Inuktut and French versions available shortly.
The President of Pauktuutit Inuit Women of Canada, Rebecca Kudloo, today issued the following statement on the Speech from the Throne:
“Pauktututit Inuit of Canada welcomes the focus in the Throne Speech on improving the safety and well-being of Inuit women and families. We also appreciate the government’s commitment to keep Inuit and all Canadians safe and supported through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In particular, we are encouraged to see commitments on Pauktuutit’s priority to improve women’s safety by the acceleration of investment in shelters and transitional housing. This aligns with our organization’s call for the urgent investment of $20 million for five new Inuit shelters and safe centres for women and children, in Inuit Nunangat and Ottawa.
“Pauktuutit is also encouraged by the government’s commitment to civilian oversight of the RCMP, a shift toward community-led policing, and better training for police. These commitments will advance some of Pauktuutit’s 15 policing recommendations aimed at improving the safety and security of Inuit women (as per the January 2020 report Addressing Gendered Violence Against Inuit Women: A review of police policies and practices in Inuit Nunangat.
“Also, Pauktuutit is pleased to see a commitment to getting the MMIWG national action plan delivered, as soon as possible. The development of this strategy must fully involve Inuit led organizations and be respectful of the families of our missing and murdered women and girls.
“As well, the commitments to child care, better healthcare, improved food security long-term care, closing the infrastructure gap – particularly for more affordable and safe housing – tackling racism against Indigenous people and action to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples are welcome news.
Pauktuutit applauds the government’s commitment to an intersectional response and recovery with a focus on women, including increased support for women entrepreneurs and the creation of an Action Plan for Women in the Economy.
We look forward to learning more details about these critical promises in the coming weeks and to working with the government to turn these commitments into concrete actions.
Pauktuutit will also monitor and update Inuit, as well as Canadians who share a commitment to reconciliation, on the pace of progress on the commitments made to Inuit women in the government’s Throne Speech.
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For more information contact:
Susan King,
007susanking@gmail.com
613-724-1518