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NTI met with Kiviaq's lawyer

Your July 30, 2004 editorial notes that the federal government fails to provide Inuit living in southern Canada with programs and services as good as those provided to First Nations. We agree with your praise for Kiviaq's determination to confront the federal government about this injustice.

However, your editorial is not correct in suggesting that Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. has ignored Kiviaq's complaints.

NTI gives priority to asserting and defending the rights that Nunavut Inuit gain from the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement. For example, NTI is currently engaged in three key court cases with the federal government (over firearms, shrimp allocations, and the Manitoba-Dene boundary). We are also deeply engaged in negotiations with Canada for funding to address this unequal treatment of Inuit.

NTI is interested in Kiviaq's legal arguments, which he mainly bases on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. NTI met with Kiviaq's lawyer and offered opinions and suggestions in the development of Kiviaq's court case, and NTI has not ruled out joining a court process in the future.

The factors underlying the Kiviaq case are part of a pattern of unfair and destructive treatment of Nunavut and Inuit. For example, the allocation of commercial fisheries by the federal government has made Nunavut the only region in Canada that does not have access to most of the fish in waters adjacent to our coast.

Further, when it signed the land claims agreement, the federal government promised that 85 per cent of jobs in the public sector in Nunavut would go to Inuit, but today the government refuses to provide the needed education and training resources to make this possible. The result is that Canadian taxpayers are paying some $65 million a year to bring in southern workers to a region with the highest unemployment rate in Canada.

This pattern of federal government unwillingness to help find concrete solutions to concrete challenges is disappointing and damaging to Inuit and the rest of Canada. NTI is actively using every political and legal tool available to us to change this and we will continue to work closely with GN and all others in Nunavut in trying to make real changes.

Paul Kaludjak, president
Nunavut Tunngavik Inc.

September 24, 2004

RCMP not protecting elderly victim

I am writing this letter to complain about the treatment of my mother when she was attacked in her house on Friday evening.

This psychotic man came into the house holding a rock to bash my mother's head in. He apparently watched my mother going home alone and he came in checking to see if she really was alone. He was asking her where she had come from and then he started to bash her in the head with the rock.

To me, I would consider that as being attempted murder. Luckily she was able to knee him in the groin and then proceeded to drag him out of the house and then lock the door.

The RCMP was notified and they said that they could do nothing to the guy, who has been stalking her over the last 10 years. This is not the only incident where he has done that to her. Last Toonik Tyme he did the same thing to her at the ladies washroom in the Northmart.

Again, the RCMP did nothing to keep him locked up, but they were more interested in arresting me for defending my mother. I told the officer that he had been doing that to my mother and my aunt since the morning during Toonik Tyme festivities.

My mother even had a restraining order against him but even that did not seem to matter to the RCMP. When are they finally going to do something about it? Only after he has finally killed her?

The RCMP in Iqaluit is a joke. They are only interested in arresting intoxicated people and do nothing about the more serious crimes that are being perpetrated by people out there. They say that they are here to serve and protect the people of Iqaluit but what protection did my mother get from them? It does not seem right when someone does that to an elder and the RCMP does not seem to care if he is going to do that to her again and keep releasing him after a day or two.

My mother is not the only elder that he has done that to and I am sure that we are going to hear of a lot more incidents like this or even worse.

Are the elderly people, mainly women, in this town going to have to start looking over their shoulders even in the safety of their own homes?

(Name withheld by request)
Outraged Citizen
Iqaluit

Nunavik board explains treatment of Charlie Adams

An Inuit beneficiary under the terms of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement and having his residence in Nunavik is eligible to receive health care within our jurisdiction of health and social services.

In the case of Mr. Charlie Adams, he had been residing outside of Nunavik for a long period of time and therefore is not within our health network.

As we are human and subject to making mistakes, Mr. Charlie Adams' wife was mistakenly sent as an escort for Mr. Adams. The Tulattavik Health Centre's administrators assumed Mr. Adams was a patient of their hospital, which turned out to be the contrary.

After learning this, the Northern Quebec Module (patient services) kindly asked Ms. Elsie Adams to prepare her trip back to Kuujjuaq. She was to receive transportation, lodging for the night, and a ticket back to Kuujjuaq.

As it turns out, Ms. Adams refused to leave and chose to stay in Montreal. The Northern Quebec Module gave a list of places where Ms. Adams could stay cost-free, bus tickets and meal tickets. Ms. Adams also has a return ticket back to Kuujjuaq, but chooses to stay in Montreal. According to our policy, a person who chooses to stay in the South must find his or her own lodging.

We feel compassion for Charlie and do hope he recovers from his injuries soon. After discussions between the executive directors of the two health centres and the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services, we have taken Mr. Adams under our care. Once released, he will go to Nunavik House and be sent up North through our patient services. As for Elsie, she is back at Nunavik House and will return to the North at the same time as Charlie.

As a regional board with the mandate of providing services through our health institutions, we ensure that we give the best possible care to our population. You are our first priority in the health network.

We regret the inconveniences for Mr. Adams and his wife, but in our actions, we respected our policy and made an exception in this particular case. Lastly, we will ensure this type of situation does not occur again in the future.

Jeannie May
Executive Director
Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services

Another call for change in FANS policy

I echo and second Simona Arnatsiaq's suggestion in her letter to you last week that the FANS criteria ought to be simplified to:

1. 12 month residency; and
2. Nunavut beneficiary enrolled.

I also have a daughter in post-secondary education, who was also refused financial assistance from FANS because, well I'm not sure why. Anyway, there are precious few Inuit from Nunavut furthering their education, and it seems to me that these people are and will be needed in Nunavut.

It seems to me that the Government of Nunavut needs to look at an urban Inuit beneficiary policy, much as the rest of the country is working on urban Aboriginal policies.

Again, like Simona, I thank NITC for their help to my daughter.

Peter Ittinuar
Toronto

Praise for Jim Little's composting campaign

I would like to commend Jim Little for his efforts and I am in full support of composting.

I have been composting for four years now, mixed with Arctic soil. This year I finally got to use the compost in my greenhouse. It works very well, for lettuce, Yukon Gold potatoes, sweet peas, and spinach just to name a few.

Good luck with your future gardening Jim, hope I get to see it someday!

The Arctic Gardener
Iqaluit
(Name withheld by request)

Crime and violence escalating in Nunavik

There is a growing concern with the escalation in crime in our region.

The police are constantly dealing with hate, hurt and other violent acts. An estimated 95 per cent of the violence we deal with is directly related to drug and alcohol abuse. Drug and alcohol abuse is at an all-time high and considering the fact that our population is growing, it seems that it will only get higher.

Organized crime, once only a distant problem that we read about or saw as images of biker gangs and terrorists on television, has started to touch our communities. Organized crime has impacted not only the police force, but also the citizens. The police are taking a stand and not tolerating illegal activities related to drug and alcohol trafficking.

However they have to deal with the ramifications: many individuals react with violence to withdrawal from drugs and to the stoppage of the illegal cash flow. These ramifications also affect the community. That is just one tip of the iceberg.

Another aspect of this issue is that the introduction of alcohol and drugs in the past had a really big impact on the once simple lives of the generations before us. We now see the 'all day/night,' FAS/FAE and children exposed to violence. The cycle goes on.

We cannot forget about the sexual abuse that was evident in both the environment surrounding the alcohol/drug abuse and also within public institutions. Today we are still dealing with the problems, but on a wider scale due to the growing population.

There is a lot of anger and hurt in some of the members of our communities and there is too much of an attitude of 'let's analyze' and buck passing and 'dealing with kid gloves.' The ultimate result is that suicide has become a huge concern, and it is only growing.

Our justice system is overloaded and our detention areas are often overloaded as well. It is true that we need improved justice services and detention facilities, but we also need to look at the reasons why so many of our people end up in jail.

People often take out their frustrations with the justice system on the police force, the differences being only vaguely understood.

For example, communities have to understand 1) that everything we do is based on evidence of a criminal act, 2) we submit this evidence to the justice system (crown prosecutor), and 3) depending on the evidence, the case reaches the court stage.

Once the case reaches the court stage, it is out of the police force's hands. If the individual is charged and detained, he or she is now in the hands of the correctional services system. If he or she is released without charges, this is due to a lack of evidence. If he or she is released into the community, that is the decision of the justice system and a lot of the time, we ourselves are outraged, especially if it jeopardizes the safety of our communities.

On the last note (and I hope that I haven't lost you by now!), I have been saying for a long time now that we as community officials, as parents and community members, should put our differences aside and work together for the future of our little ones and solidify and preserve what traditions we have left.

Let us put the past behind us to pave a better and safer future. Deep down inside we are all the same, just different cultures and backgrounds.

I believe the police are doing the best they can, under difficult circumstances where they are frequently subjected to personal verbal and violent attacks, including being shot at.

The one thing to be understood is that they are only human, with a hard job.

George Okpik
Kuujjuaq

September 10, 2004

Thank you to Adlair Aviation

On behalf of my immediate family and the Archie Komak family, I would like to extend my sincerest gratitude to Adlair Aviation for providing transportation to Cambridge Bay for the funeral service for our late father, who passed away on Aug. 12, 2004.

As Mr. & Mrs. Willy Laserich, Paul, Joanne, and Rene, have been friends of the late Archie and Bessie Komak for a long, long time, the Komak family give your family a sincerest appreciation for your help in time of our needs.

John and Bonnie Komak
Yellowknife

September 10, 2004

A bereaved crime victim speaks out

I am writing this letter with regards to the murder trial in my father's death.

I feel appalled and disgusted with the length of time it has taken the justice system to bring this matter to trial. Now that it is in the trial stages, I am even more upset that the courts have allowed precious time to spent deciding whether the accused in my father's murder trial should be held accountable and responsible for killing my father because he was too intoxicated.

To me, being intoxicated is not a valid excuse for harming another person, as a person has a choice whether or not to consume chemical substances. I would like to say that I feel taxpayers' money is being wasted on this trial if all the lawyers are arguing about is the alcohol content in the accused person's blood.

The message being sent is that a youth who goes out and gets drunk can get away with murder.

I am very hurt that this is what it has come to. This is my father, Davidee Nowdlak, that we are talking about. If this had happened to someone else's father I am sure they would feel the same way. Nothing the court hands out as a punishment is going to be punishment enough. Only the Almighty can give the correct punishment.

I now have to live with the fact that my father was killed by another person. I now have to help my children and myself heal from the devastation of this crime. My father's life was taken away all because some kid went out and got drunk and thought my dad was the person who stole from his grandfather.

My father had a heartbeat and he had rights. His rights were taken in a matter of minutes and his life in a matter of weeks. I feel very sorry for the accused.

My father was a well-known member of the community and many people were affected by his death. What does the accused plan to do with his life after this?

I plan on continuing to let the public know how things like this can happen and how it can affect the lives of many. I plan on educating young children on the affects of bullying.

This has had a huge impact in the lives of myself and my family. I pray that accused will show some sort of remorse and that he will pray for forgiveness. I realize that I cannot hate him for this because that would make me no better of a person than he is. I have learned to forgive, but I will never forget.

Tanya Nowdlak
Edmonton

September 10, 2004

Does the GN have a fiduciary responsibility?

I recently wrote you about our difficulties in obtaining student financial assistance or a loan from the Nunavut government for my daughter. I am very happy to let you know that our RIO and the NITC came through for my daughter. Thank you.

It was not my wish to make public our personal difficulties as urban Inuit, but we are without representation or leadership, so I opted to use your letters to the editor as a forum.

I have not met any Inuit who voluntarily disenfranchised themselves from their claims when they left their home territories. Urban Inuit originally from Nunavut participate in NTI elections, but have no representation. It is only right that NTI or its affiliates might at times meet in our community to hear our community issues.

Again, thank you, Inuit organizations; the public government could learn from your investments in the Inuit youth.

The Nunavut public government funding criteria for student assistance needs to be simplified. Either, 1) you are a resident for 12 months in Nunavut or 2) you are an Inuk enrolled in the NLCA.

I suggest this criteria because I still believe that not enough Inuit youth are going on to secondary education. Furthermore the question needs to be addressed; what percentage of loans and grants actually go to Inuit youth as a long-term investment?

I want to use our collective guilt as a society to state that the public government still has a fiduciary responsibility for Inuit health, education, housing and economic well-being. Why then, as in the case of education benefits, has the Nunavut government relinquished it's responsibility and essentially cut former Nunavut Inuit off from receiving educational funds. And in most cases, pawned it off to a beneficiary corporation to fund their fiduciary responsibility?

This polarization of responsibilities is getting very dangerous and confusing as we now seem to have two public governments; one an official public government created by the Nunavut Accord, which serves all people and the other, the informal Inuit government that funds the dislocated, unwashed and unwanted Inuit.

I do not think the creation of the Nunavut land claims agreement was to absolve the official public government of its fiduciary responsibilities. It seems that the Nunavut government has continuously opted to push financial responsibilities onto NTI because they feel that the NLCA transfers from the federal government have been significant and NTI apparently has the ability to pay.

Historically, when we became wards of the state with the federal government, we were well-trained to become dependent on them. Then the territorial government took that responsibility many years later. Are we now into our second wave of transferring the dependency from the public government to the Inuit organizations? What will happen when the Inuit funds are depleted?

This 'trend' does not bode well for Inuit rights in general and suggests the apparent polarization of Inuit and non-Inuit in Nunavut itself, with NTI being forced to take on an increasing financial responsibility, but without the authority of a public government.

This is the 'slippery slope' that we must pay particularly close attention to or the Nunavut government will become truly a public government with responsibility for no one.

I had intended a short thank you — thank you.

Simona Arnatsiaq
Plantagenet, Ont.

September 10, 2004

Apex — 0ut of sight, out of mind?

Every town and city in the world deals, essentially, with the same problems: housing; the cost of services; urban sprawl; pollution; and the desires and needs of its various components.

Over the centuries there have been hundreds, possibly thousands, of proposed ways of dealing with each. Some worked, most did not. The sad situation is that when a 'solution' is acted upon that does not work, the result is long lasting and often creates far larger and deeper problems.

One needs only to look at such 'solutions' as the projects in large urban centers that were seen to have been the answer to housing shortages and dispersed community linkages. This supposed crowning achievement in urban planning and architecture resulted in a ghettoized fringe of society rife with crime, poverty and unrest.

Or perhaps look at the much-sought-after 'solution' of the suburbs. Huge tracts of virgin land cleared to create row-upon-row of nearly identical homes that sprung up seemingly overnight. Thousands of families were instantly housed in middle to high-income boxes, fostering the cult of the suburb.

In a city such as Iqaluit, with such a small population and seemingly so far from the urban culture of the South, it is amazing to see the same things taking place.

As Iqaluit expands and seeks ways of meeting its multitude of needs and dreams, there are undoubtedly a variety of options and paths to take. The hurdles that stand between a problem or a dream and a possible solution are tall and often anchored to the ground with long rusted bolts of inertia, suspicion, budget concerns and the unspoken goals of unseen players. The result is often that the hurdles are not jumped at all, but used as excuses not to move beyond them.

As a resident of Apex it is disheartening to witness the relegation of its lands to the dispossessed of Iqaluit. Recently, two of the very few lots available within the small community were blanketed with pads of gravel - a rapidly dwindling commodity in our city - to make home for two identical houses that arrived on flatbeds from somewhere else.

These tiny houses, commonly referred to as '512's' are leftovers from a long-ago attempt to create housing in the North. These cramped, ill-planned and substandard units rarely meet the needs of their inhabitants and appear as blights on the landscape. In fact, they do not even meet the federal government minimum-size requirements for a one-bedroom apartment, and these houses have two bedrooms.

Rarely, apart from a country relegated to the third-world, would a house of five hundred and twelve square feet be considered an adequate solution to a family's needs. Even if the buildings were new they would not suffice. However, here they are. Plucked from what was most likely prime real-estate, these run-down examples of subsistence living are thrust into the fabric of Apex, a community already fighting the issues of ghettoism and inadequate representation.

The sheer cost of moving these buildings and making them livable must certainly have been a factor for their relocation. A house of that size, if someone actually decided to build such a monstrosity, would only cost, at today's rates, in the area of $76,000. The cost of moving them probably lies in that area.

The creation of housing is not simply a matter of erecting floors, walls and a roof for a select group of inhabitants. It should be an issue of creating a home for those people and building a relationship with the environment that the house resides within. As an architect, I have struggled for several years to make headway in the area of holistic and healthy housing and public buildings.

It should not be a choice, and indeed, does not have to be, to design and build energy-efficient, comfortable, and usable homes that are not only attractive and add to their surroundings, but are also cost-effective. Contrary to the belief held by those who ultimately make the decisions, building an environmentally friendly, efficient, attractive and modern building that respects the tundra, works with the weather and helps to define an Arctic architecture, can be done for the same cost or less than the typical homes being built today in Iqaluit.

In a time when we have to be more conscious of our energy consumption, use of natural materials, pollution, the health of our people, and the bottom line, there is no excuse for perpetuating the mistakes of a past generation of buildings. The two houses that are now firmly established on huge beds of tundra-destroying gravel fly in the face of these objectives. This is a classic case of thinking small and acting small when so much more could be achieved with only a little more effort.

With no services, at least five derelict or abandoned buildings, limited police presence and a lack of a dedicated sounding board for voicing concerns within City Hall, Apex has often been the perfect place to deposit the parent-city's unwanted or outdated in an effort to gentrify and appease the thirst of the enterprising.

It is no wonder that the inhabitants of Apex have a hard time controlling the flow of unresolved and unanswered issues that have been gnawing at them. Public forums on specific topics degenerate into a litany of off-topic grievances. While this may appear fruitless and the ranting of a small group of people, this is a symptom of a fringe area that has been belittled in the name of making Iqaluit a better place.

The arrival of the two, aged, substandard housing units in Apex comes only weeks after there was an attempted public meeting by City Council at the Abe Okpik Hall to discuss the disposal of four troubled lots in the community. While this meeting was adjourned after only fifteen minutes due to the lack of translation services, there was an obvious apprehension with regard to the disposal of the lots.

While the lots have been deemed developable, and are surveyed and open for residential development, the meeting was essentially one of courtesy, as the City has no obligation to conduct a public meeting on this issue. The citizens of Apex were concerned over the manner that the lots would be rehabilitated to facilitate new housing and what sort of housing might spring up.

A couple years ago, Apex voiced serious objection to the relocation of two trailers, as these not only went against city zoning by-laws but also detracted even further from the atmosphere of the community. Now with four new lots possibly available, the residents are concerned that more substandard quality housing would be developed.

A couple weeks later the 512's arrived, only substantiating the fears of the people of Apex.

As Iqaluit struggles to deal with urban sprawl, downtown rehabilitation and meeting the needs of the middle to high-income inhabitants, it should be careful not to walk in the footsteps of the decision-makers of other cities. Apex is quickly becoming the home of the 'out-of-sight, out-of-mind.' It is neither a suburb of Iqaluit nor considered a vital part of the parent-city's vitality.

It is undisputed that housing is needed and Apex is not an insular, xenophobic community that wishes to stand in the way of creating homes and welcoming people who wish to add to Apex's strong identity and sense of community. It simply does not want to be the unheeded dumping ground for what Iqaluit does not want or must move to make itself better.

The continued backward steps of Nunavut's housing situation, not in its creation of houses, but in the kind of houses it makes available, is a sad state of affairs for any community but here in this small place where we live, even the smallest, ill-thought out moves make a big difference.

Robert G. Billard
Apex

September 3, 2004

Was King David gay?

I have to admit, straight off the bat, that I am not married. I also am not gay.

In my time I've been around a fair number of gay people, in educational, job and social situations. Some of the people in those groups have had ceremonies where they profess love for each other, pledge devotion and all the good stuff that is associated with marriage.

And yet, for some odd reason, I don't have the faintest urge to engage in homosexual behaviour, it hasn't ruined my relationships and should the day come around when I do get married, I don't consider my vows cheapened because of what someone else did.

I say 'odd reason' because, according to some people, the mere existence of gay marriage (or of being near gay people) will give me gay cooties or something equally evil and cause me to... well, they aren't usually very clear on what is supposed to happen to me but it's usually awful. Often involving fiery debris falling from the sky.

At this point it should be becoming clear that I'm not taking this discussion seriously, and that's true. It's because I don't take the arguments presented seriously.

I don't take seriously people who state, on the one hand, that people should be free to shoose the lifestyle they want, free from interference from others, but then argue that others should be prohibited from doing the same. I don't take seriously those who claim the mantle of righteousness while engaging in the basest form of bigotry. And I especially don't take seriously those who are threatened by ideas, who demand that they be protected from those whose beliefs do not mirror their own.

Oh, and for anyone feeling the urge to quote Genesis 19, (do feel free to include the entire bit about Sodom, where Lot offered up his virgin daughters to be gang-raped; that part about the righteousness of Lot seems to get overlooked a fair bit), might I suggest they also look up the story of David and Jonathan starting at 1 Samuel 18, when Jonathan fell in love with the future King David of Israel.

How Jonathan 'delighted in David,' Jonathan's vow that 'Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee,' the multiple passages about how they loved one another, their repeated convenants before God to each other, and then, upon the death of Jonathan, David's lament that 'I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women.'

Sounds pretty gay if you ask me. And that sharing of covenants thing and vows to each other and expressions of love... Haven't heard anything like that since the last time I went to a wedding.

Keith Morrison
Cambridge Bay

September 3, 2004

Are we no longer beneficiaries in Montreal?

I am writing to you about Charlie and Elsie Adams.

I want to tell the person that made the mistake of sending Elsie down to Montreal, now that she does not want to leave Charlie in his present state, can she at least have a return ticket to Kuujjuaq when Charlie can be sent up North?

Because you made the mistake you have to correct it by returning her back home and at least have an open ticket for her to come back to Kuujjuaq.

And one more question: does that mean if we are on our own in Montreal, we are no longer beneficiaries?

I hope this matter is looked into as soon as possible. Someone from the Health Board or Tullatavik hospital should look into this.

And I hope the Nunavik House would be more precise as to who the Nunavik House is meant for, beneficiaries or non-beneficiaries.

(Name withheld by request)
Kuujjuaq

September 3, 2004

Nunavut should upgrade infrastructure for tourists

Tourism is one of the largest and fasting growing sectors in the world. Tourist dollars benefit almost every sector of the economy.

The United States has the largest economy in the world and a whole generation (baby-boomers) retiring in a few years. When I read about a cruise ship being half empty going into Iqaluit and seniors having to walk over rocks for access, the infrastructure must be improved.

I have visited such destinations as Thailand, Japan and most of Europe and these countries go out of their way to attract every tourist dollar possible. These economies, especially Thailand, have benefited enormously from what tourists spend.

Nunavut should upgrade some of their facilities and believe me they will come!

As a southerner living in Montreal I can tell you people are very interested in the Inuit culture and believe me, I know people who would pay good money to sleep in an igloo just because it's something new for them. The unspoiled nature of Canada's north is a treasure that must be discovered.

James Charron
Montreal

September 3, 2004

Quebec government education stats misleading?

On August 20, 2004, the Nunatsiaq News published an article entitled 'Nunavik students lag behind southern counterparts.'

Apart from the frustration inherent when comparing apples and oranges, there were several inaccuracies which the KSB would like to point out:

Nunatsiaq News wrote:

'Almost every child is enrolled in elementary school, but many are already a year or two behind when they get to secondary school.'

• The fact is, Nunavik students attend Grade 7 before going into Secondary 1. In the South, students go from Grade 6 to Secondary 1.

'In 2002-3, there were 2,963 students from pre-Kindergarten to Grade 6, but only 832 students enrolled at the secondary grades.'

• In fact, 2,964 students represents the global enrollment for that year.
• In 2002-3, there were 2,131 students enrolled in the elementary grades (Kindergarten to Grade 7), and 833 students enrolled at the secondary levels.
• Also, there is no pre-K at the Kativik School Board.
• In addition, close to 100 per cent of our students go from Grade 7 to Secondary 1.

'The overall dropout rate is three times higher than in the South.'

• Where in the South? Even in the South, the rates change according to region.

• The statistics that are referred to in the article calculate the number of graduating students up to 18 years of age. Many of our students graduate from secondary school after the age of 18.

While the statistics as cited are dismal within themselves, the fact that many of them were presented incorrectly or without benefit of qualification is unfortunate. Our Director of Education Services, Gaston Pelletier, was available to speak with Ms. George, had she taken the time to do so.

It is frustrating and unfair to compare the Kativik School Board with other school boards in Quebec. Our students begin learning in a second language only in Grade 3. Despite tremendous progress, there is still not the range of post-secondary opportunities in Nunavik that exist in the South.

The Quebec ministry of education cites in its 'Education Statistics Bulletin' (1998) that the geographical isolation of most aboriginal communities, and the fact that school in its present form is not part of the tradition of the aboriginal peoples, doubtlessly have an impact on scholastic results.

Much fairer to our students, and to the school board as a whole would be for the MEQ to simply monitor our progress. When we compare how much better our students are doing this year than five, 10 or even 20 years ago, then we know that there has been real progress.

In theory, the educational opportunities for all Quebecers are supposed to be equal. Despite the best intentions in the world, the different socio-economic challenges faced by our young people can't help but impact on other areas of their lives, including school.

Education must be valued by society, and children must be encouraged to go to school and be supported in every way possible. When this happens, we won't have to bemoan an article which paints Nunavik scholastic results in a less than complimentary light.

Sarah Aloupa
Kativik School Board

Editor's note: The statistics and opinions quoted in the aforementioned article are not ours. They're contained in two reports recently published by the Quebec government. If the KSB has problems with those reports, we would suggest that they send a similar letter to the Quebec ministry of education.

September 3, 2004

Bad decision by AWG organizers?

It was with great sadness, tinged with anger and disappointment (and I'm putting this mildly,) that I read of the 'official' decision by the AWG International Committee to cut out another segment of one of our true winter sports from the Arctic Winter Games, namely pee wee hockey for 11- and 12-year-olds.

What criteria did they use to determine this? Not winter enough?

Not Arctic enough?

In my opinion, what really needs to be considered for the AWG is what sports are truly definitive of winter games and which are predominant in our Arctic regions. One really has to wonder what goes on in the heads of the AWG bureaucrats who make these decisions about the future participation and direction of the games and what the consequences of this latest move will be further down the road.

What next? Removal of Inuit games? Dene games?

With all due respect, there are other sports that are far less reflective of the traditions and popularity of our sporting communities in the circumpolar regions, such as badminton, figure skating and table tennis etc. to name a few, that should have been considered long before pee wee hockey. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to pick on any other sport, but let's get real, what do more kids play and participate in? What do more people go to watch and enjoy?

As the one of the 2004 Team Nunavut pee wee coaches, I spent 10 days with seventeen 11- and 12-year-old developing athletes, who experienced for the first time ever, a high level of competition, coupled with the chance to experience new cultures and meet other young people of their age from all over the circumpolar world.

If you were to ask any of them, I guarantee they'd tell you that the experience opened their eyes to a lot of things and gave them the incentive to strive toward future goals of participating in their sport and being a part of something special. Now 17 kids and two coaches from Nunavut, as well as other regions, will no longer have the same opportunity in the future.

I definitely believe the AWG international committee has lost touch with what the games are really about. I believe they have no idea how this will hurt more kids in the long run as they strive to create an AWG that many of us will probably not recognize in a few years from the original AWG concept and objectives.

I also believe the AWG committee should be looking at the participation of sub-arctic Northern Alberta with a view to severely curtailing its involvement in the future as they usually are one of the largest delegations with a variety of competitive advantages and population over the rest of the circumpolar participants in many sports.

Meanwhile, Arctic regions such as Nunavik are denied full participation. Maybe it's time we cut a few of the so-called brain cells from the international committee to make room for real improvements?

John Thomas
Iqaluit

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