The Saskatchewan government is putting a focus on safety during Missing Persons Week which runs May 5-11.
“Safety for All” is this year’s theme.
“It’s an unfortunate fact that there are families out there who are still waiting for their loved ones to come home,” said Don Morgan, justice minister and attorney general.
“It’s important that we, as a province, continue the work being done to find missing persons and to address the reasons people go missing in the first place.”
There are currently 134 long-term missing persons in the province involving men, women and children, according to the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police website.
“We again pause, to remember those missing persons and what their families are going through,” said Marlo Pritchard, Weyburn Police Service chief and president of the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police.
“The week is also about awareness, recognizing the work already done by so many, but hopefully focusing and renewing our collective efforts to prevent and reduce the occurrences of missing persons.”
The Provincial Partnership Committee on Missing Persons, made up of government representatives, police, Indigenous and community-based organizations, works to address issues related to preventions, intervention and support.
“We really want to reach out to the communities and give them support options and education and prevention materials so we can reduce that number (134) of missing persons,” said Sue Ramsay, a spokesperson with Child Find Saskatchewan (CFS).
For more details on how to help families of missing persons click here.