NUNAVUT
The government of Nunavut's director of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, Shuvinai Mike, shared an Inuit perspective on suicide on the third day of a coroner's inquest, Sept. 16.

Inuit elder Shuvinai Mike, director of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ) at the Government of Nunavut's (GN) Department of Culture and Heritage. Testified at coroner's inquest into suicide in Nunavut Sept 16, 2015 - photo courtesy Shuvinai Mike

Mike's testimony began with reflections on her work for the Government of Nunavut, led by questions from the chief coroner's lawyer, Sheldon Toner.

Then Mike turned to her own experiences with losing her daughter. The common theme throughout her testimony was Inuit societal values and the difficulties of English concepts and ideas translated to Inuktitut.

"My role is to protect Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit," she said.

Mike works for the Department of Culture and Heritage, is long-time teacher with a bachelor's degree and master's degree in education and is responsible for the Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit Katimajiit, an external council of elders which advises the GN, and the interdepartmental Tuqtarviit, which works on IQ issues and initiatives within the GN.

Toner quickly turned to GN initiatives, pointing specifically to the initiative to place a mental health nurse in every community.

"But we've also heard that there can sometimes be reluctance for people to come and use services at the health centre," he said. "Is there anything your department has been doing to ensure that people can receive services, including grief counseling in their own language or in a culturally appropriate way," Toner asked.

Mike's response: "Not in the way that you are asking, because we are not mental health workers. But we have been involved, in the past year, when the Department of Health was giving orientation to new social workers."

She explained that her division provided Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit perspective sessions.

Toner asked if the same sessions have been offered to mental health nurses.

"We haven't been requested," said Mike.

"How about teachers," asked Toner.

"We haven't been requested," said Mike.

But asked if it was something her division could offer, if requested, Mike said, "Yes."

Like several government staff questioned during the inquest so far, Mike explained that in terms of action items stemming from the Nunavut Suicide Prevention Strategy, she and her staff can only act if they are requested to act, or requested to have input.

Mike turned to notes she'd brought with her to the inquest.

"I wrote some things I've been thinking about, especially since yesterday when I was here for a bit," she said. "I was wondering, what is it that we are having difficulty with?"

She then answered her own question.

"When suicide prevention is translated into Inuktitut, it literally says it's preventing a person from committing suicide. So we literally understand it to be that way. So when someone is impacted by suicide, they say, 'Where were they? Where were they to prevent the suicide?' Our way of thinking is different. I've been thinking of this term for quite some time, especially since I have been asked to give testimony."

Mike shared her personal experience in relation to the mental health system as it is currently set up.

"When I asked for my daughter's coroner's report, I was shocked to learn that my daughter had gone to the hospital many times, according to the report. If I had been informed of this, I definitely would have intervened.

"She may still be alive, and be here for the kids. When one calls a help line and says they are suicidal and the protocol is to call the RCMP, the protocol should also be to call the parents, regardless of the age.

"In my understanding, this would be called suicide prevention."

Later she said: "I want people in this courtroom to understand that we are not against anyone who started health groups, etc. I just want them to understand that their way of helping and their good intentions are not helping in the Inuit way of thinking."

Mike also suggested that suicide prevention initiatives, like annual walks, and the words "suicide prevention" themselves, cause Inuit to relive the past, relive the pain of losing loved ones to suicide. That focus on the past, she said, keeps people from moving forward.

"You're keeping it alive, it's ongoing."

Every year there are suicide prevention walks, she said, then asked, "Are we walking for those that are gone already, in the past, or are we walking for the present and the people whose lives we value?"

Later, as she was questioned by the GN's lawyer, Mike said again "it's not culturally relevant that way," adding the terminology should be chosen by Inuit from the beginning.

"When it's not an Inuit initiative, there's no ownership for Inuit."

An appropriate term would promote healthy living, a concept Mike pursued when Yvonne Niego, representing Isaksimagit Inuusirmi Katujjiqatigiit (Embrace Life Council), rose to question her.

Translation equipment was brought out and the exchange between Mike and Niego took place in both Inuktitut and English.

Mike suggested the word inuusiqatsiaqujigatta, which means "we want you to have a good life," is more appropriate because efforts should be focused on the present and on promoting life.

In the exchange, Mike also brought forward the Inuit practice of naming.

"I think how we survive is using kinship. When our loved ones who are passed away are named after. It's like their spirits live again. That's what I would call resilience and that's what I would call a value that has been passed on from our elders. And for the younger generation, I think they also need to learn more of these values," she said.

"You draw attention to naming. The importance of naming is high in our Inuit culture," asked Niego.

Mike agreed.

Niego, stressing the power of the cultural practice, gave another example, "Is it true that you can be closer to your mother through naming than you are to your mother through birth?"

Mike agreed.

After her daughter died, Mike explained, she could not "take babies" because there was too much grief. Now, since she's done some healing, her daughter's name can continue.

Mike and Niego also discussed individual one-on-one counseling, Inuit-to-Inuit, echoing a question raised by the GN lawyer about whether Mike thought the Ilisaqsivik program, a regional training centre for community-based counseling in Clyde River, was a more culturally appropriate training program for grief counseling, Mike said, "Yes."

Ilisaqsivik's premise is by Inuit, for Inuit.

According to its website, Ilisaqsivik was created through the vision and efforts of a group of concerned Inuit community members in Clyde River. In 1996, they began to meet to discuss how they could find the resources needed to support locally initiated cultural and social programs that would allow the community to develop according to its own needs and vision.

Remembering her own efforts to find counselling after her own daughter died, Mike explained the "cumbersome" processes and approaches did not help her.

"At the 1-800 number (provided through the GN) they said if I wanted someone in Inuktitut, they would have to get back to me," she said.

To Niego, Mike said elders don't promote themselves as counsellors, but they are and some do have training and "it's always individually and with a person you trust."

"There is someone in a community, even right now, talking about issues, even when this inquest started. Because it's so publicized, it's triggering memories again. As we speak, I'm sure there's already other Inuit who have been impacted talking to their own people that they trust."

And, for vulnerable youth, Mike stressed a back-and-forth learning relationship with elders in settings such as camps on the land, where values can be passed on from elders to youth but also where elders can learn about the difficulties youth currently experience.

Presiding coroner Garth Eggenberger thanked Mike for her testimony.

"We're all trying to find the right thing to do," he said. "And for me, you put it into perspective. From my perspective as a coroner, we are trying to find out what happened. But we are also trying to help people from doing this. The terminology is important and it's really important that you brought that forward.

"Thank you again for your testimony."

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