It’s been two weeks since the provincial government’s decision not to search a Manitoba landfill for the remains of missing and murdered Indigenous women set off a wave of protests, but Premier Heather Stefanson says she hasn’t changed her stance.
Stefanson told Global Winnipeg on Friday that the “difficult” choice was made out of potential safety concerns for workers who would be searching the Prairie Green landfill, and she stands by that decision.
In a statement Thursday, the union representing landfill workers says there’s no reason the search can’t be done if proper precautions are taken, but Stefanson continues to point to the risks.
“We’re very concerned about what was in the report in terms of the risks that were identified — asbestos and other toxic chemicals and so on,” Stefanson said. “We made what was a very difficult decision.
“We may disagree on the decision that’s been made, but I think we can all agree on one thing, that this is a horrific tragedy that’s happened — not just to the families, but to the community, and to other high-risk individuals who are living in our communities.
“I want to make sure that we’ve got the proper programming in place to help those individuals through this, these difficult times, to ensure this doesn’t happen to more families in the community.”
Tensions ramped up last week when Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller called Stefanson’s decision “heartless, with the premier firing back and accusing the minister of electing to “inflame and distort” and politicize the tragedy.
A blockade at Winnipeg’s Brady Road landfill was removed Tuesday, after more than a week of protests, following a temporary injunction granted by a Court of King’s Bench judge after the city raised concerns about environmental and safety risks related to garbage collection.
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A Court of King’s Bench judge granted a temporary injunction last Friday to end the blockade after the City of Winnipeg said the barrier posed environmental and safety risks related to garbage collection.
Protesters, who have since moved to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights at the Forks, have demanded that a search be authorized for the remains of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran, believed to have been killed by alleged serial killer Jeremy Skibicki.
Stefanson said Friday that she feels for the families who have been affected by the tragic situation and wants to work with stakeholders to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.
“I’m here as premier of Manitoba, and I’m also a mother. I can empathize with those families. They’re out advocating for their loved ones, and I respect that,” she said.
“I’m reaching out and I want to work with them on how we can look after those who are most vulnerable in our community.”
A group of Indigenous leaders, including Grand Chief Cathy Merrick of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC), said Thursday they met with Winnipeg mayor Scott Gillingham to discuss the potential for a search, and said the mayor offered support, but the province needs to come to the table.
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Calls to search the landfill have expanded well beyond Manitoba’s borders, with supportive protests in other cities, and even an appeal to the United Nations from a Winnipeg member of Parliament.
Leah Gazan (Winnipeg Centre) filed a submission to the UN’s special rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, asking for international oversight into what she says is a failure by the provincial and federal governments.
“I’m hoping the premier reconsiders her position and that all levels of government quit playing jurisdictional games,” Gazan told Global Winnipeg on Wednesday.
“Do whatever is needed to make sure that these women are, even in their death, treated with dignity and human rights, something that wasn’t afforded to them in life.”
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