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The Nunavut Court of Justice ruling July 8 to uphold an injunction putting gun registration rules on hold in this territory was an important victory.
Justice Robert Kilpatrick was right on the money when he ruled dropping the injunction was the wrong thing to do.
"It may interfere with Inuit harvesting, whether this is done full-time as a livelihood or part-time as a means of supplementing diet. ...It may cause long-term damage to a defining or core social value of Inuit society."
With the exception of aboriginal communities in the Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavik, nowhere else in Canada is hunting as important to everyday life than in Nunavut.
Inuit need to hunt to live. To hunt, they need guns. They don't need more rules, regulations imposed by a southern government that doesn't understand their way of life. They certainly don't need more fees they can not afford.
We believe the gun law infringes on Inuit rights and hurts their ability to hunt as specified in the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement.
There is ample precedence for exempting Canada's first peoples from laws. One need only look to the West Coast where Aboriginal fishers can harvest salmon when no-one else can. That's a food fishery -- not much different from the Inuit hunt.
Unfortunately, the federal government took its cookie cutter and stamped legislation that fits the urban South, but harms the North.
Now, we're in a lengthy, and costly, court fight that may well end up in the Supreme Court of Canada.
Will NTI win? We don't expect so, because there's little hope a court will give one ethnic group exemption from criminal law. But it's a fight that must be fought to uphold Inuit rights.
Ahh, those socialist governments in Canada, if only they'd let private enterprise run things!
There has been a sea change in the attitudes of those provincial governments who heeded that siren song.
Ten years ago or so, some governments were keen to divest themselves of a number of public services: liquor stores, hydro power, health care, car insurance.
Some provinces, like always persnickety Alberta, were quick to hand over liquor stores to the private sector.
But their attempt to get out of the electricity business proved to be the divestment bridge too far.
An uproar followed when prices were all over the place, especially upwards. No one is hearing about divestment from Edmonton these days.
The latest public rage is focusing on car insurance.
Premier Bernard Lord in New Brunswick nearly lost his job over that election issue.
In this territory, some insurance agents are saying government should get into the act, too.
While the economies of scale -- huge territory, dinky population -- can make this difficult, partnering with southern provinces might make this happen.
There are some things only government can do well. Health care, supplying energy ... and regulating car insurance seem to be among them.
When we talk about communities, few are as important as the ones which form around our schools.
For students, schools are a second home. Teachers are role models and mentors.
Friends are like brothers and sisters.
It's even more true in the North, where transient southerners seeking to replace family ties make connections with each other and native-born Nunavummiut.
So when Iqaluit's Joamie school burned, a community lost its heart.
School officials must remember this as they search for ways to house the children and teachers when classes resume.
A school community is too important to tear apart and every effort must be made to keep these important connections together.
The recent swoop by a community health inspector on food stalls at Hay River's Fisherman's Wharf is seen by some as an ill-timed and unfair blow to the Hub's struggling tourism sector.
The inspector acted on the complaint of a person who became ill after eating food from one of the stalls. The speedy investigation found three that failed to meet food service standards. They were quickly shut down.
Some of their competitors feel tainted by the swift, and they say too public action. Business dropped off at the market, and that's too bad. We can't fault the decision to pull the plug on some vendors who aren't up to standards. It is unfortunate, however that the health inspector didn't work with the vendors at the start of the market season. A proactive effort would have solved much fuss and heartache.
That approach goes both ways. Vendors must know their responsibilities. There is no excuse for selling food to the public from an unsanitary kitchen, whether it's a restaurant or a hot dog stand. The consequences can be far worse than an upset stomach.
Summer is the season for salmonella and E.coli, all too often dished out by family and friends at backyard barbecues.
It's a fairly safe bet that many home kitchens would not meet rigorously-enforced public health standards. Fortunately, the government has no business in the kitchens of the nation.
The crackdown in Hay River should serve as a reminder to everyone to be careful about the food we prepare, and serve, and eat.
Buen Provencho!
Editorial Comment
Chris Puglia
Kivalliq News
Nunavut is plagued with social problems.
Unemployment, low rates of graduation, suicide: the list goes on.
The various levels of government say they want to find solutions to these problems and help their people lead productive, safe and healthy lives.
So why is it that when solutions seem to arise they are met with negatively?
Take the Meadowbank Gold Mine in Baker Lake for instance.
Here is a project with the potential to create hundreds of jobs and pump millions into the local economy.
You'd think there would be people lining up at Cumberland's door trying to expedite the process of bringing the mine on stream.
Instead the project is at a stand-still waiting for the federal government to decide who should take the lead.
Before that it was bogged down in territorial paper work.
Of course taking the necessary precautions and ensuring the protection of the environment and traditional way of life is important.
But, this project hasn't even reached that stage yet.
Same with the Doris Lake mine and the Bathurst Road and Port Project.
The people of Nunavut are being held down by their own government's and the federal government's bureaucracy.
Jobs that can be created by these developments will not just put people to work, they will be a source for hope.
Students will have a reason to stay in school and that will give communities self esteem.
Granted development is a sensitive issue and it should be approached cautiously.
But, at the moment, it seems it is being approached nonchalantly, thrown up on the shelf under the pretense of needing more study.
Businesses don't mind if things are scrutinized and regulated properly; they do mind if it seems they are throwing their money at a lost cause.
Nunavut has three mines and a potential major transportation system that could mean great things for the development of the territory.
That will translate into less social problems and more jobs.
It will also showcase the territory to other developers wanting to capitalize on Nunavut's mineral wealth and spin off business.
But, show investors and developers they are doomed before they begin and the territory will be lucky if any new business tries to set up shop.
I am not saying throw caution to the wind and allow anyone to do business here. But, do create a cooperative atmosphere that will show companies they can do business here.
Editorial Comment
Terry Halifax
Inuvik Drum
While the numbers may be down at the door and in the tills at this year's arts festival, organizers can feel good, knowing that they've accomplished the greatest thing about the Great Northern Arts Festival.
Bringing together artists and their work to form those long-lasting relationships is easily the biggest benefit to all who participate in the show.
Selling their work is a bonus, but what the crafts people take home is worth much more.
The workshops offered by other artists strictly for artists give individuals a broader perspective of art that they would otherwise go without.
Watching others work, sharing their skills and learning their techniques in the craft and the marketing of same, will benefit the artists far and away beyond the 10-day festival.
Artists in the North are often cloistered away in remote villages and chances to interact with peers are too often limited to chance encounters or shows like this one.
While the art sales may be down a bit this year, the artists who came here will go home with a greater appreciation of their craft and a greater understanding of the business of art.
Organizers, staff and volunteers can take heart in knowing that what they set out to do has been accomplished, even if outside influence has waned a bit.
A good choice
The landslide win by Fred Carmichael in the GTC election shows the membership they've made a good choice in their leadership.
The vote of confidence is no doubt reassuring to Carmichael and his team, but it will also instilI a new sense of confidence for the Gwich'in people.
All too often, lines are drawn in the sand (or snow) over politics and direction becomes skewed or clouded by personal feelings.
Unencumbered by political dissension, the council and the board and their president will be able to concentrate on building a stronger future for the Gwich'in people, rather than slinging mud back and forth throughout the term.
Pictures of hope
It was a real pleasure meeting photographer Vladimir Sertun last week.
It's not often I get to meet ambassadors so removed from the politics of nations that they truly care about people, despite the borders that separate them.
Through an act as simple as sharing photos, Vladimir has brought us closer to the people across the top of the world and I wish him every success in building his photo bridge.
I'd had one of my photos reprinted from a school concert here at SAMs and passed it along to him to share with his friends back home and I'd urge others to do the same.
It's heartening to realize that we don't need politicians to build relations among people but it also makes a lot of sense -- it was politicians who built the walls between us, I suppose it's up to us to tear them down.
Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum
It was interesting to glean some insight from Grand Chief Herb Norwegian and chief negotiator Chris Reid on the pending transfer of territorial government jobs to a Deh Cho regional government.
First of all, it should be emphasized that the transfer process is still a long ways off. There more questions than answers at this point, but it's a topic that many current civil servants have begun to ponder.
The idea that some non-aboriginal government employees who don't qualify as Deh Cho citizens -- however that's ultimately defined -- may lose their jobs is unsettling. The negotiations on this issue are bound to be bumpy.
Although there may be an elimination of some government jobs through a streamlining process, surely chiefs and Metis presidents in the Deh Cho are going to be demanding more positions in their respective communities. In the end, the overall number of jobs could balance out, if not increase.
The objective of employing a greater percentage of Deh Cho Dene and Metis in government positions is understandable. Regardless, there will still be an incredible need for non-aboriginal employees through government and industry. There simply aren't enough employable Deh Cho born-and-raised residents to fill all the positions.
There's lots more to be said on this issue, but it's another example of how self-government is going to affect the lives of everyone in this region.
Uneasy allies Jim Antoine for premier?
There are factions within the Deh Cho First Nations that would like to see Antoine back on top, even though he says he's retiring from politics. As premier, Antoine would be in a strong position to recognize the Deh Cho Process and support it. If he sided with the DCFN on critical self-government negotiations issues -- the pipeline comes to mind -- it would add weight to the region's position.
That leaves a few major suppositions. First of all, can Antoine be convinced to run again? Would he be elected again? Could he manoeuvre his way into the premier's seat? He would be one of the favourites but not a sure thing.
Finally -- and this may be the most uncertain element -- how far would Antoine be willing to stick his neck out for the Deh Cho First Nations?
The split in ideology between Antoine and the DCFN has been well documented over the years. If Antoine, as the next premier, were to play chess with the federal government in hopes of advancing the Deh Cho's cause, he could be facing political suicide. The rest of the regions along the pipeline route would be calling for his head. Outside of Antoine, the next Nahendeh MLA would have only a slim chance of becoming a cabinet minister and virtually no shot at being premier. That may be the reality the Deh Cho First Nations have to cope with in four months.
The four men accused of the first-degree murder of Justin Hai Van Vo made their first appearance in territorial court this week, not their second. The men first appeared in justice of the peace court.