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Trail needs emergency phones
Yellowknifer - Friday, October 2, 2009

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The Pat McMahon Frame Lake Trail is a great part of Yellowknife but, unfortunately, it can also be dangerous.

There have been three reported sexual assaults on the trail since 2008.

The need for emergency phones along that scenic stretch of Frame Lake was raised at a public meeting last week. Ecology North urged the city to install the phones and a Northwestel representative said the company was open to such an idea.

The emergency phone system - which has a blue light atop each phone station to attract greater attention when danger lurks - is a common sight on Canadian university campuses to enhance student safety. It would make sense that the city would install the phone system on the McMahon Trail for the sake of its citizens.

Although a police spokesperson has questioned whether the RCMP or Municipal Enforcement would be responsible for fielding the calls, the RCMP have staff working all hours and has a dispatcher in place. It would only make sense that the Mounties do it.

Prank false alarms and vandalism may result, but the safety of Yellowknifers outweighs any inconvenience.

The emergency phones may act as a lifeline for someone in desperate need of help, particularly in an isolated area of the pathway. Better lighting would be advisable, too.

Even if a person is attacked and cannot reach a nearby phone, a bystander would be able to make a timely call for help.

Once safety improves, more Yellowknifers will use the trail, and an increasing number of people using the route will further add to a feeling of security.

It's a worthwhile investment.

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Mines can't ignore First Nations
Yellowknifer - Friday, October 2, 2009

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It sometimes takes strong words or lawsuits for First Nations to get the attention of business and industry.

It shouldn't be that way.

There's more to doing business in the North than dollars and sense. Avalon Rare Metals has shown good judgment by renaming its rare earth elements site in consultation with the Yellowknives Dene First Nation. The Thor Lake site is now known as Nechalacho, or "a point where you can almost dock."

Ndilo Chief Ted Tsetta lauded the company for approaching the Yellowknives "early in the process," pointing out that the area is valued for its sacred and historic significance.

Avalon's gesture acknowledges the meaning the land holds for the people who have been here for many generations.

Companies can no longer expect to put up fences, blast rock and overturn the soil while telling aboriginal people to stay away.

Regulatory regimes and court precedent are now in place to give First Nations a say on ancestral lands.

Aboriginal people are establishing their own companies to take advantage of contracts and jobs. They are also signing partnerships to ensure proper environmental practices.

All mining companies and other industry players would be wise to make full consultation and co-operation a standard practice up front.

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Culture camps are essential
Editorial Comment
Tim Edwards
Deh Cho Drum - Thursday, October 1, 2009

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On my first day on the job with the Deh Cho Drum, I went across the Mackenzie River with a class from Bompas Elementary School in Fort Simpson. This week I received photos from Jean Marie River, which depicted a group of youth and adults out on the land sharing knowledge about hunting and fishing with each other.

I find these camps to be not just a lot of fun, but also so very valuable - not only for preserving culture, but for sharing it with people like me. I'm not aboriginal, but growing up in the North has instilled a sense of respect in me for the NWT's myriad of cultures.

These camps cement that respect and teach me volumes of information about the land that I, too, call home.

How to make jam, how to butterfly fillet a fish, which berries I can eat, how to canoe correctly, how to make bannock - these are all things that work their way into my own camping trips with friends.

They are also things I have learned by being out on the land with the people who have lived here long before non-aboriginals arrived.

I appreciate that, and the hospitality I am treated with when I go on these adventures. It's hard not to feel like an outsider sometimes, but on my trip across the river with Bompas I felt very welcome.

I also see the immense value these trips offer for aboriginal youth. It's hard for me to imagine the youth not being filled with pride when they see the immense amount of knowledge that is still very alive in their culture.

It is important that this is kept alive, because no one knows the land like the aboriginal people of the Northwest Territories. If that knowledge were to ever disappear, the North would be lost without it.

Before coming to Fort Simpson, I wrote an article on a possible new species of cisco in Great Slave Lake for Yellowknifer. In that article, two biologists had found specimens of a cisco that vastly distinguished itself from known species of cisco.

They teamed up with some Dene elders and the elders were able to show them a veritable jackpot of these fish at one of the first places they checked. It is old knowledge like this that helps everyone understand the ecology of the North.

In the same vein, it is knowledge like this that will help us preserve the ecology of the North. That is another reason it is so vital to pass this knowledge along.

Keep the culture camps up and keep offering as many as possible, because that knowledge will serve everyone well.

Editor Roxanna Thompson will return later this month.

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Curling club can be saved
Editorial Comment
Andrew Rankin
Inuvik Drum - Thursday, October 1, 2009

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There was something refreshing about the meeting held Monday evening in the bar room at the Midnight Sun Recreation Complex. The focus of the gathering was simply to come up with ideas to generate revenue for the ailing curling club.

About 50 residents, mostly current and former members of the club, showed up and they meant business. Participants formed small groups and talked with one another. As far as I could see everyone had something to say and the audience seemed genuinely interested in sharing ideas.

Community gatherings like this one are quite rare, where people are moved enough by an issue to want to unite to achieve a common goal. Monday's gathering appeared to be exactly that.

The curling club deserves a lot of credit for making it this far with about 201 members last year, about 70 of which are youth members who don't pay a fee. In the past the club sustained itself with a six-month bingo series licence granted by the town. But because of demand, the town had to cut back on issuing licences and the club didn't get one this year.

There's no question that the club can't depend on bingos to sustain itself. Club members should have to find ways to generate more revenue and there were a number good ideas on Monday.

But at the same time maybe the town should reconsider supporting the club, especially when you consider the need for more organized recreational activities for youth.

Last year the club managed to attract 70 youth members. The town might not want to invest a significant amount of money to develop the youth program like it does with the minor hockey program because membership isn't high enough to warrant it.

But maybe that's the push the club needs to take the extra step to get more youth involved and make the club sustainable for years to come. That would mean more after-school curling programs, more coach development programs, more help with subsidizing local bonspiels.

Obviously the lease that the club negotiated with the town in 1997 has to be revisited. On top of paying an annual $15,000 rental fee, the club is required to pay all of its utility costs plus a percentage of the complex's overall utility bill. Last year's bill came to $95,000.

Most likely the club will find a solution and get the support it needs. But it would be a shame if the curling club fell apart.

Anything that brings people together for a good cause should be valued and preserved and it would be a disservice to the community if the club was forced to fold.

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How to ban everything
Yellowknifer - Wednesday, September 30, 2009

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In the debacle over the city's wild rules for parks and facilities, it's clear councillors fell asleep at the wheel. They were caught up in the debate over Tin Can Hill, and most overlooked the parks bylaw they were voting on.

This shows that a lack of attention in council chambers can have alarming consequences.

It also shows that city administration sports an incredibly tinnish ear at times when dealing with public concerns.

Take the memo issued to city council Friday, for example - a public document that presumably was drafted, in part, to alleviate concerns among city councillors and the public. That document outrageously described the act of visiting city parks and facilities as a "privilege." Explain that one to the city's ratepayers who have watched their property taxes rise 12 per cent over the last four years for the privilege of paying for these facilities.

Undoubtedly, city staff must deal with a variety of boorish and sometimes criminal behaviour in our parks, arenas and at the library and swimming pool. Undoubtedly, much of this bad behaviour is committed by a small group of repeat offenders.

Administration wants to update its parks and recreation facilities bylaw so it could ban these troublemakers. Under the existing bylaw, the best the city can do is hand out a ticket, although a potentially steep one of up to $2,000 if the offender is convicted in court.

To ban troublemakers is reasonable enough. The city's problem began after it started dreaming up a laundry list of prohibited activities, many of them already covered under the Criminal Code or other federal and territorial statutes. Others were merely bizarre.

Propel a plastic ball? Ride a toboggan? Do anything which is likely to attract a crowd?

Some 21 prohibited activities were added to the existing list, which begs the question: Is there anything else they would probably ban but hadn't thought it up yet? How about no person shall throw live piranhas into Frame Lake?

It's a sad day when bureaucrats try to make up rules for everything. As one councillor pointed out, why not ban prostitution and drug deals in parks if you're going to ban people from uttering threats and carrying knives?

Fortunately, there are three rounds of voting required to pass bylaws. Before the proposal's third reading, angry residents were shouting their opposition en masse and even holding ball games on city hall's lawn in a show of frustration.

Councillors finally awoke and responded to the public outcry.

Council and city administration have done some excellent work for citizens over the years, but bylaw 4542 certainly isn't one of them.

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Time to answer the call
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News - Wednesday, September 30, 2009

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The slow, but steady, exodus of top hockey people from Hockey Nunavut and a number of local minor hockey associations is becoming more than a little worrisome.

The loss of the former president of the Rankin Inlet Minor Hockey Association (RIMHA) and Hockey Nunavut board member, Justin Merritt, will be deeply felt this year.

While Merritt has let it be known he is willing to work with new board members to get them up to speed, that's not an overnight process.

Hockey Nunavut president Donald Clark will also step down during the zone's annual general meeting in Rankin this coming month.

Clark, well known in Nunavut's hockey world in just about every capacity - player, coach, official and administrator - has done an outstanding job during the past few years and his leadership will be missed.

Hockey Nunavut has struggled the past few years to attract strong executive members from all three regions, and it remains to be seen who will step up to fill the void this year.

Having gone through a dark and difficult time in his life, the rumour mill has former president Mike Courtney of Iqaluit expressing interest in rejoining Hockey Nunavut.

Should he show up at the AGM in Rankin and get involved as a board member again, it would partially offset the loss of Clark and Merritt.

The Kivalliq, Rankin is not alone in its determination to run a solid hockey program, and all share a common dilemma: too few people doing too much work.

In Arviat, Ronnie Suluk has worked diligently to strengthen its minor hockey association, trying to fill the rather large skates left behind by Graham Gavin.

Baker Lake's minor hockey program receives a huge boost for the 2009-10 season with the return of Jim Kreuger to the community after a year's absence.

The nod to Kreuger is not intended to take anything away from the volunteers who kept the program running this past year, but, overall, a step backwards was evident.

For those who convince themselves one person can't make a difference, the job Chris Jones did with the Whale Cove hockey program this past year was nothing less than impressive.

His continued presence bodes well for the Whale program, if he receives strong local support.

In the early stages, it appears Rankin is rallying to live up to its moniker of Hockey Town and not let its minor program regress.

More than 25 people attended the first RIMHA meeting of the year earlier this month, with four female volunteers forwarding their names for executive positions.

A small number of hard-working people who love the game have devoted many years to our various hockey programs.

But, as with everything else in life, change is inevitable.

No region in Nunavut prides itself more on its hockey programs than the Kivalliq.

But, for that pride to continue, the call has gone out for others to step up and work hard to keep our programs strong and vibrant.

Should that call fail to be answered, our pride, the game and our kids who love to play it will all take the fall.

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Counterfeit education
NWT News/North - Monday, September 28, 2009

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Our schools are failing our children.

Whether it's in the NWT or in Ontario, a growing number of students are demonstrating insufficient numeracy and literacy skills to achieve a high school graduation.

The result is students like Tulita's Kyle Yakeleya, whose struggles were featured in last week's News/North. He is finding his NWT diploma is as valuable as Monopoly money.

The issue is casting a spotlight on the age-appropriate-placement policy used in the NWT and many other places across Canada. The policy basically advances students through grade levels with their peers, following the theory that failing grades cause psychological, esteem and behavioural damage to children.

This justification is based on contradictory and politically-convenient evidence that does more to boost the perception of school performance than student achievement.

David Reid, president of the NWT Teacher's Association, said the NWT's version of social promotion does not merely push students through the system. He said resources are in place to help students functioning below grade level catch up. However, Yakeleya, a product of the NWT education system, would surely disagree. He, like many other students from the NWT, is struggling down south to upgrade his skills so he can move on to higher education.

According to a 2003 position paper published by the National Association of School Psychologists "both grade retention and social promotion fail to improve learning or facilitate positive achievement..."

That report does support research stating that students who are held back a grade "have increased risks of health-compromising behaviours such as emotional distress, cigarette use, alcohol use, drug abuse, driving while drinking, use of alcohol during sexual activity, early onset of sexual activity, suicidal intentions, and violent behaviours."

Unfortunately, that research has given schools carte blanche to push our children through the system.

Maybe someone should start studying the psychological effects of an adult who is academically ill equipped to contribute to society. Perhaps that study might help shed some light on the high suicide and crime rates in the North.

There are no easy solutions to this issue. We live in a region where resources are stretched thin; teachers are difficult to retain; and, in some cases, a cultural distrust of the school system exists.

For our schools to achieve we need culturally sensitive curriculum, a high level of parental involvement - including parental outreach conducted in a family's first language -- and a system that strives to attain high academic standards - through individualized instruction for lower achieving students.

Bureaucrats can argue the system is already designed to do that. But the simple truth is, we have one of the lowest graduation rates in the country and many students that do graduate struggle at post-secondary institutions.

Our education system must realize that grade progression is not as paramount as skill progression - including traditional skills and cultural knowledge -- and our system should endeavour to produce students who meet the academic level necessary to contribute meaningfully to their community, the North and the nation, either as a doctor or lawyer, a plumber or electrician, or the next prime minister. Each student should be set up to succeed.

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A lapse in judgment
Nunavut News/North - Monday, September 28, 2009

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There's a judge in Iqaluit who is very angry, and he has good reason to be.

Earlier this month Justice Robert Kilpatrick had to accept a joint submission from the Crown and defence, commonly known as a plea bargain, in the case of Shawn Kayaitok, who murdered a five-year-old girl in Kugaaruk in 2006.

Kilpatrick's fury leaps from the written page of his decision. Kayaitok, 23, was originally charged with first-degree murder, as he stood accused of killing a five-year-old in the course of sexually assaulting her. DNA from the sexual assault matched Kayaitok's DNA. The charge of first-degree murder was justified, and the chance of conviction on that charge was high.

So Kilpatrick doesn't understand why the Crown accepted a plea bargain for second-degree murder. Neither do we. He invited the prosecutors to explain their decision. They did not, and nothing under the law says they have to.

The agreed facts state the girl, having been taken to an isolated shed by the accused, was screaming because she became frightened of the dark. Kayaitok attempted to quiet her by putting his hand over her mouth and nose. This resulted in her death. Then he sexually assaulted her dead body.

At the time, Kayaitok had already been charged with sexually assaulting a boy - whom he also had taken to a derelict building -- and was under a court order not to be alone around children.

Kilpatrick writes, "To suggest that Mr. Kayaitok had some innocent purpose when he took (the victim) into the shack is an affront to common sense ... This was not an appropriate location or time for a social visit. He was not there to tuck the child into bed."

Far from a gentle attempt to shush her, Kayaitok told the court he maintained his grip on the child's face for an estimated seven to nine minutes.

This girl had far more compelling reasons to be afraid than the fact that it was dark. She was in an isolated shed with a man who sexually assaulted her and clamped his hand over her face to the point of suffocating her to keep her quiet.

He dumped her body headfirst into an empty water barrel, then went home and had a nap before going to a game of floor hockey. He has expressed no apologies or remorse of any kind.

Kilpatrick wanted to give Kayaitok a longer sentence, but because the Crown and defence had agreed on 18 years in prison before eligibility for parole, that's what Kayaitok got, despite the fact someone convicted of second-degree murder can be sentenced to the Canadian equivalent of "life:" 25 years before eligibility for parole.

We would like the prosecutors in this case to explain to Nunavummiut, and especially the girl's family, how justice was served by this plea bargain. They chose not to in court, but we'll afford them space in the pages of this newspaper if they'll put it in writing.

The defence lawyer told the judge that the plea bargain meant witnesses did not have to testify. Yes, the court process would have been difficult for two boys Kayaitok had sexually assaulted, but it would have been up to the court to minimize the stress and to provide counselling, which those two lads surely should be getting anyway.

Did the lawyers consult with the families in reaching this plea bargain? The public ought to know.

It's true that a guilty plea streamlines the court process in what is a busy, complex and logistically challenging territory, but this is no excuse for such a blatant lapse in judgment. That frightened girl who died in the dark in Kugaaruk deserved a hell of a lot better.