"Inquiry into murdered & missing Aboriginal women needed"

Native leaders made renewed calls for a federal inquiry into the unsolved cases of almost 600 missing and murdered aboriginal women in Canada last week on the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

Locally, dozens of Six Nations people gathered at the Woodland Cultural Centre in Brantford last Thursday to mark the national day of remembrance, which is also the 23rd anniversary of the Ecole Polytechnique massacre in Montreal where 14 female students were murdered at the school simply for being women.

Sadly, a number of Six Nations women are part of the national statistics on missing and murdered aboriginal women.

Cynthia Jamieson was killed by her boyfriend in Hamilton in 2002; Paula Joy Martin was killed by her partner in Brantford about 15 years ago; Shelley Lynne Joseph was murdered in Hamilton in 2004; and Tashina General was killed by her boyfriend on Six Nations in 2008.

Their lives and spirits were honoured with a candlelight vigil and traditional ceremonies during the event that many men attended in a gesture of support for action on violence against women.

Cynthia Barton, aboriginal healing and wellness coordinator at Brantford Native Housing, said the day was meant to honour the women's lives.

"Most of you aware of the Montreal massacre." she said. "It's not in celebration of what happened but to honour women today. For those of you who are here, you're making a really big statement about yourself and women."

Peter Isaacs made a spirit plate at the potluck gathering to feed the spirits of the women who have died. The women's singing group Kontiwennanoron (Their Precious Words) sang traditional songs honouring the lives and spirits of the women who have died.

Outside the centre, Isaacs performed a smudging ceremony while Brantford Rev. Barry Pridham led an evening candlelit prayer honouring the women's lives and spirits.

"Today, Dec. 6, 2012, we take a moment of silence to remember the horrific day of Dec. 6, 1989 when 14 young women were killed simply for being women," the group intoned in unison. "On this day, the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, we remember that we simply cannot keep silent when so many women have been and continue to be victims of violence."

Participants turned to the north, south, east and west to remember female victims of violence around the world.

The western direction evoked thoughts of the aboriginal women who were murdered or went missing in Canada's western provinces.

"We remember our aboriginal sisters who live with systemic violence and injustice," said the group. "We celebrate their courage and their desire for justice. We pray for peace for our sisters in the west."

The Native Women's Association of Canada has gathered information on 582 cases of missing and murdered aboriginal women to date. Seventy of those cases happened in Ontario. Eighty per cent of those women were murdered, 14 per cent have gone missing, four per cent are classified as "suspicious deaths" and two per cent are classified "unknown" - where police have determined the deaths did not involve foul play but relatives believe otherwise.

Nationally, the largest majority of those women - 38 per cent - fell into the 19-30 year old age category when they went missing or were murdered.

Seventy-one per cent of all cases happened in - urban areas and 22 per cent of deaths were at the hands of an intimate partner, compared to 16 per cent at the hands of a stranger. Family, an acquaintance, a "john", and "unknown" accounted for the rest of cases.

Shawn Atleo, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, said in a statement last week that the organization is working to address issues of violence against aboriginal women.

"A number of priority issues were deliberated this week by Chiefs in Assembly, and ending violence remains the constant bottom-line for our people." he said. "We are here fighting for the rights of our peoples back home in our communities inherent rights and human rights for they are the ones who suffer daily to meet the basic standards of life, and this too often includes the struggle to achieve safety and security. We cannot lose any more of our sisters, mothers or daughters to violence. We need action at every level and the leadership is prepared to empower, support, and encourage this action to achieve justice and end violence."

He added, "We will continue to press for an independent National Public Commission of Inquiry that will address root causes of violence and vulnerability and focus on action, awareness and prevention."