July 11, 2012: Demonstrators en route from the Forks to the TD Centre. Photo: Paul S. Graham
Several hundred Winnipeggers marched from the Forks National Historic Site to the TD Centre near the corner of Portage and Main in support of a call by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs for a national public inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women in Canada.
July 11, 2012: Ross Eadie: "We are all Treaty People. The violence must stop!" Photo: Paul S. Graham
Among the many speakers was Winnipeg City Councillor Ross Eadie who declared “We are all Treaty People” — a reference to the rights and responsibilities that flow from historic treaties signed between the government of Canada and First Nations across the country.
At least 600 Aboriginal women are believed to have gone missing or been murdered in recent years. The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak and the Southern Chiefs Orhanization have written to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, urging that he hold a national inquiry that would look at all aspects of the issue.
The Chiefs have sent a parallel request to Eric Robinson, Deputy Premier of Manitoba and Minister of Aboriginal and Northern Affairs.
Both letters are available on the web site of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs.
Watch Winnipeg City Councillor Ross Eadie’s impassioned speech at the rally:
