined the committee in 2019, practically every study the committee has done shows that indigenous women are disproportionately affected. We did a study on the impacts of COVID-19, and we are currently doing one on the impacts of resource development. We have also explored rural issues and the mental load. Every study the committee conducts shows that indigenous women are more likely to be victims.
Why are we still having take-note debates in 2022? When are we actually going to do something?
Taking a first step is indeed important, but what does my colleague think of all these studies that are piling up?
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- May/4/22 9:07:37 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, it is truly an honour to be standing in this House speaking on this. I have heard, especially when I speak of the member for Winnipeg Centre, passionate voices, and I am learning about these things. I would like to thank all of the members who have so far participated in tonight's debate because they are bringing so much genuine thought and care to this discussion. That is why tonight I will be splitting my time with my colleague from Calgary Nose Hill, to discuss the things we need to have genuine discussion about, such as murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. This is something we must focus on.
Throughout this pandemic, we have seen an absolute increase in violence against women. If we want to look at the statistics and want to be embarrassed, we should look at what those statistics are for indigenous women. The statistics are truly undeniable for people to disagree with or to not take into consideration. Indigenous women do face the highest levels of violence of any other women in this country. We need to recognize that. We need to say, “How can we do better?”
As the member mentioned earlier, we are doing a very important study at this time. It is a study where we can talk about what is happening in the resource sector. What can we do to make sure the lives of families and the lives of women and girls in those communities are better? What can we do to ensure that, when we are talking about human trafficking and sexual exploitation, when we are talking about the lack of resources and lack of supports for indigenous people in their communities and when we are talking about the intergenerational trauma, what is it that we can do to help? What can we do?
We know that indigenous-led and indigenous solutions are where we need to start. We have heard that from all of the members in here. It cannot be a top-down approach. It needs to be a time when we are looking at women who are facing extreme circumstances in their own homes. Sometimes, it is because of addictions. Sometimes it is abuse. We know from the past that so much healing needs to be done.
That is why I really am enjoying listening to this debate and listening to the members. I can feel that we are in a room where people actually care. People actually want to do something. I am hoping that the tone of this debate stays there. We can sit here and try to divide. We can try to wedge people. We can try to put in a question that might get a lot of likes on Twitter, but it is not going to help one single women or girl who needs that help in indigenous communities.
That is why I am speaking about this tonight. What can we do when we are talking about this? We need to talk about the intersectionality. We need to talk about things like the gender-based analysis, which we do talk about, and the gender, sex, age, citizenship and immigration status, income, and education, but, most of all, we need to talk about the location in Canada. The location in Canada is so important because, when we are talking about resources, we recognize that in rural and remote communities these resources may not be available. We are looking for shelters. We are talking about women having to get in a plane to fly to another community because they may not have any health care within their own communities. We are talking about an issue where we know that when they want to speak to the authorities, there is no trust. That is something that I have heard time and time again.
We need to work to rebuild that trust. That is why, as I am listening to this, I am hoping for a non-partisan approach where we are actually trying to do what is right for the women and girls who are indigenous. We are trying to improve, so I am very excited to participate in this debate today, and I am looking forward to the rest of it.
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- May/4/22 9:16:00 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for her speech. She is the chair of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women.
Earlier I touched on the fact that the Standing Committee on the Status of Women does a lot of studies. We hear from witnesses from different indigenous communities and different groups that work with indigenous communities. The committee hears solutions during our studies.
These studies are important, but so is action, and so are the reports we could be taking into account, such as the report from the Standing Committee on the Status of Women that suggests various measures to prevent another indigenous woman or girl from going missing or being murdered.
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- May/4/22 9:27:38 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I say yes to safe transportation and yes to all these things that make women safer, but to say this is the only industry where first nations and indigenous women experience violence is wrong. What about sex work, just to start? What about any downtown core? I grew up in Winnipeg. My family has lived in the member for Winnipeg Centre's riding.
I think we can acknowledge that in some industries and specific areas there are problems to fix and work on, but are we trying to suggest that they are the only places? I can only feel and imagine the frustration of women from these communities who are asking, “Are you kidding me?”
I would just ask everybody to take a moment and take a pause. Let us make extractive communities safer for these women, but let us not pretend those are the only places where this happens, because it is dangerously laughable and disgusting to think otherwise.
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- May/4/22 9:38:43 p.m.
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Madam Chair, indeed, I met with a group of women from Quebec just recently to talk about their concerns and to talk about the opportunities ahead for indigenous women and indigenous women in leadership. I will continue to meet with indigenous women's groups, and indeed all indigenous communities and families across the country, to make sure that we can course correct as we do this important work together.
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- May/4/22 10:19:39 p.m.
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Madam Chair, kwe. Tansi. Hello. Bonjour. First I want to acknowledge that Canada's Parliament is located on the traditional and unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people, and second I want to say a special word of thanks to the strong first nations, Inuit and Métis leaders, community members and allies who have been preparing for Red Dress Day this week.
According to statistics in Canada, more than six in 10 indigenous women have experienced physical or sexual assault in their lifetimes. Almost six in 10 indigenous women have experienced physical assault, while almost half of indigenous women have experienced sexual assault. More than four in 10 indigenous women have experienced physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner. This is unacceptable. While making up only 5% of the Canadian population, indigenous women now account for more than 42% of the female inmate population in Canada.
That is why this government is working to address injustices and the causes of violence against indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQ+ people. That is why we have invested more than $2.2 billion over five years to address the missing and murdered indigenous women inquiry's calls to justice. At the same time, we have to support the survivors, their families and their communities that have been harmed by devastating acts of violence and ongoing crisis.
As part of the federal pathway, we have been developing ongoing, accessible and culturally relevant healing programs and support for children, survivors and family members. We have been working with indigenous partners across the country, as well as other levels of government. At every step of the way, we have been listening to indigenous partners for their expertise and insights into which culturally appropriate approaches will best help those who need the support.
So far, we have provided $2.5 million to 20 indigenous partners who are working on projects to promote healing for survivors and families. I would like to recognize these organizations, highlight them a little and talk about their dedication and efforts toward helping families and survivors by designing and delivering culturally effective, sensitive programming.
To begin, I would like to talk about a project that takes place in the Atlantic region: the Wabanaki Two Spirit Alliance. 2SLGB—
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- May/4/22 10:35:09 p.m.
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Madam Chair, in my riding of North Island—Powell River, a couple of indigenous women have gathered many indigenous women together to bead red dress earrings and pins. What they do is fundraise so they can support families that have lost indigenous women and girls. They fundraise so they can put up billboards of missing indigenous women and girls so that people know the faces of those who are lost from their families forever.
Can the member speak about how important it is that we not ask people to be charitable in this, but ask government to be responsible for the actions it takes in making sure that we find these women and girls?
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- May/4/22 10:35:57 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I want to thank the member for that incredibly important question. It really highlights the fact that it should not be incumbent on the communities to raise awareness. Government has to take a big step in this.
In my own community, just a kilometre from my house we had a tragic situation. It was the community that had to rally. I was so grateful that leaders from all levels of government did come together to help, but that needs to be larger. The federal government needs to have investments in place.
One thing I would love to see is a “red dress alert” to try to help get the information out quicker. We know that when women are found faster, they are more likely to be found alive.
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- May/4/22 10:36:58 p.m.
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Madam Chair, my colleague mentioned various solutions, such as housing. For indigenous women to escape the cycle of violence, they must have the means to regain power over their own lives. However, some communities have truly appalling housing, others do not even have water and some do not even have electricity.
How can we give these women a safe and adequate environment so that they have what they need to break the cycle of violence and thereby prevent the disappearance of more women?
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- May/4/22 10:59:47 p.m.
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Madam Chair, these stories just break our hearts. History repeats itself because we do not take it on board as a situation. We would not tolerate this if, throughout society, at the same proportion of the population, women with my colour of skin were going missing at the same rate as indigenous women. We have to face facts. History repeats itself because racism remains systemic.
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- May/4/22 11:10:18 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it appears I have the thankless task of closing this evening's take-note debate. I am speaking, albeit with a great deal of disgust, as the Bloc Québécois critic for the status of women in this take-note debate on indigenous women and girls.
This debate is taking place the night before Red Dress Day, a day to honour missing and murdered indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.
It is sad to see that even now, in 2022, attacking women is still seen as a way to endanger the survival of a people. It is sad that we are still talking about mothers, daughters, sisters, friends who have disappeared, women who are no longer here, who will never come back.
Nevertheless, I will approach my speech from three angles: the Liberal government's inaction, some of the issues discussed at the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, and finally, a bit about Quebec's perspective on this issue.
After waiting more than three years, the Liberal government finally unveiled its action plan to end violence against indigenous women and girls last summer, yet indigenous women and many indigenous organizations feel the response is insufficient and long overdue.
When asked at a press conference about the federal government's progress on the plan it presented last summer, two years late, regarding the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, the Minister of Justice admitted that the government had fallen behind because of the federal election in September 2021 and because of the war in Ukraine, which started on February 24. The government is finding excuses to explain its inaction. Why is the government not stepping up?
The federal government must take its share of the responsibility, but it is not doing so, especially with respect to the report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, on which the federal government has done little to follow up.
The figures are staggering. Between 2004 and 2014, while the homicide rate across Canada was declining, the number of indigenous women and girls who were murdered was six times higher than the rate among non-indigenous women. According to the 2018 figures for Canada, 25.1% of non-indigenous women report having experiencing physical and sexual abuse by an intimate partner, but that figure rises to 43.7% among indigenous women. In addition, 38.2% of non-indigenous women report having experienced physical and sexual violence committed by someone other than an intimate partner, compared to 54.9% among indigenous women. The situation did not improve during the pandemic.
Obviously, these are the official figures, and in cases where women were willing to come forward, of course it is not easy to admit it and speak out against it. It it hard to get out of a cycle of violence. The National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls stated that ending it “requires a new relationship and an equal partnership between all Canadians and Indigenous Peoples”.
The calls for justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, presented as legal imperatives rather than voluntary recommendations, set out transformative measures in a number of areas including health, safety, justice, culture and ordinarily the following:
We need to establish the position of a national indigenous and human rights ombudsperson and establish a national indigenous and human rights tribunal. The report also talks about developing and implementing a national action plan to ensure equitable access to employment, housing, education, safety and health care.
The government must provide long-term funding for educational programs and awareness campaigns related to violence prevention and combatting lateral violence. Furthermore, the government must prohibit the apprehension of children on the basis of poverty and cultural bias. This is all great on paper, but the government must now stop shelving report after report and start responding to the calls to action.
After the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls tabled its more than 2,000-page report, chief commissioner Marion Buller even stated that despite their different circumstances and backgrounds, all of the missing and murdered are connected by economic, social and political marginalization, racism, and misogyny woven into the fabric of Canadian society.
Indigenous communities need to rebuild, and Quebeckers and Canadians need to acknowledge the collective trauma experienced by these communities, understand it and take steps to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again.
Moreover, the increasing pressure on the federal government, which until that point had disregarded the calls to action, finally gave rise to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada in 2015, almost seven years ago. The commission came out in favour of a national inquiry into the violence disproportionately experienced by indigenous women and girls.
The national inquiry's final report was released on June 3, 2019, and all the long delays were unacceptable, especially on the part of a government that calls itself feminist. Its failure to act tarnished its international reputation. Béatrice Vaugrante, then executive director of Amnesty International for francophone Canada, said as much because numerous UN, U.S., and U.K. bodies asked Canada to end violence against indigenous women. She considered this Canada's worst human rights issue and said the government's failure to recognize the magnitude of the problem and take action was unacceptable.
In October 2004, in response to the tragically high number of indigenous women being victimized, Amnesty International even released a report entitled “Stolen Sisters: A Human Rights Response to Discrimination and Violence against Indigenous Women in Canada”, an unmistakable call to take action and implement concrete measures.
Five years after the initial report, Amnesty International followed up with a second report entitled “No More Stolen Sisters: The Need for a Comprehensive Response to Discrimination and Violence against Indigenous Women in Canada” to underscore the five factors that contributed to the phenomenon of violence against indigenous women. First, the role of racism and misogyny in perpetuating violence against indigenous women. Second, the sharp disparities between indigenous and non-indigenous women when it comes to the fulfilment of their economic, social, political and cultural rights. Third, the disruption of indigenous societies caused by the historic and ongoing mass removal of children from indigenous families and communities. Fourth, the disproportionately high number of indigenous women in Canadian prisons, many of whom were themselves victims of violence. Fifth, inadequate police response to violence against indigenous women as illustrated by the handling of missing persons cases.
At the committee on which I sit, we have seen in many studies—such as the study on the disproportionate impact that the pandemic had on women, the study on invisible work, the study on women in rural communities, and the study on intimate partner violence—that indigenous women and girls are almost always among those who are most affected.
We are in the process of completing a study on the impact that resource development has on indigenous women. In study after study, witnesses from different indigenous communities and organizations are sharing their harsh realities with us. They are also sharing concrete proposals.
As vice-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group to End Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking, I am also shocked to know that nearly 54% of trafficked women are indigenous. That seems extremely high to me.
I also had to address this issue while filling in at the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security. In fact, this issue finally made the news for the first time in 2014 when the RCMP released figures on the number of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. A total of 1,017 indigenous women and girls went missing or were murdered between 1980 and 2012. There are still 105 women unaccounted for who have disappeared under unexplained or suspicious circumstances. That is a lot.
Finally, I want to discuss some of the things we are experiencing in Quebec. I want to highlight the work being done at the Val-d'Or Native Friendship Centre. I hope to have the opportunity to visit it one day. We are also sensitive to the issue of restorative justice. Then there is the Viens commission that was launched by the Quebec government following the disappearance of Sindy Ruperthouse, a woman from Pikogan in Abitibi, near Val-d'Or. My colleague, the member for Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, could tell the House about this. She said that she has heard a number of indigenous women in Abitibi accuse the police of physical and sexual abuse, and the same thing could happen in many other ridings throughout Quebec. My colleague from Manicouagan can also testify to this.
Here is what an organization in Quebec had to say. According to Viviane Michel, a former president of Quebec Native Women, it is essential that indigenous women, families and communities have the opportunity to be heard as part of any inquiry. She also said that understanding the deep roots underlying the systemic discrimination faced by indigenous women is crucial to ensuring their dignity and safety. She also pointed out that the report itself recognizes that indigenous women are at greater risk of being murdered or going missing, and she wondered why the government was not taking real, concrete, tangible action that would make a difference.
In closing, the Bloc Québécois has been promoting this nation-to-nation partnership with indigenous peoples for several years now. Furthermore, during the election campaign, our party's position was clear. Modern treaties are needed. This position is extremely important to me and my colleagues. It will be up to the nations themselves to say what they want and decide what they want to negotiate with Ottawa.
I would like to mention one last thing. Last fall I travelled to the shores of Lake Memphremagog, at the invitation of the Eastern Townships chapter of World March of Women. Red dresses in varying sizes were hung up on a line. I realized that women and girls of all ages are among the missing and murdered, each with their own story, and they all had loved ones who were left to wonder what had happened to them.
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- May/4/22 11:20:19 p.m.
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Madam Chair, the member from the Bloc spoke about some women's organizations, and she serves on the status of women committee. In saying that, the Coalition on Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls in B.C., the Ontario Native Women's Association and Quebec Native Women Inc. are all groups that were excluded from the process of developing the national action plan, despite multiple requests to the government to join the process and have their voices heard.
Does the member believe that the exclusion of the voices of these grassroots women's organizations in the development of the national action plan will impact, or have potential to impact, the long-term success of this action plan?
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- May/4/22 11:22:03 p.m.
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Madam Chair, as we sit here in this place, and we talk about indigenous women and girls and the realities that they face, and how many of them go missing or are murdered, I think of the many constituents I have in my riding who tell me the reality they face every day because they do not know, in one case for 35 years, where their sisters are. They just always have that haunting sort of history in their mind: What happened? Is she okay? Is she dead somewhere? How do we find her?
We are here in this place. We have calls to action. We know the pathway that we need to take. What we need to see is for the government to actually invest resources into that pathway so that we can move forward and so that, finally, indigenous women and girls can be valued the way they should be.
Could this member talk about how important it is to actually see those resources so the actions can happen, and so that the women do not have to have this experience anymore?
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- May/4/22 11:23:09 p.m.
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Madam Chair, as my colleague from Saanich—Gulf Islands mentioned earlier, there are more than 200 calls to action, to justice. My colleague is right: We know what they are, but we are still gathered here asking questions, thinking about what we might put in another report. It is sad.
As my colleague from Manicouagan was saying, when they talk about money, it is usually for publicity, for PR, to give the impression that something is being done. If there is no real political will to follow through on the recommendations and move forward, we will not make any progress. This is about more than just money. Other women and girls will go missing or get murdered.
As I said at the end of my speech, these are women we will never find again, and their loved ones will continue to wonder. The image of the dresses hanging up was striking.
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