Maria Canton
Northern News Services

NNSL (July 21/99) - An aboriginal federal offender treatment program has been proposed by Northern Addiction Services for their Dettah facility.

The proposal was made to Correctional Services Canada and is presently awaiting review.

Suggested is the creation of a program for men under warrant who are eligible to be released into a residential-level treatment and healing program.

"The treatment program would be for Dene and Inuit inmates serving federal penitentiary sentences primarily at southern institutions," said Earl Johnson, president of NAS.

"They (the inmates) would be at NAS to receive treatment for a three- to six- month period."

Inmates would be eligible to enter NAS through a variety of means, including parole and conditional releases. The possible designation of NAS as a minimum security institution is another option being explored.

Federal offenders are sentenced to more than two years in prison and serve their time in southern penitentiaries. YCC takes offenders sentenced to two years less a day, but Northern federal offenders are sometimes allowed to serve their time at YCC.

"We could possibly be dealing with YCC in the future," said Johnson.

"About 25 of the inmates there are federal offenders serving their sentence in the North for whatever reason."

NAS approached corrections officials earlier this spring after their contract with the GNWT to provide detox and rehabilitation programs was terminated.

A meeting between NAS and corrections led to the federal inmate proposal. The area director with corrections says the proposal addresses what is required in the way of treatment in the region.

"When you break down the number of federally sentenced offenders coming out of the NWT by their culture, about 95 per cent are aboriginal," said Frank Winkfein.

"They have very specific problems and concerns and corrections wants to address these concerns in a culturally-sensitive manner."

The primary focus of the NAS proposal is to treat inmates with alcohol addictions.

NAS was running a 28-bed, co-ed adult rehabilitation program at the Dettah facility with funding from the GNWT.

In early spring, both NAS and the Department of Health and Social Services agreed to wind down the centre's services, ending the rehabilitation program and an eight-bed downtown detox program.

Johnson says NAS hopes to have the new program up and running by Sept. 1.