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Friday, October 4, 2024

MPs to discuss deaths of First Nations people by police in emergency debate

OTTAWA — Members of Parliament will hold an emergency debate in the House of Commons Monday night on a string of recent deaths of First Nations people during interactions with Canadian police forces.

Six First Nations people have died in the last two weeks at the hands of police officers, which NDP MP Lori Idlout characterizes as a “disturbing pattern.”

She wrote a letter to House Speaker Greg Fergus calling for the emergency debate, lambasting what she called a lack of media coverage of the deaths and inaction by the government to pass legislation on First Nations policing.

“As parliamentarians, it is on us to show leadership and take responsibility to keep our institutions accountable. People across Canada must know their Parliament is addressing the institutional violence in their communities as a critical and immediate priority,” she wrote.

“There is a clear, urgent interest for Parliament to debate this disturbing pattern, so that parliamentarians can discuss immediate measures that can be taken to save Indigenous lives, today.”

The deaths happened in Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and New Brunswick between Aug. 29 to Sept. 8.

Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, the national chief for the Assembly of First Nations, says the deaths demonstrate systemic issues across the country. She is demanding accountability from police through independent investigations into each of the deaths.

“Time and again, we have witnessed the consequences of law enforcement’s failure to employ de-escalation techniques and culturally informed practices,” she said in a statement.

“We will continue to call for action to address these failures and expect full transparency in cases where lives have been needlessly lost.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.

Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press

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