Pond Inlet (Oct 23/06) - Nunavut's Qulliit Council for the Status of Women is calling for a review of who's allowed to stand for territorial government after last week's election of James Arvaluk as MLA in Pond Inlet.

Arvaluk has a history of violent crimes against women, and the council wants a tougher Member's Removal and Disqualification Act in light of his rise to political prominence once again.

"We are going to have a face-to-face meeting to discuss the Elections Act with the legislature, to make it stiffer. In the government of Nunavut, you can't get a job if you have a criminal record, not even as a janitor," said women's council president Kathy Hanson.

In an interview with Nunavut News/North, Arvaluk took a different view.

"That doesn't matter. The only thing I would worry about is the wish of the community," he said. "Are we going to be controlled by the media or organizations? Doesn't the community decision matter any more?"

Arvaluk was forced to resign due to the act, following a conviction for assaulting his girlfriend in his Coral Harbour home in 2000.

He doesn't have any plans to meet with the women's council, unless the people in Pond Inlet ask him to.

"Everybody knows me here, and they know my past. Why did they put me in? Isn't that more important than interest groups? They don't want that kind of colonial rule any more. Meet for what? I already met with Pond Inlet. I have to ask the people of Pond Inlet that," said Arvaluk.

The assault causing bodily harm conviction landed Arvaluk nine months in jail and 18 months probation. He was MLA for Coral Harbour at the time. Nunavut's department of Justice is being tight-lipped about just how long Arvaluk spent behind bars.

"We don't release it (information about individual prisoners), unless there is some overarching public interest," said Markus Weber, the deputy minister of justice.

"There would need to be compelling circumstances affecting the health and safety of any person, or, if there were an over-riding public security interest," said Weber.

Weber's boss, Premier and Minister of Justice Paul Okalik, was criticized for comments he made when Arvaluk resigned from the legislature. A press release from the Premier's office focused on Arvaluk's career as a law maker, ignoring his crime.

"That (his ability) will be deeply missed, and to not state the fact he did a great job is to try to revise history," Okalik said in defence of the release.

Arvaluk and his girlfriend of six months were drinking the night of the assault, and a brawl ensued. His girlfriend was left with 14 stitches on her face, no feeling in her bottom lip, and mild, permanent scarring.

His twin sons - three years old at the time - were awakened by the altercation.

During the trial, he described what triggered the assault, saying that his girlfriend was "bugging" and "nagging" him about the status of their relationship.

"We got into a brawl. Both of us fell to the bedroom floor. She was biting me on the leg, which is when I started hitting her," said Arvaluk to the court.

It took two trials before Arvaluk was convicted. He was acquitted in June 2001, but the acquittal was successfully appealed. He was convicted in June 2003 and sentenced in January 2004.

In delivering his decision to reopen the case, Justice Earl Johnson questioned Arvaluk's credibility.

"He appears to be manipulating the evidence to put himself in the best light," Johnson wrote in his decision.

Arvaluk resigned three days after the conviction.

The 2000 assault was not Arvaluk's first time in a court room, nor the first time he was forced to resign from a legislature. He was convicted in 1995 for two separate sexual assaults, which happened less than two hours apart. He quit his seat in the NWT legislature soon after charges were laid.

In February 1995, Arvaluk held a party in his Yellowknife home, following a long evening at the Gold Range bar. His hot tub was the featured event at the party.

In his decision sentencing Arvaluk, Justice J. E. Richard described the events leading up to the two assaults.

"People were drinking and having a good time. Mr Arvaluk and his guests, including the two female victims, made use of the hot tub and were in various states of undress. Both of the female victims became quite intoxicated during the course of the party," said Richard.

Both victims were residents of Pond Inlet, the community Arvaluk now represents. One was a student at Arctic College and the other was an employee of Arvaluk's.

The first victim woke up at 7 a.m. following the party. Arvaluk was on top of her, having sex with her. She pushed him off and called the police from the bedroom. The second victim awoke at 8:45 a.m., also to find Arvaluk having sex with her.

When handing down his sentence of two-and-a-half-years in prison for the assaults, Justice Richard was critical of the MLA.

"It is a serious aggravating circumstance here that in each case James Arvaluk took advantage of an unconscious woman for his own selfish, sexual pleasure," said Richard.

In each case, alcohol was an aggravating factor in the crime, even though Coral Harbour was a dry community.

When asked if he still drinks, Arvaluk replied, "Why are you interested in my personal life? Trudeau said once nobody has a business in the nation's bedroom. Do you remember that? Leave the personal life of the people alone."

Then he hung up the phone.