Nunavik police chief stresses healing, rebuilding trust in wake of fatal shooting
Jean-Pierre Larose promises to be present, listen and join Nunavimmiut in healing process
Nunavik Police Service Chief Jean-Pierre Larose offers his first public statement since a Nov. 4 police shooting in Salluit left one man dead and another badly injured. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)
Nunavik Police Service Chief Jean-Pierre Larose said Wednesday he is “deeply affected” by a fatal police shooting earlier this month and that changes have already been made in the way officers will respond to future confrontations.
It was Larose’s first public statement since an early morning altercation involving officers and two residents in Salluit Nov. 4 left Joshua Papigatuk dead and his twin brother, Garnet Papigatuk, severely injured.
Hours after the shooting, angry residents protested outside the Salluit police office, and at another protest the next day in Kuujjuaq some people carried signs with the messages #justiceforJoshua and #justiceforthetwins.
Another protest march is planned for Saturday in Montreal’s Westmount neighbourhood.
Kativik Regional Government chairperson Hilda Snowball, centre, says KRG intends to create a police review committee. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)
“I stand before you today, deeply affected by the recent tragedy that has shaken our community,” Larose said during Wednesday’s Kativik Regional Government council meeting, held in Kuujjuaq.
“One premature loss of life is one too many, and today we carry the weight of this loss together.”
Before Larose spoke Wednesday, KRG council members met privately for two hours discussing the shooting and its aftermath with the chief and his deputies.
When the public meeting resumed, Larose stressed the regional government and Nunavik police are committed to being part of the community, listening, and joining the healing process with Nunavimimut.
“Healing takes time, and rebuilding trust takes even longer,” he said.
“I am committed to ensuring that the NPS does whatever it takes to support this community with transparency, accountability and care.”
Larose said there are two ongoing investigations related to the shooting incident — one by the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes, Quebec’s independent police watchdog agency; the other by the Sureté du Québec.
He said Nunavik Police Service will implement every recommendation once the reports are presented.
“I understand that people have expressed strong opinions on the state of policing in Nunavik. I hear them,” Larose said. “Criticism, when constructive, is an opportunity for growth.”
He said steps have already been taken to modernize and improve the service, including cultural competency training, instruction in de-escalating confrontations, and creating partnerships with social workers.
“It will take open dialogue, mutual respect and a shared vision to move forward from this tragedy,” Larose said.
KRG chairperson Hilda Snowball spoke in Inuktitut, saying that “if we want to have a better, brighter future, I would want to work with the communities.”
Salluit council representative Stephen Grasser urges the public to “not prejudge the outcome” before investigations looking into the Nov. 4 incident are complete. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)
She said KRG, Makivvik Corp. and Nunavik mayors will create a committee with a mandate to address public safety and review the “entire scope of policing services.”
“I do urge you, like me, to keep up the pressure, but not prejudge the outcome,” Salluit council representative Stephen Grasser said during the meeting. “We do not know where this is going to go.”
“It is very important that we work on the facts,” Grasser added. “I know we are angry, and I think that anger is a positive thing if it puts us on the road to resolving an issue.”
Kangiqsualujjuaq council representative Maggie Emudluk, right, wants more experienced officers and more Inuit members for Nunavik’s police service. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)
Kangiqsualujjuaq representative Maggie Emudluk said in Inuktitut that she wishes there were more Inuit police officers, and acknowledged policing is a difficult job.
“We will need to take a leap forward, to take the responsibility of policing services,” she said, pointing to First Nations communities in other regions which have their own local Indigenous police service.
Emudluk noted many officers hired by NPS are young, “they have absolutely no idea who we are as a people, and they enforce their southern policing interventions and they apply them up here.”
You know why there are no INUIT left in the the “force”??
Cause back in the day krpf used up the inuit officers as much as they could and threw them out like race horses when they could no longer keep up with the stress of having to deal with family/friends and everything else that goes with it.
There was no regard for thier mental health, im sure if checked, every ex inuk officer would be diagnosed with ptsd.
We trust you Deadly force will never be used against unarmed suspect ever again. Spit hand shake 🤝.
No. Its entierly warrented and justified in certin situationsif non-deadly force does not work. Not only that, there’s significant court precedent that backs that up via case law.
It is not required that a criminal be armed to have a firearm drawn and used against them. They must represent a threat to a person’s life or to cause serious injury.
Nunavik Police Service Chief Jean-Pierre Larose says or stated “One premature loss of life is one too many, and today we carry the weight of this loss together.” You do not have to carry the emotional grieving loss of a child who was brutally murdered and another young Inuk man seriously injured. He also states “I am committed to ensuring that the NPS does whatever it takes to support this community with transparency, accountability and care.” If the NPS wants transparency, accountability than why shouldn’t an outside agency conduct a NUNAVIK INQUIRY in all their police officers for brutalizing the Inuit, Abuse of their power, calling some Inuit that they are nothing but criminals and animals. Why does the NPS collaborate with the social services, youth protection and the clsc workers in making up fake and harmful criminal charges against innocent people. This to will be swept under the rug by these organizations. Nothing will become of it. The government who created these entities also have blood on their hands and I wonder how they can sleep peacefully at night when they know that their brethren are being falsely charged, intimidated and brutally traumatized by inexperienced law enforcement officers.
Side slipping away from the core problem again and again. Only the truth will permit healing. The alcohol, the drugs. The use of alcohol in a population that can’t handle it. Going crazy after a few drinks. Combine with drugs and many times hard drugs. Everyone got problems , but the population of Nunavik got a unique problem with alcohol, drink and go crazy outstandingly. It’s not politically correct to mention that, therefore it’s denying the issue, and life goes on miserable for Nunavik. Admit the problem and get help, until then nothing will change and probably get worse. Forward to 5 or 10 years, same problem with alcohol. As severe as it sounds, a large portion of Nunavik can’t handle alcohol, and are ruining their lives and other too. Have them not use alcohol will bring a solution, but can’t do the incredible, so it must go on.
When the Quebec Court is present in our Nunavik community, approximately 98 percent of the people who go to court is due to alcohol. Its mostly the same Inuit men and women who do not want to admit that when drinking alcohol, alcohol begins to control them. This is what they cannot see or do not want to understand. They keep telling themselves that they can drink and act like a “normal” person who drinks. They are lying to themselves. Once they have a few beers or shots of liquor in their system than the real violent, mouthy person comes out. It is not necessarily an alcohol issue but a mental and emotional behavioral issue. Again its the mental and emotional behavioral issue that causes them to believe that when they are drunk they are calmer people. They are lying to themselves, their sons and daughter and their grandchildren. Its time that the Inuit organizations get together to give help to the alcoholics and drug addicts in each 14 Nunavik communities.
Ask common people about what the RCMP do to the residents of Nunavut people. We call, we complain and do try to report incidences involving the cops that deal with intoxicated people or whom they are against in the community. BUT, of course, they do not review or investigate any of them. Us, common people do not have any power to report them or have our say.
If that’s the case, then why is it the Nunavut cops have a long list of records of issues in Nunavut related to alcohol abuse? There was a report a few years back that said the cops in Nunavut, have the highest rates of threats and abuse towards them by Nunavutmiut. People here need to stop breaking the law, politicians and elected leaders need to remind their constituents to stop abusing alcohol and to stop breaking the law. People here who break the law play victim just so they don’t go to jail.
I don’t know why I am agreeing with you but you tell the truth.