MMIW inquiry will continue

TRUDEAU SIDESTEPS CALLS TO REBOOT INQUIRY INTO MURDERED, MISSING INDIGENOUS WOMEN

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is giving no indication he will address the growing demand for change to the independent inquiry his government launched to examine the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

The two-year process — designed to examine systemic causes of prevalent violence — has been heavily scrutinized, especially this week, after one of five commissioners decided to call it quits. Some families are now calling for a complete reboot of the process.

But during a news conference Thursday, Trudeau said his government will engage with the existing commission to ensure it is responding to concerns of families.

“I have had the privilege of sitting down with families in various ceremonies across the country over the past years where we’ve cried and shared stories and looked for hope and healing,” he said. “I think everyone recognizes the tremendously difficult task that any national public inquiry into this was going to face.”

Marilyn Poitras, a Metis professor from Saskatchewan, said she felt regret and a “heavy heart” as she made her decision to resign, saying she strongly feels the terms of reference for the inquiry “have not been met.”

While the commission says it will move ahead despite Poitras’ resignation and the departure of other staff members, a coalition of frustrated families think it’s time to start over.

Some of their concerns include a lack of information about how the inquiry’s hearings will work and fears they will retraumatize vulnerable survivors and loved ones.

They also wonder why the commission held only a single hearing in Whitehorse in the span of almost a year.