A council representing four northwestern Manitoba First Nations is calling on Manitoba and Ottawa for support after declaring a public health emergency Thursday.
It comes after years of crises in the Island Lake region due to drugs, disease and homelessness, Grand Chief Alex McDougall of the Anisininew Grand Council said at a news conference in Brandon, Man.
“(This is) a regional crisis and it sits at the intersection of a toxic drug supply, problematic substance use, HIV, hepatitis C, homelessness and the breakdown of community safety that follows when people are denied access to care,” he said.
The decision to declare the emergency was made by executive councillors of the Anisininew Okimawin Grand Council. It represents more than 17,000 people who belong to the Anisininew Nations in northern Manitoba, including Red Sucker Lake, Wasagamack, Garden Hill and St. Theresa Point.
“A child in Red Sucker Lake should not know what (a) needle looks like before they know how to read,” Red Sucker Lake Anisininew Nation Chief Samuel Knott told reporters.
The council’s call follows Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba’s Chief Public Health Officer, declaring an HIV-related public health emergency in May. At that news conference, Roussin said it would open the door to additional resources and response options.
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“A provincial emergency is not Manitoba’s problem alone. It is a signal that the system has failed First Nations people,” McDougall said.
“The era of crisis response must end. And an era of prevention, partnership and Anisininew-led care begins.”
Anisininew Okimawin Grand Council members are calling for provincial-federal partnerships based on treaty implementation to help address the public health emergency.
“Our message today is not an attack on any government. It is an invitation. We are inviting Canada and Manitoba to become partners, to honour Treaty 5 and its adhesions, to fund prevention rather than emergency responses,” its grand chief said.
“We are not asking governments to spend more on crisis. We are asking governments to invest in prevention that costs less and saves lives.”
Manitoba’s Minister of Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Bernadette Smith met with McDougall late last month, she said in an emailed statement to Global News.
“Over the past year, we’ve supported Indigenous-led organizations in opening 1,200 treatment spaces that ensure access to culturally appropriate addictions treatment,” the minister said.
She pointed to harm reduction measures the province has supported in the region, including a virtual clinic and mobile outreach program.
“Continued efforts to remove toxic drugs before they enter our communities will remain our focus as we work to give Manitobans the supports they need. We continue to be a willing partner with the federal government as we work towards supporting First Nations communities throughout Manitoba,” Smith’s statement reads.
Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) told Global News it is “deeply concerned” and “more needs to be done to support the four Anisininew First Nations” in an emailed statement.
“We have offered assistance to community leadership and are working with the First Nations on immediate and long-term supports to improve health services and outcomes in the Island Lake First Nations,” Maryéva Métellus, a spokesperson for ISC, said.
The statement said Ottawa will support the nations and their community-led solutions.
How’s your father, who’s your mother’s brother?
Whine 24/7/365, get a f-ing job, stop spending hard working tax dollars on cheap wine
Oh the lazy hand out crowd that want to own everything and believe whitey has ruined their paradise. Meanwhile they are given everything and can happily go back to living in tents and hunting but have zero interest in that. Drugs, alcohol, violence & trash kinda sum up this entire crowds situation.
But please more money from the taxpayers .
“Annoyed”, It is into the billions now over the years, and they still live in poverty. How is this possible if the indigenous are only about 5% of the population of Canada?
Here we go again, Canada to the rescue, I’m so sick of these Indians now, how many hundreds of millions do Canadians hand out to these parasite, fix you own problems… I cant be the only Canadian who is sick to death of these spoiled will never amount to anything people.!!!
Come on Canada stop with the special treatment, do these people deserve more then your Mother Brother Father Sister etc…dont think so ,,,
WAKE UP CANADIANS
Start with an audit…where’d all the taxpayer supplied money go? Should have been ample to provide the people it was intended for.
Funny how they want to be independent and self-governed yet always expect the rest of us to fix their problems.
So reading another article, MMF president David Chartrand wants to spend on property in downtown 17,ooo sq ft in Winnipeg for a National Research Council Centre. The price tag for this is unavailable, of course. That money could be better spent on his own people living in poverty and addiction on the reserves.
Glen your a Maga csucker
Pretty sad.Best of luck
Is this hat in hand mentality ever going to stop?
Funny how they want to be independent and self-governed yet they always expect other people to fix their problems.
So much for the big idea about the Separatist Aboriginal/Indigenous movement wanting to split and be independent of Canada while having self government but oh how those benefits and relying on Canada look soooooo good bedause they don’t have the company to take care of things and their people with their billions that they siphon out of Canada!! Hmmm
Wah wah wah!!!
idle hands are the devil’s workshop. When all your needs are paid for and you don’t need to better yourself and you have nothing to do and all day to do it what do you expect?