Countdown to Nunavut
Wesstern coalition wants WCB intact

Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 31/98) - The western coalition wanted to make sure the Worker's Compensation Board survived the big split of 1999.

So after informing the GNWT that they did not want a joint WCB, the coalition recommended a transition agreement be drawn up between the two territories. The agreement is expected to provide an easier transition while ensuring WCB's assets and liabilities are equally divided.

The GNWT has said it will meet with officials from the coalition, the office of the interim commissioner and Nunavut Tunngavik in order to discuss a draft of the agreement sometime this fall.

Status of women

At the conclusion of their meeting in Iqaluit last week, the federal, territorial and provincial ministers responsible for the status women decided to continue their work on eliminating barriers to women's economic security and to help girls and women make beneficial economic decisions.

The group also renewed their efforts to end violence against women and announced that they would make a decision concerning the matter on or about December 6, 1998.

Health and future plans for action were also brought to the table during the seventeenth annual meeting that was chaired by federal minister Hedy Fry and NWT minister Manitok Thompson.

Following the ministerial meeting, the NWT Status of Women met with Iqaluit women and listened to issues that concern the local community.

Community justice

Beginning today, a justice retreat is scheduled to be held outside of Rankin Inlet. Focusing on community justice initiatives and issues in Nunavut, the retreat's participants have been selected based upon their background in the area.

Topics on the table during the five day conference and retreat include community justice initiatives, alternatives to incarceration, supporting justices of the peace and healing, counselling and the justice system. The main purpose of the event is to examine ways in which traditional ideas of Inuit justice can be incorporated into the modern legal system. Once the conference winds up, the Nunavut Social Development Council will take the recommendations to governments and the office of the interim commissioner.

The idea for the Justice Retreat and Conference was first brought up in the Footprints manual.