Priest accused of sex assaults against children in Nunavut dies in France
By Brittany Hobson THE CANADIAN PRESS A priest accused of sexually abusing Inuit children in Nunavut decades ago has died in France after a long, undisclosed illness. The Oblates of Mary Immaculate, including the Oblates of Lacombe Canada and the Oblate Province of France, say Joannes Rivoire died Thursday. He was in his 90s. Rev. Ken Thorson with the Oblates of Mary Immaculate Lacombe Canada says the death may be difficult news for those who advocated for the priest to face justice in Canada. “We sincerely regret that … Rivoire never made himself available and will never face the charges that were laid against him. We further regret that efforts for him to be formally removed as a priest were unsuccessful,” he said in an emailFriday. A recent independent review...
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Liberals say their plan to ‘solve the housing crisis’ will build 3.9M homes by 2031
By Nojoud Al Mallees THE CANADIAN PRESS OTTAWA- The federal Liberals have unveiled their plan to solve the housing crisis, building on recent announcements with new tax incentives, more than a billion dollars for homelessness and a country-wide effort to build more housing on public lands. “Today we are releasing the most comprehensive and ambitious housing plan ever seen in Canada,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in Vaughan, Ont. on Friday. “It’s a plan to build housing, including for renters, on a scale not seen in generations. We’re talking about almost 3.9 million homes by 2031.” The parliamentary budget officer released a report Thursday that estimates Canada would need to build 3.1 million homes by 2030 to close the housing gap. The Liberals’ 28-page plan, which comes days ahead of...
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CP NewsAlert: Priest accused of sex assaults against children in Nunavut dies
The Oblates of Mary Immaculate say Johannes Rivoire, a priest accused of sexually abusing Inuit children in Nunavut, has died after a long illness. More coming....
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Orphaned orca: Rescue attempt begins at remote B.C. lagoon
A rescue attempt to save a killer whale calf stranded in a remote tidal lagoon near Zeballos, B.C., is underway. Road access to the lagoon is blocked by members of the Ehattesaht First Nation, but an official at the scene said an attempt to get the female orca calf out of the lagoon and transferred into the open ocean began before dawn. A First Nation official who declined to provide his name said the attempt was launched because of favourable weather conditions. A statement from the First Nation said work was expected to take “much of the day” and the federal Fisheries Department, the Vancouver Aquarium, and the nation will brief the media when the operation has concluded. The two-year-old calf has been alone in the lagoon for more than...
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Lake St. Martin chief declares innocence after being charged with sex assault
By Dave Baxter Local Journalism Initiative Reporter A First Nations chief charged with sexually assaulting a child is proclaiming he is innocent and said he has no plans to voluntarily walk away from his leadership position. Charges of sexual assault, sexual interference and child pornography charges against Chief of Lake St. Martin First Nation Christopher Traverse were announced Wednesday. The Winnipeg Police Service (WPS) confirmed the chief of the community located in the Interlake, about 200 kilometres north of Winnipeg, was arrested in February and court records say alleged offences happened on Dec. 29, and involve an elementary-school-age child. Traverse was released on bail. Traverse took to Facebook on Wednesday to state his innocence and said that he has and will continue to be cooperative with police, even now that...
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B.C. tables anti-racism legislation, promises to hold public bodies accountable
The British Columbia government tabled legislation Thursday that’s designed to hold public bodies accountable for addressing systemic racism in policy and programs, the province’s attorney general said. Niki Sharma said the proposed law would cover provincial ministries, agencies, health-care and social service providers, and require the development of a public action plan using data the government has collected on systemic racism. She said it would give her ministry the power to issue compliance orders if it finds a lack of response to the action items in the plan. Before tabling the bill, Sharma said she sometimes thinks of the politicians who have come before her in the legislature, who passed laws designed to hurt people based on the colour of their skin. “The power that was wielded in that place,...
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Goodstoney, Bearspaw First Nations receive over $540,000 in business funding
By Jessica Lee Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Goodstoney First Nation and Bearspaw First Nation were among 10 First Nations to benefit from the province’s Aboriginal Business Investment Fund in 2023-24, with funding to support ongoing business ventures. Funding issued to Goodstoney and Bearspaw is supporting $370,000 in renovations for the Goodstoney Meadows development and $170,140 for the purchase of new service vehicles to increase service offerings and business opportunities for Stoney Nakoda Telecom, respectively. “We went and got some quotes on a couple vehicles from a dealership and the fit-out costs and put a business plan together on what we’re doing and passed it onto the government,” said Bearspaw First Nation CEO Rob Shotclose. “Fortunately, we were successful in that application and we’re going to be purchasing two new trucks,...
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Orphaned B.C. orca: Rescue team prepares landing site for complex rescue
ZEBALLOS, B.C. -A team of about two dozen people is preparing the planned landing area for the complex rescue of an orphaned killer whale calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off northwest Vancouver Island. Veterinarians, whale response experts, First Nations members and logistics experts are expected to conduct a series of dry runs ahead of the planned rescue, which could occur within days. The federal Fisheries Department says in a statement many people are working tirelessly to develop and put finishing touches on the rescue of the two-year-old female calf, which has been alone in the lagoon for more than two weeks after its pregnant mother became beached at low tide and died. It says the calf’s health will be a key consideration during the capture, transport and release...
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European court decision shows that a safe climate is a human right, former UN rights chief says
OXFORD, England (AP) — Having a safe climate is becoming more of a human right globally with this week’s European court decision that says countries must better protect people from climate change, something warming-hit residents of the Global South long knew, said former Ireland President Mary Robinson. Robinson, who was the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, praised Tuesday’s mixed court decision as precedent-setting and change-triggering. The European Court of Human Rights sided with Swiss senior women saying their government wasn’t doing enough to protect them from climate shocks, but dismissed similar complaints from Portuguese youth and France’s mayor on technical grounds. “Many countries in Europe, if not all, will be vulnerable to litigation along those lines, that their countries are not doing enough to protect the human rights,”...
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Report finds unhoused Indigenous women in Yellowknife are `over policed and under protected by the RCMP’
By Tom Taylor Local Journalism Initiative Reporter A new research report from the Yellowknife Women’s Society (YKWS) has found that unhoused Indigenous women in the NWT capital are “over-policed and under-protected by the RCMP.” “What we heard is that there is a lot of urgency for all levels of government to take action on improving the relationship between the RCMP and unhoused Indigenous women,” said Neesha Rao, a co-author of the report and former executive director of YKWS. “What we heard is that unhoused Indigenous women do not trust the RCMP. They’re afraid of the RCMP, and they’re often harmed by the RCMP, and they do not feel protected by the RCMP.” The information in the 100-page report was collected in “sharing circles” involving unhoused Indigenous women living in the...
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RBC faces questions on climate, Indigenous rights at annual general meeting
By Ian Bickis THE CANADIAN PRESS TORONTO- Royal Bank of Canada faced a steady stream of questions about the bank’s climate and Indigenous rights track record at its annual general meeting Thursday. “We’re bringing a voice of nature,” said Tara Houska of the Couchiching First Nation, as she pushed the bank to use its position to accelerate the energy transition. “Are you actually committed towards moving away from fossil fuels, moving away (from) something we know is killing us, towards a different way?” she asked. In response, chief executive Dave McKay said the bank does need to keep evolving, while also defending past decisions and pointing to several major policy rollouts. “I couldn’t agree more that we need to continue to evolve our energy strategy. We can continue to, need...
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Innu hockey association calling for changes to officiating assignments
By Marc Lalonde Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The president of an Innu community’s hockey association is calling for changes on how officials are assigned for big games between his players and squad from non-Native communities after a controversial end to a regional final earlier this month. In the wake of an incident that got a lot of attention on social media, Uashat mak Mani-utenam Hockey Association president David Jean-Pierre is calling for changes to the way referee assignments are given out after a controversial ending to a Cote-Nord regional-final U15 B game earlier this month. In the game, a series of unfortunate events in the final minutes of a highly-competitive regional final took place that left Jean-Pierre with more questions than answers. “With about seven minutes to play in a...
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Chiniki First Nation invests in redevelopment of Symons Valley Ranch
By Jessica Lee Local Journalism Initiative Reporter A recent $10 million investment into Symons Valley Ranch gives Chiniki First Nation majority ownership of the historic 12.4-hectare site located in northwest Calgary. A press release issued by Chiniki First Nation said it now holds a 51 per cent stake in the historic site, which has been approved by the City of Calgary for high-density mixed-use development, including building over 1,500 residential units, retail and commercial. “Chiniki is very interested in pursuing economic development opportunities for the betterment of its Nation members,” said Chiniki First Nation CEO Ryan Robb, who recently took over the role from retired CEO Brian Evans. “Once you have more economic development opportunities and you’re making money from business perspectives, it helps you then return revenues back to...
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Biden awards $830 million to toughen nation’s infrastructure against climate change
By Alexa St. John THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DETROIT (AP)- The Biden administration on Thursday awarded $830 million in grants to fund 80 projects aimed at toughening the nation’s aging infrastructure against the harmful impacts of climate change. The money is expected to improve bridges, roads, ports, rail, transit and other infrastructure across 37 states, Washington, D.C. and the Virgin Islands, particularly those battered by increasingly frequent extreme weather events brought on by the planet’s warming. The funds come from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021 and add to other funding already flowing to states for similar projects, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. It’s the latest of many federal efforts to address the negative effects of human-caused climate change. President Joe Biden has earmarked more than $50 billion toward climate-related...
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Province announces new wildfire training and education centre at TRU
By Dionne Phillips Local Journalism Initiative Reporter On the heels of the province’s worst wildfire season in 2023, Premier David Eby stressed the importance of preparedness and proactiveness during an announcement held at Thompson Rivers University (TRU) in Kamloops (T?emlups). At the event on April 4, the premier announced the creation of a new wildfire training and education centre at the university, which the B.C. government says is the first of its kind in North America. Last year’s wildfire season saw tens of thousands of people evacuated and 2.84 million hectares of land scorched, with the communities of Secwepemcul’ecw being no exception. “By establishing the first-of-its-kind wildfire training and education centre in North America, we are preparing our future wildfire professionals for the critical work of protecting our forests, our...
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Chief says rescue effort for stranded orca calf four, five days away as plans ramp up
Plans are settling into place for an attempt to rescue a young killer whale calf stranded in a tidal lagoon near the Vancouver Island village of Zeballos within four or five days, says the area’s First Nation chief. Ehattesaht Chief Simon John has previously said the plan to remove the female orca calf from the lagoon could happen this week, but he said Wednesday it may be as early as Sunday or next week. He said the rescue attempt date now is being connected to the health of the young orca and to advice from marine mammal experts, including those from the Vancouver Aquarium. “That type of clarity is related to the professionals involved with it,” John said. “But I’m hoping that within the next four or five days. I...
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New report slams RCMP treatment of homeless Indigenous women in Northwest Territories
By Alessia Passafiume THE CANADIAN PRESS OTTAWA- Homeless Indigenous women in the North do not feel well-protected by the RCMP and instead face violence and discrimination by police, a new report from the Yellowknife Women’s Society has found. The organization held two sessions with women last October, and every single participant said she either experienced abuse by an RCMP officer or knew an Indigenous person who had. “More than once, women in our circles shared stories of being roughed up by the police and being explicitly told some version of, ‘I can do what I want to you, no one will believe you,”’ the report says. “Women also told us about calling for help and having the RCMP focus on ‘the wrong thing,’ asking women aggressive questions, spending time on...
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B.C. doesn’t know where all its groundwater is going. Experts worry as drought looms
Growing up on a ranch in the Columbia River Valley, water has always been part of Kat Hartwig’s life, and over the years, she’s noticed changes. Marshy areas her family used for irrigation or watering cattle are dry, wetlands are becoming “crunchy” rather than spongy underfoot, and snowmelt is disappearing more quickly each spring, ushering in the dry summer months, Hartwig says. Climate science supports her observations, showing that global heating is causing warmer temperatures and increasingly severe droughts in British Columbia. Hartwig, who advocates for better water policy, and others say drought is exposing cracks in how the province manages water. Officials don’t always know who is using groundwater, how much they’re using, or where they’re drawing it from, experts say. There are gaps in mapping and other data...
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Ontario bill aims to speed up stalled housing developments, boost student housing
By Allison Jones THE CANADIAN PRESS TORONTO- Ontario proposed Wednesday to allow municipalities to enact “use it or lose it” policies on developers, speed up the creation of student housing, and streamline approvals for standardized housing designs as it seeks new paths to reach its goal of building 1.5 million homes. Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra introduced an omnibus bill tackling so-called red tape across several ministries, but the largest sections deal with rules and regulations on housing that he said stand in the way of home construction. “We have made a commitment to get at least 1.5 million homes built by 2031,” he said at a press conference. “Municipalities know their communities best. They know where it makes sense to build homes and that’s why we’re supporting...
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Winnipeg police charge chief of Lake St. Martin First Nation with sexual assault (
WINNIPEG- A First Nations chief in Manitoba is facing charges in the alleged sexual assault of a child. Winnipeg police say Christopher Traverse was charged in February with sexual assault, sexual interference and child pornography. Traverse is chief of Lake St. Martin First Nation, which is in the Interlake region about 270 kilometres north of Winnipeg. Court records say the alleged offences happened on Dec. 29 and that Traverse was released on bail. Police say the case involves an elementary-school-age child. Traverse did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Canadian Press but told CBC he is innocent and would not be resigning. He is set to appear in provincial court July 3. The Interlake Reserves Tribal Council, which consists of seven First Nations including Lake St....
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