More safe shelters needed for Inuit women: Pauktuutit

Pauktuutit Inuit Women of Canada has renewed its plea to federal, provincial and territorial governments for help curbing violence against women in Inuit communities.

The plea comes only days after an Iqaluit woman and her two young daughters were found dead in their home, in what police are calling a homicide.

Pauktuutit’s priority is to see more safe shelters, said its president, Elisapee Sheutiapik – a priority that the organization says is unique to Inuit territories.

“More than 70 per cent of our communities are without a safe shelter for women and children victims of violence,” Sheutiapik said in a release. “Given the overcrowded and inadequate housing so many of our people are forced to live in and the exorbitant cost of transportation between our communities, this can too often mean that an Inuk woman may literally have nowhere to go to escape violence in the home.”

Sheutiapik raised the need for shelters and an action plan to deal with violence June 17 at a national forum in Vancouver addressing violence against aboriginal women.

“Now that the fog of shock and grief is starting to lift from the events of last week, we have an even greater strength and commitment to continuing our work with many partners to address violence and abuse in our communities” Sheutiapik said. “As leaders and community members, we all have a duty to talk about these deeply painful issues in order to find solutions.”

When the federal government announced $10 million to address violence against aboriginal women last October, Pauktuutit developed a number of recommendations for immediate next steps.

Among them was the need to hold a national forum with Inuit experts and regional leaders to develop community response plans to violence.

Sheutiapik said Inuit communities will also need to develop specialized plans to support victims of elder abuse and child sexual abuse.

“I would welcome a commitment from our federal, provincial and territorial partners to help us achieve these objectives as soon as possible.” Sheutiapik said.

Kwezdo Forson, the executive director at the Kataujaq Safe Shelter in Rankin Inlet, said that shelter directors “are ready, willing and able to partner with Pauktuutit and others to increase the safety of women and children in our communities.”