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Blind eye to blind drunks Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, November 19, 2010
Most often the process is uneventful. But occasionally, as a pair of recent court cases illustrated, there are potentially disastrous consequences. At least two people have been violently assaulted while sobering up in a drunk tank this year. There are 11 cells at the Yellowknife RCMP detachment but only three - two for men, one for women - are used to house intoxicated persons for the night. Last April, a man was stomped repeatedly to his head by his cellmate as the man lay prone and defenceless on the concrete floor. It took RCMP officers more than four minutes to respond because no police were present at the cells. Regarding another drunk tank beating in August, Judge Bernadette Schmaltz told the defendant he was lucky his victim wasn't killed. Police usually don't charge people for public intoxication. They're brought to the cells to sober up, and are then released in the morning. When officers arrest someone for being drunk that person is in their care and control; they're supposed to be safe - especially while jailed at RCMP headquarters. Last week, a woman in Kamloops, B.C. filed a lawsuit against the RCMP, claiming she was sexually assaulted by another woman, possibly infected with HIV, while passed out in the drunk tank. Her lawyer, Erik Magraken, said such incidents open the door for lawsuits. We have to agree. Even though in the Kamloops case police are accused of having been present but choosing not to respond for several minutes, the question of liability remains. Civilian guards are not allowed to enter jail cells unaccompanied by police officers; that guards are trained in first aid does little to shield the RCMP from potential lawsuits if those guards have to sit on their hands waiting the police to arrive. The RCMP must ensure it is capable of making timely responses when fights break out in its jail cells, or that prisoners are kept in separate cells. Otherwise the police force is opening itself up to a court battle.
City council lacks guts over stalled salvage area Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, November 19, 2010 The ongoing fiasco over the supposedly almost-ready three-celled salvage area at the landfill shows city council sometimes leaves itself at the mercy of administration. Either that or, like the bureaucrats at city hall, they either don't care or don't want people salvaging at the dump. The most recent delay, according to the city's department of public works, is a lack of signage. This is deserving of a strong rebuke from our elected city council. In February of this year, a city administrator told Yellowknifer the three-cell salvage area was 70 per cent per cent done; in October it was 90 per cent done. Coun. Paul Falvo has demanded action in the past, but that was many months ago. City administration's stated intention with three-cell salvage system - which puts the onus on people taking their trash to the dump to set aside items they deem recyclable - was to make salvaging safer. Yet since reopening the dump to "interim" salvaging last March following a dump fire six months earlier, the status quo has been allowed to continue where people sort through trash as others drop it off in their vehicles, which the city says is dangerous. It doesn't make sense that construction of a few fences and concrete barriers and placement of signs can take more than a year to complete. If city council truly believes in allowing salvaging to continue then it's about time it put its foot down.
Ripples cast by the stone Editorial Comment Roxanna Thompson Deh Cho Drum - Thursday, November 18, 2010
On Oct. 29 Dehcho First Nations (DFN) was informed that the federal government would not be renewing sub-surface protection for the area known as Edehzhie. DFN has been working for more than 10 years to receive permanent protection for the area that includes the Horn Plateau, Mills Lake and Willowlake River. DFN and other groups had almost finished working through the NWT Protected Areas Strategy to have Edehzhie designated a National Wildlife Area. As part of that process DFN sent a letter to Jim Prentice, the federal minister of the environment, asking him to grant the designation and provide both surface and sub-surface protection. DFN says they never got a response to the letter and were blindsided by the government's decision to remove sub-surface protection, which opened Edehzhie up to mineral staking and possible underground resource development. According to the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada the reasoning behind the decision was that Canada has determined it's appropriate to allow for a greater balance between conservation and development opportunities in the Deh Cho region. The department took the view that resource development, "is not necessarily inconsistent with protecting the conservation values in Edehzhie," according to an email. Not only has the federal government's decision potentially ruined Edehzhie's future protection its also cast into the doubt the future of all areas first nations in the territory want to protect. Jean Marie River First Nation is already feeling the pangs of doubt. The band has recently secured a sponsor for its candidate protected area but even if the Five Fish Lakes gets permanent surface protection the federal government could choose to withhold sub-surface protection. By making what seems to be a unilateral decision on Edehzhie the federal government has done untold harm to the integrity of the NWT Protected Areas Strategy. From now on every group using the strategy will have to worry about whether or not the federal government will capriciously undo years of work with a single decision. Canada needs to step back from the Edehzhie decision and consult or risk further alienating First Nations.
Action needed on NWT Power Corp Editorial Comment Andrew Rankin Inuvik Drum - Thursday, November 18, 2010
Yes, for the most part, outages have been rather short in duration but one can't help but think things are a little out of order at our power plant. According to the power corp., many of these outages have been the result of upgrades being done on plant components. Well, when can we expect to get a reliable source of power? What would happen if this sort of thing happened in a city? It wouldn't. People wouldn't tolerate it. Now people here are starting to get angry. Town council is ordering the territorial government to pay for an independent audit of the power plant. Members want a committee struck to take care of that and they want representation on it. Fair enough. Twin Lakes MLA Robert McLeod also thinks an audit is a good idea but it doesn't appear he'll fight to have the territorial government pay for one, even though he admits the power corp. hasn't been prominent in addressing the problem. Boot Lake MLA Floyd Roland, the premier and minister responsible for NTPC, hasn't said how he plans to deal with the problem. Someone has to make a move. The fact remains, it's cold out there. There was another blackout Tuesday morning and plenty of people are worried there will be another one just around the corner. Reliability of our power supply isn't a luxury, it's a necessity, especially during the winter. Something has to be done soon.
A grand mosque opening Andrew Rankin Inuvik Drum - Thursday, November 18, 2010
The community hall was packed Wednesday, Nov. 10 for the mosque's grand opening feast. People talked about the tremendous support this community has given to the project, how welcoming residents are to the Muslim community. That was nice to hear. But the extraordinary story here is about a group of immigrants that has made a go of it far away from home. The mosque and the massive effort put into getting it here appears to be a testament to their hard work and desire to see this project through. It's a place where they can celebrate their faith with dignity and it doesn't hurt that it offers a little bit of light, figuratively and literally, in a particularly desolate part of town. That's worth celebrating. Just plain spiteful Yellowknifer - Wednesday, November 17, 2010
This is essentially the sort of dysfunctional relationship that developer Mike Mrdjenovich and his company Nova Builders have shared with the City of Yellowknife for years, and it's not getting better. City council does not, of course, have the option to give Mrdjenovich a pink slip but they certainly can, and should, force his hand since he's dragging his feet on turning the rotting Bayview Estates condo site into anything other than an eyesore. The Edmonton-based developer bought the failed 7.6-acre condo lot for $5.6 million late last year after Bond Street Properties, also of Edmonton, lost it to foreclosure. Mrdjenovich told Yellowknifer in June he planned to transform the skeletal wooden frames and cement foundations just off Niven Drive into 30 condos, with work getting underway during the summer. Yet nothing of substance has changed at the Bayview site. He blames it on another long-running dispute with the city. Mrdjenovich remains in a fierce battle with city hall over an illegal fence standing almost two metres high that surrounds his School Draw Avenue lot, a place where his company deposited piles of unsightly construction debris. He's so fixated on this test of wills with the city that he is refusing to budge on the Bayview property. "Those guys (council) took a pipe belt to me," Mrdjenovich said last week, insisting that council must "smarten up" and then proceeded to call them a bunch of unsavoury characters in rather off-colour language, as he is wont to do. All this comes after city council backed away from a court case in hopes of resolving the fence squabble amicably. Mrdjenovich seems determined not to let that happen. This businessman has run out of chances. City council must follow through with penalties, either through a derelict buildings bylaw or a court judgement. To permit the Bayview site to remain a safety liability and a blight on the city's landscape is irresponsible. Mrdjenovich, despite his feisty and defiant nature, has done the city some good over the years by providing needed apartments and office space. He has also done himself some good, or he wouldn't keep coming back. However, if he has reached the point where he refuses to keep building while continuing to flout bylaws and throw tantrums, then the city should make it clear his intimidation tactics will not be tolerated.
Good news ventures come with some strings attached Darrell Greer Kivalliq News - Wednesday, November 17, 2010 It was nice to finally get some good news the past few weeks, even if some of it came with strings attached. A number of students have been rejuvenated with the strengthening of the drama club in Arviat this year. Not all youth are into sports, and extracurricular activities such as drama-and-music clubs give them a place to develop their talents and feel a part of something special. And the importance of belonging cannot be overstated in the Kivalliq, or across Nunavut for that matter. News out of Arviat concerning the development of an ecotourism industry for the community is also a step in the right direction. We can only hope the region's ability to attract tourists through booking outfits isn't too badly damaged by the actions taken against an outfitter this year. But, to be honest, the concerns posted worldwide, thanks to the modern technology of the Internet, could do significant damage to our future tourism prospects if the Nunavut government doesn't respond soon. We can also only hope when the government does pull its head out of the snow, it will respond in a way that shows tangible evidence of caring about those who would like to visit our region, not continued idyllic ramblings about the future effectiveness of its policy making. There is a solid professional-development team behind the Arviat initiative, quite skilled in marketing. The group will need all its skill to combat the growing voice of caution and dissatisfaction, if something isn't done to diffuse the situation soon. Few industries are more vulnerable to the power of word of mouth than tourism. Meanwhile in Rankin Inlet, organizations are gearing up for the trade show in that community this coming week. The timing for such an event couldn't be better, and word has it the organizers are doing a great job in planning the show. The response has been almost overwhelming, as every hotel room and spare bed in the community has been booked for the event. The Kivalliq region seems to be finally pulling together in a way that promises to benefit the most people, as the promise of more mining activity becomes brighter on the horizon. There have also been worries expressed on that front, as it's still not entirely clear what direction the Kivalliq Inuit Association (KIA) is leaning in its plans to revisit the Meadowbank Inuit Impact Benefits Agreement. Any change to the contracting provisions in that pact would, no doubt, set precedent for future agreements. There are more than a few business personalities in the region who are worried over what the KIA will ultimately decide constitutes true Inuit control or benefit in constructing criteria for either Inuit-controlled firms, or firms providing significant benefits to Inuit. Others may yet even question the KIA's ability to objectively make such decisions, especially in view of the fact its investment arm, Sakku, is a passive participant in a number of joint ventures. Hopefully, the strings attached to some of the Kivalliq ventures taking place won't tangle up the whole ball of yarn.
Bad faith bargaining NWT News/North - Monday, November 15, 2010
Ottawa's decision to remove subsurface protection from 14,000 square kilometres of land known as Edehzhie in the Deh Cho region is further evidence the federal government will only support the wishes of aboriginal groups as long as they do not conflict with its own. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada told News/North it decided not to renew the subsurface protection in the region because it deemed it appropriate to allow for a greater balance between conservation and development in the Deh Cho region. Really? The Dehcho First Nations, who are in the process of negotiating a land claims agreement, believe otherwise. The Deh Cho have put an emphasis on environmental protection on their land and the interim land withdrawl agreement the First Nations signed with the territorial and federal governments was designed to protect those interests until a final land claim can be penned. Ottawa may be correct in its assertion that too much land is being protected and barred from mineral development. However, the decision to open environmentally, culturally and spiritually sensitive land to development should not be unilaterally in the hands of the federal government. The move jeopardizes more than a decade of work that was about to culminate in designating Edehzhie a national wildlife area and makes a laughing stock of the NWT Protected Area Strategy. According to the strategy's website, its mandate "outlines a community-based process to establish a network of protected areas across the NWT. It recognizes the need to balance conservation and economic development, while respecting aboriginal rights, third party interests, and land use planning processes." It seems contradictory to emphasize a process as community-based if the federal government can undermine 10 years worth of work with one ill-advised, unilateral decision. Removing sub-surface protection without consulting the Deh cho obviously shows no respect for aboriginal rights nor land use planning processes. It appears now the NWT Protected Area Strategy did no more than give the federal government an opportunity to discover mineral wealth in the region and create a loop-hole in any future protection efforts to exploit it. In an e-mail to News/North, INAC stated resource development "is not necessarily inconsistent with protecting the conservation values in Edehzhie." Not only is that statement insulting, it demonstrates yet again the federal government's failure to bargain in good faith and displays complete disrespect toward the rightful land owners.
Destructive negotiations Nunavut News/North - Monday, November 15, 2010 What's 1.25 + 1.5 + 1.5? That's the percentage increase Nunavut's teachers received in the past three years through their last collective agreement with the territorial government. What's 0 + 0 + 0 + 0? That's what the Government of Nunavut is reportedly offering Nunavut's 740 teachers in terms of a salary change for a four-year period. It's also an equation that does not make sense. How can the territory recruit and retain teachers to improve a notorious 25 per cent graduation rate and strengthen Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun in schools if it won't improve its financial incentives? In its quest to save money, the Department of Education is also looking to axe a benefit paid to teachers that speak a second language - primarily an Inuit language - an amount that can total $1,200 to $5,000 annually per individual - or close to $880,000 per year overall. That cut would hinder the GN's goal to expand Inuit languages to high school by 2019. There has been pressure on the territorial government to bump that date back, but former education minister Ed Picco kept insisting that there are not nearly enough qualified Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun educators. So how is this offer to freeze salaries and reduce benefits going to help? Clearly, it's not. Teachers in Nunavut who have earned a university degree make $61,565 to start. That jumps to a maximum of $96,533 after 11 years. That's not peanuts, but it trails the NWT, where their counterparts make $75,500 to 111,000, respectively. Yet the cost of living in Nunavut is higher. Education Minister Hunter Tootoo has been uncharacteristically silent on the wage freeze. Daniel Shewchuk, the minister responsible for human resources, is the lead minister on contract negotiations with the teachers. Tootoo, as a regular MLA, was well known for directing stinging questions at Picco while Picco was education minister. Now that he has assumed that same portfolio, Tootoo must be trying to keep his head low, hoping that none of the other MLAs confront him over repeating well-worn phrases about striving to improve education while Shewchuk acts as the henchman against the teachers. Both of them surely know that no education system can thrive when they are taking actions to demoralize or drive away the very people who deliver the critical lessons. If this is the government's idea of hard bargaining, they would do well to begin from a more reasonable position.
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