'We shouldn't have to be fearful in our own communities.'

Police in Iqaluit are still looking for whoever is responsible for a pair of sexual assaults as outraged citizens prepared to march against the violence.

The most recent attack occurred during the early morning hours of Sept. 28 when a man dressed in black clothes sexually assaulted a woman in the Happy Valley neighbourhood of Iqaluit.

On Oct. 1, a woman walking in the same area was chased and whistled at by a man also wearing black clothing. She escaped without incident.

"The lady became frightened because somebody whistled at her and then she ran away," said Sgt. Kim Melenchuk of Iqaluit's RCMP detachment.

Those incidents come on the heels of a Sept. 8 sexual assault on a woman behind Inuksuk High School.

The attacker in that incident also wore black clothing. The victim was also badly beaten and is still in Ottawa receiving medical treatment.

Rumours had also circulated around Iqaluit that the woman assaulted during the Sept. 8 incident had died. But "that's a horrible rumour" and untrue, Melenchuk said.

He wouldn't say if police think any of the incidents are connected, only that they are investigating.

In the wake of that first attack, Qulliit Nunavut Status of Women Council organized a Take Back The Night march from Inuksuk High School to the Parish Hall this past Thursday, after Nunatsiaq News' press-time.

The most recent incidents only reinforce the need for a march, said Shylah Elliot, executive director of Qulliit. She hoped the event would help "take back places in town where women should be able to walk at night."

"We shouldn't have to be fearful to walk in our own communities, especially when communities in the North are so small and most people know each other," she said.

Police have urged women not to travel unlit trails after dark and recommend women carry whistles and cell phones when out.

Elliot endorsed those measures and also suggested women travel in groups when possible and make sure people know where you're going and when you expect to get there.

Organizers of the Take Back The Night march also planned to give out more whistles.