Violence makes Nunavut unique

It’s unfortunate that Statistics Canada issues its annual roundup of national crime numbers during the depths of summer, when many of Nunavut’s decision-makers are not at their desks and everyone else is enjoying the weather.

It makes it that much easier to pretend that Nunavut doesn’t have a crime problem, especially with crimes of violence. It makes it that much easier for territorial and community leaders to evade reality, and to evade discussion of the life-and-death issues they’re too scared, or too embarrassed to face.

Like the scarred and battered faces of Nunavut’s violent crime victims, the raw numbers do not lie. And the numerous issues they raise will not go away.

In 1999, 1,362 person were charged with criminal offences in Nunavut. In 2002, that number had grown to 2,180 and in 2003 rose to 2,333 persons. Given that Nunavut’s population last year stood at slightly less than 30,000 people, this is an enormous proportion of the population.

It represents 1,000 more names on court dockets throughout the territory, 1,000 more people in need of legal-aid lawyers, and 1,000 more case-files to be managed by over-burdened Crown prosecutors and judges. It represents many more embittered and damaged victims.

And, of course, it represents bigger budgets for law enforcement. In 2003, the RCMP’s “V” division spent almost $31 million on its operations in Nunavut, compared with $21 million in 2001, 70 per cent of which is paid by the Nunavut government. Not surprisingly, the RCMP is seeking more money through its next contract with the GN. Health is not the only area of territorial government whose costs are escalating.

Consider also that large numbers of those people are charged with crimes of violence against other persons. In 1999, 630 persons were charged with violent crimes. In 2003, that number rose to 1,047.

These are the kinds of offenders who are most likely to end up with jail sentences if convicted – at least, that’s what most people expect. But the number of correctional centre spaces in Nunavut does not appear to be increasing at the same pace.

That’s likely why we’re seeing greater use of house-arrest and probation orders, even for petty sex-offenders and wife-beaters, as well as the use of on-the-land “corrections camps.” It’s not difficult to conclude that the real motivation behind these measures is the need to control costs – not rehabilitation, or better programs for offenders.

It’s violence, however, that makes Nunavut unique. Nunavut is the only jurisdiction in Canada where the rate of violent crime is greater than the rate of property crime. In nearly all other jurisdictions, the rate of property crime is at least three times greater than the rate of violent crime. But not in Nunavut, where the ratio is nearly reversed.

The causes are obvious: alcohol and drug abuse, and a growing culture of toleration and excuse-making for violence and abuse. It’s painfully clear that alcohol abuse especially has grown totally out of control. Only the RCMP seem willing to acknowledge this and attempt to do something about it.

There are numerous people who deny this reality, and it’s not hard to understand why. Most of the violence in Nunavut is private and domestic. It takes place behind closed doors, and only occasionally spills out into public places. Nunavut’s streets are safe. It’s inside the home where the weak and the vulnerable face the greatest dangers.

All this violence used to produce bruises and scars, broken bones, broken people and broken families – but the victims usually survived.

Now it’s producing dead bodies. At least two, and possibly three, of the four homicides reported in Nunavut this year were domestic in nature. The wounds that these tragedies inflict on families and communities are life-long, inspiring anger, fear and bitterness.

There’s no point in pretending that there are easy “solutions” to Nunavut’s rate of violent crime. There rarely are any. Governments can sometimes nurture social change, but they can’t legislate it, or use policies and programs to make it happen. It will happen person by person, slowly, and only when more people adopt better values, and learn to make their actions fit them. JB