CANADA
An inquiry into the mistreatment of Indigenous people by the Public Service of the Canadian Province of Quebec has found that “laws, policies, standards or institutional practices in place are sources of discrimination and inequity”.
Retired Superior Court Justice Jacques Viens (pictured), who led the inquiry, said this situation had left populations with problems for which there was no chance to act or remedy the situation.
The inquiry stemmed from media reports on the way police in Val d’Or were mistreating Indigenous women.
The Province’s Liberal Government under then Premier Philippe Couillard broadened the mandate of the Commission to include the treatment of Indigenous people by police, the justice system, the correctional system, health and social services, and youth protection services.
The resulting 520-page report offered 142 recommendations for the Government of Quebec to address what it called “undeniable systemic discrimination”.
“A sure conclusion of the Commission was that the structures and processes in place demonstrate an obvious lack of sensitivity to socio-geographical realities of Indigenous people,” Mr Viens said.
Meanwhile, new figures have revealed that the Provincial Government of Manitoba has cut more Public Service positions than it originally planned, prompting accusations from the Opposition that the cuts will hurt an already fragile economy.
The annual report of the Civil Service Commission revealed there were currently 12,839 active PS employees in Manitoba — roughly 2,000 fewer than in 2016.
The Conservative Government hired consulting firm KPMG that year and accepted the firm’s call for a reduction of 1,200 jobs.
Opposition Leader, Wab Kinew asked Premier, Brian Pallister why the cuts had run deeper than planned.
“Why cut so many jobs that Manitobans rely on?” Mr Kinew asked.
He said it did have an impact on the economy when jobs were cut too aggressively.
“It pulls money out of circulation, and … for every job position that’s cut, there’s a family attached to that who bears the brunt,” Mr Kinew said.
Montreal, 2 October 2019
