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4 Tuesday April 21 2015 The Northern Journal is an independent newspaper covering news and events in the western Arctic and northern Alberta. 2013 CCNA BLUE RIBBON CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2013 C M C A AUDITED The Northern Journal is published weekly by Cascade Publishing Ltd. Printed at Star Press Inc. Wainwright AB. Publisher................................................................................. Don Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.21 donnorj.ca Editor.........................................................................Meagan Wohlberg 867-872-3000 ext.24 newsnorj.ca Reporter....................................................................... Dali Carmichael 867-872-3000 ext.25 reporternorj.ca Comptroller ..................................................... Dixie Penner 867-872-3000 ext.23 dixnorj.ca Advertising.............................. Heather Foubert Hay River 867-874-4106 adsnorj.ca Administration............................................Jeremy Turcotte 867-872-3000 ext.26 adminnorj.ca Production Manager ......................................Sandra Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.22 sandranorj.ca Graphics........................................................Paul Bannister 867-872-3000 ext.27 graphicsnorj.ca Letters to the Editor Policy The Northern Journal welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and include a phone number so the author can be veried. Names will be withheld on request in special circumstances where the reasons are determined to be valid. The Journal reserves the right to edit letters for length libel clarity and taste. Opinions expressed in letters and columns are not necessarily those of the publisher or editor. Advertising Deadlines Display ad deadline is Thursday at 400 p.m. Classied ad deadline is Thursday at 500 p.m. Email adsnorj.ca Subscription Rates Prices include GST. 47.25 in Fort Smith 52.50 elsewhere in Canada 105 in the USA overseas 164.30. EDITORIAL COLUMN Respect ebbs as partisan politics poison Parliament Peoples regard for politicians has been in decline over the last few years but the scan- dals emanating from Ottawa have taken us well beyond that tarnishing the credibility of all of government and any respect and trust Canadians had in it. The trial of suspended Senator Mike Duffy is not just about someone of low moral char- acter accused of graft not foremost about someone who was appointed to one of the highest ofces in the land and then abused it not only about the revelations in this and several other trials in the last few years where Senators time and expenses were inappropri- ately taken advantage of by the Conservative Party for partisan campaigning at times so close to breaking the law that a number were charged with criminal offences. No in fact the problem is more that Canadians have become so numb to this institutionalized corruption they now ignore it. Our country is in crisis yet people are jaded because this manner of operating is normal. That is the real shame. Our democracy is deteriorating because of it and our government is to blame. The Liberals under Jean Chretien au- thored the Sponsorship Scandal and were The problem is that Ca- nadians have become so numbtothisinstitutionalized corruption they now ignore it.Ourcountryisincrisisyet people are jaded because this manner of operating is normal. seen to be so corrupt they were outed in an election in 2006 shamed and demoted into third place in the House of Commons. Chre- tien was a master at holding on to power and that strategy included stacking the Senate with Liberal Senators something the Con- servatives long decried. Opposition Leader Stephen Harper harped constantly about the need for an elected Senate. When he came to power he turned his back on all his pre- vious positions and proceeded to stack the Senate with Conservative appointees then used it as a base to run election campaigns. One scandal after another has swept through Parliament under Harpers watch worse even than the Liberals in their dark- est hours bringing our country to a new low. The move by Justin Trudeau in January 2014 to remove all Liberal Senators from his caucus and no longer use them for election- eering was principled even visionary. It was a good start at xing a broken institution. It meant that the strength of the Liberal Party election machine was diminished and oddly Trudeau was broadly criticized for that for weakening his party and reducing its chances of regaining power. That points to just how bad things have become. Doing whats right should be applauded and supported but that does not happen in the poisonous partisan environment in Ottawa. Harpershouldhavefollowedthatleaddoing the same thing and set the Senate on a much better track. It was the right thing to do. Freed of partisan politics the Senate could do its job the role of the upper chamber of govern- ment providing sober second thought on all legislation. Instead the Senate continues to be further diminished as its Conservative members act as shills for their party. MeanwhilealargegroupofNewDemocratic Partycaucusmembersaresuingtheparliamen- tary Board of Internal Economy BIE after it ruledtheymustrepay2.7millionforstaffcosts incurredrunningofcesinMontrealandQue- bec City. The NDP say the ofces were for par- liamentary duties but the BIE ruled they were partisanNDPofces.TheBIEisdominatedby Conservativesandthemeetingswereinsecret. The NDP say the decision is politically biased and unreasonable arbitrary and incorrect and have gone to court over it. The Conserva- tives have parliamentary ofces in different parts of Canada paid for by taxpayers which they say are necessary and appropriate for the governing party. They are also spending mil- lions of dollars on government ad campaigns that are obviously partisan. They are in power and can get away with it. What business do either of them have in opening up ofces for their own gain spend- ing taxpayer money so wantonly We have to ask would the NDP be any better than the Conservatives and Liberals if they were in power Would they who are so righteous now take advantage of their new position and do everything and anything to hold onto power as the Harper Conservatives are doing now It is hard not to be jaded about such things. Parliament should be focused on xing the economy ending child poverty alleviating homelessness bringing prosperity and jus- tice to indigenous communities and so many other noble and necessary tasks and chal- lenges facing our country. Canadians need to demand that political leaders be trustworthy and honest do their jobs well and respect the institution they serve. By SIKU ALLOOLOO Violence against Indigenous women and girls is an incredibly daunting issue to en- gage. Many feel as helpless and unequipped to deal with it as we do with the idea of secur- ing justice it seems entirely out of our hands. Indigenous women are subject to overlap- ping forms of violence physical gendered systemic racist economic Most of us ex- perience sexual violence at some point in our lifetime often in repeated incidents and without retribution. This reality has a way of normalizing violence to the point that many just assume it is a standard part of our lives. Violence against Indigenous women has a long history going back to 1492 when my Taino ancestors encountered the rst Euro- peans. Gendered violence is one of the most effective weapons of colonization. In order to annex Indigenous lands and exploit re- sources our connections to the earth and to our lifegiving force must be broken which is enacted upon the bodies of our women. This ongoing legacy is apparent in the over- whelming number of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls MMIWG a crisis we have collectively failed to end. The incessant murders of women such as Cindy Gladuewhicharehorrifyingintheirbrutality and staggering absence of justice along with the failure to address the underlying causes present an unmistakable message we are in desperate need of ways to protect the lives of Indigenous women and instate accountability. As long as the status quo prevails more of us will continue to be killed. Meanwhile we must also endure the ongoing violence of a society and judicial system that have yet to afrm our rights as human beings. This barbarity could not continue if enough people were in touch with their own humanity. Eliminatingsystemicracismandimplementing real justice would be humanizing for everyone. Unfortunatelymanyofusdistanceourselves fromthecrisisbecausetheincidentsaresoatro- cioussounthinkableandsoprofoundlydevas- tating that our impulse is to disengage. But we mustbebraverthanthatwemustconfrontthe realityandconvertourpowerlessnessintoaction. EachnewlossremindsmeofhowfortunateI amtobealiveandhoweasilyIcouldhaveended uplikeanyoneofthesewomen.Thepossibility stillstands.Recognizingthiscompelsmetoface thesickeningrealityandworkfortransformation. Manycourageouspeoplearebuildingaware- nessandsupportthroughpublicmarchesteach- inswritingmusicartandceremony.Muchof theworkisinstrengtheningconnectionsacross communities and visible in the thousands of Indigenouswomenwhocontinuetoasserttheir vitality and presence on this earth. Wehaveeveryrighttolifeandtojustice.We deserve to be supported and treated as valu- able human beings. We belong to freedom to love to our cultures and homelands and we belong in connection to these without ever beingharmed.Thisiswhatisnaturalandwhat should be normalized. Collective compassion our sense of connectedness respect for life. Justice is out of our hands so much of the time but we cannot neglect the power that is in our hands. We must take accountability and put things right in the ways that we can. Start by connecting to the experience of MMIWG.WhatifyouwereCindyGladueWhat ifitwasyourdaughtermothersisterorpartner Could you not help but demand justice Could younotdoeverythinginyourpowertoendthis crisis and afrm our right to live Show the women and girls in your life that their lives are valuable that respect is their in- heritance. Prioritize their safety and nurture theirresilience.Teachmenandboysthepower of respect to honour their humanity and nur- ture their strength of heart. Find the courage to stand up for what is just. Help protect life. Dont stop until the violence is ended and all are free to live. Siku Allooloo is Inuit Taino and part of an extended Dene family. She lives in Denendeh. Reclaim Justice End the Violence SevenstudentsfromChiefJimmyBruneauSchoolandthreeoftheirteacherstooktotheirtrusty snowmobiles and sleds last week as they traveled from Behchoko to Whati exploring a tradi- tional-use trail. The journey took about a day with stops on the way to talk about historical sites and landmarks. Once they arrived in Whati the group rested at the Mezi Community School where they were met with much hospitality. PhotoPaulGentlemen