Monday, January 30, 2006
Over the years, she's taken lumps from political pundits and editorial writers, cheered signing of treaties and self-government deals, and helped bring hundreds of millions of dollars to the Territories.
Being a member of parliament is a tough, often thankless job. For five years, or less, you're forced to leave your home, spend hours and hours on planes and in meetings, and get subjected to verbal beatings from political opponents. And then there are the kitchen critics who dissect every word and criticize every move. To them, nothing is good enough.
Ethel did the job for nearly 18 years, and went from being the first Dene woman to represent the NWT on the back benches of the House of Commons to the cabinet room in successive Liberal governments.
Sure, she's earned a healthy pension, but she's also due the thanks of the people she's represented.
Her successor, New Democrat Dennis Bevington, has been elected to represent the Territories at a key time in our history. Hearings have begun on the Mackenzie Gas Project, something that could forever alter the North. Important devolution and resource revenue sharing agreements have to be hammered out.
Add to that the fact he has to represent the North's interests from the opposition benches of a divided house, led by a Conservative government that has a vulnerable minority.
Dennis is saying the right things, how he's ready to work with the Tories. We hope that happens because they're pledged to honour many of the important Liberal policies that are so critical to building the new North.
It's easy to score points with sharp-tongued attacks in parliament; it's hard to put politics in the back seat when the best interests of your constituents are at stake.
So, farewell Ethel: thanks for your service and best wishes for the future. To Dennis: grab your bullhorn and get ready to be the North's new champion. We're counting on you; and don't forget that in the rough and tumble world of politics, yesterday's victories can quickly change to tomorrow's troubles.
Annie Onalik's story is not new. It isn't that different from dozens of stories that are out there across the territory.
What is different is that she is saying it out loud and people are starting to listen.
Annie Onalik's story is not just about being abused for 20 years and the hardships it took her to get away from the violence.
It's about the realities of living in Nunavut, of not being able to leave her home because with the extreme lack of housing she had nowhere to go to escape the abuse.
The biggest step Annie Onalik took was asking for help.
What eventually made the difference is that somebody finally listened.
She was able to kick her husband out of her life, and take a stab at a new life without violence, without fear.
Now, we just have to get the whole territory to hear Annie's story, because her's is not the only one.
The courts have to get tough with abusers; the government has to make it easier for women to leave abusive relationships.
Until everyone hears what victims are saying and takes positive action, nothing will change.
Business is booming in the Kitikmeot, and the region is poised to once again show what it has to offer during the upcoming trade show in February.
The region is a hotbed of mineral exploration activity.
Tahera is on the verge of opening up the first mine in Nunavut, and Miramar is likely not far behind.
There is also the prospect of the Bathurst Inlet port and road project becoming a reality.
The deals signed during the 2005 event totalled between $300,000 and $400,000 for business firms.
This interest in the region is slowly turning into positives for residents.
Opportunities for training and jobs with southern companies are coming along, as are opportunities for people to start their own businesses. Spinoffs in other areas, such as arts. are being felt as well. Artists are able to commission works from trade show guests for the upcoming year that can fetch up to $10,000 each.
With this year's show expected to be even bigger than last year, hopes are high that the economy will run along smoothly.
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
There's a storm cloud brewing over the Arctic Winter Games (AWG) and, when all is said and done, it might prove itself to be a good thing.
Simply put, the costs associated with running the Games are spiralling out of control.
The 2006 AWG are being held from March 5-11 in the Kenai-Soldotna area of Alaska.
The operations budget for the Games has reached $5.3 million and growing.
In fact, an additional $500,000 had to be funnelled to the Games through a defense appropriation bill passed by the U.S. Congress this past month.
The explanation for the late addition to the bill was to provide communications and security at the Games.
The addition was spearheaded by Alaskan Sen. Ted Stevens and drew flak from a number of watchdog groups who viewed the move as unnecessary and excessive spending.
The 2006 AWG will feature 1,900 athletes and cultural performers, along with another 800 "special guests."
This does not include mission staff accompanying our athletes, nor does it include the vast majority of bureaucrats who will make the trip to Alaska on public money.
Through all of this, there are two distinct voices growing noticeably louder during the past year.
One states the obvious in that the Games have become too expensive for cash-starved areas to compete in, and are no longer economically viable to host.
The second voice is more dramatic, saying the AWG have outlived their usefulness and should be put back on the shelf.
The AWG bring far too many positives into the lives of Northern youth to be discontinued altogether.
However, the cost must be scaled back and the first place to start is in the area of government personalities and "special guests."
Attending the AWG is an expected perk for far too many government officials who serve no useful purpose at the event.
It would be far better for the areas involved to look at cutting down those numbers, rather than saving money at the expense of the athletes themselves, as was done two years ago when the hockey peewees were dropped from the lineup.
Host committees also have to avoid the temptation of comparing the AWG to the Canada Summer or Winter Games.
There is no comparison other than the athletic competition itself, and even that is a stretch when you consider the AWG came about through the frustration of Northern leaders watching their athletes get thumped by those in the South.
The vast majority of the South has too many advantages in numerous areas for us to try and compete at their level.
Sad? Maybe. Frustrating? Absolutely, but true nonetheless.
The AWG have come a long way since the original event was held in Yellowknife in 1970 and they must continue.
But, for that to happen, sound financial practises must rule the day and excessive spending trimmed before public opinion turns against the event.
Maybe the return of the 2008 AWG to Yellowknife will see the launching of a popular new event: Dump the bureaucrat.
Editorial Comment
Jason Unrau
Inuvik Drum
Looking back at deposed Prime Minister Paul Martin's 2004 Northern tour, which brought the leader to this region for a brief meet-and-greet, I recall being impressed by the man's ability to work a room.
During the now-concluded election campaign, facing a potential overthrow from power, as far as one could notice from watching several of Martin's television appearances, he was not the same person who held Inuvik residents in the palm of his hand that day.
In fact, during the election campaign, I don't remember hearing a single speech in which Martin didn't stumble over his words, or show body language telling of a man who perhaps could see the Jan. 23 writing on the wall.
Should we be worried to see Martin and the Liberals out of power? Hardly. As resource revenue sharing and devolution has been touted as the great leap forward for the NWT, we are no closer to that objective than we were when Martin pledged to move on making the deal "as soon as possible" back during his 2004 tour. Remind you of any other unkept Liberal promises?
Those concerned that the Conservatives won't uphold the Kelowna deal that saw $5 billion pledged for improving the lives of aboriginal people need to look at the Liberal, NDP and Bloc seats stacked against Harper and his party in Ottawa. The same goes for the residential schools settlement deal, same-sex marriage and the abortion issue - the latter two, hot-button issues over the course of the campaign.
The Liberals, in another lame attempt to scare voters into holding their noses and giving Martin another mandate, wanted everyone to believe a Stephen Harper government would send our nation into backwoods chaos.
So where does the Western Arctic's newest Member of Parliament, NDP-er Dennis Bevington, fit into the equation?
Supporters of Richard Edjericon, the Western Arctic Conservative candidate, feel that with Harper in power, an NDP voice from the North isn't going to carry much weight in Ottawa.
A quick glance at Western Arctic voting results this time around compared to 2004's federal election results shows the Conservatives picked up about 1,200 more votes with Edjericon as their face-man, roughly the margin of victory for Bevington over Blondin-Andrew. Pundits from around the North saw this crucial vote split coming from a mile away, and after the spat between Edjericon and Blondin-Andrew on the radio last week, Bevington appears all the more a common-sense man for the job.
As Conservatives now control 124 seats, the Liberals 103, Bloc with 51 and 29 for the NDP and one independent, citizens can expect alliances of every combination to be made for key votes in the house.
How these alliances play out in the coming months is what will determine the amount of power Bevington will have to give Western Arctic residents a Northern voice - not merely which political stripes our man in Ottawa wears.
Editorial Comment
Roxanna Thompson
Deh Cho Drum
The votes are in and the tallies have been counted.
Canada is now home to a sparkling new minority Conservative government with Stephen Harper at the helm. This will certainly be a change after 12 years of Liberal rule.
In the Northwest Territories, the shift is even more striking with Liberal candidate Ethel Blondin-Andrew leaving her position as MP after five consecutive sessions starting in 1988.
But in the Deh Cho, the vote wasn't for change.
Of the 1,215 votes cast in the region, 539 of them were for Blondin-Andrew. NDP Dennis Bevington came in second with 460 votes, compared to 140 for Conservative Richard Edjericon.
In some communities, the race was close. In Wrigley, Blondin-Andrew only led by two points, with 17 votes compared to 15 for Bevington. The race was equally close in Nahanni Butte where the tally was 13 to 9.
Other communities stuck strongly with the Liberals. In Jean Marie River, the Liberal candidate won 24 to 5 against the NDP. Trout Lake was also solidly in the Liberal camp with the votes coming in at 24 to 3.
Only in Fort Simpson was the vote in favour of the NDP, with Bevington winning 221 votes against the Liberal's 204.
Change always comes as a surprise and given the voting statistics in the Deh Cho, the outcome of the election in the North is no exception. The question now is what to do with the result. What position will the people of the Deh Cho ask Bevington to take on issues that are important to them?
One group who are forming a clear answer are the youth. During the election campaign there were signs that young people have a far better grasp on regional issues than they often let on.
Speaking to the senior high class at Deh Gah school before the candidates forum in Fort Providence, Bevington asked the students if they thought the voting age should be dropped to 16. The question didn't elicit much response, but the students had many other issues they wanted answers to.
The Mackenzie Valley pipeline, an omnipresent issue, is also on the minds of the youth. The senior high class chose to use their question at the debate to enquire how the need for jobs to create a future will be balanced with the need for environmental protection of the land so there will be a future. Such a well-balanced question reflects a great deal of thoughtful debate.
Hours away in Fort Simpson at Thomas Simpson school, students also pondered the issues that are important to them. Leading up to their mock vote, the junior high students participated in a group activity where they created their own political parties, complete with platforms.
One of the striking similarities between the groups was that most didn't support tax cuts, said teacher Steve Nicoll.
The youth are the ones to watch and take the lead from in many issues. They have the advantage of being able to examine issues with minds free of cluttering distractions that adults pick up over time.
Many youth know the end goals they want to see, although they aren't sure what path to take to reach them.
Let's hope they find their way and that their youthful idealism isn't dulled by age during the journey.