EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
As the minister, I can assure you that we will review this further and see how we can better promote it.
The reason why I brought this up is because there is an elder who goes out there into the land and he is a lot more worried than I am.
He is saying that something is going to happen.
He’s got some kind of a premonition about some disasters even coming up because we are not preparing the people how to survive out there. He was very concerned about the people.
As government ministers, you’re the ones who can make that decision and make an announcement out there and the people out there will be more receptive to you than they would us.
Then again, the onus is on me to make sure that survival skills are taught out there.
There are some young people who can’t make a shelter, for example.
It is time that we stop disregarding that. We have to promote it and be proud that we can do that.
I just want to say thank you to you. If possible, I would like to see something in writing and of course the birthright organizations out there do have money and I’m sure that there can be a collaborative working relationship between the government and the entities.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): In the Baffin region, for example, there is an entity called Niutaq that we can work with, I’m sure, and see how we can work more closely together.
I wasn’t going to make a comment, but listening to the comments that were made by my colleague; I have to make a supplementary.
For those of us who are older, and I’m not pointing fingers at anybody, but I think the onus is on us to teach the young people.
There are traditional laws that were used.
There were traditional laws focused on the men, there were traditional laws focused on the women, and traditional laws on survival skills and animals.
There were strict practices that we were required to follow.
As I said earlier, there are not very many people out there who have the knowledge and the skills to pass it on, but there are some of us who know a little bit.
The whole thing started when Europeans started coming into the north.
As I stated earlier, the erosion started in my grandfather’s days and we have to worry about the young people now.
There are some individuals, and I can say myself personally, that know about the survival skills and living on the land.
In my community, when there is training on igloo building, I usually participate.
You have to look at the consistency of the snow, what is involved and so on, but I can tell you that I can build an igloo though nobody in particular taught me how.
There are some of us older people who still have those skills and the knowledge, so let’s teach the young people so that they can survive out there when we pass on so we don’t have to be worried about them once we pass on.
We were born with those skills being passed from generation to generation, but the erosion started when the outsiders started coming in, so it’s up to us to stand up again.
Did you want to respond Mr. Minister?
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Yes, this issue is near and dear to our hearts.
It is also being reviewed under the new Education Act.
I am very pleased to see that there are people who are passionate about passing on those skills and it gives you that extra push to do something about it.
We’re on pages F-5 and F-6.
On page F-6, I have a question about the $200,000 under Inuit Societal Values.
Mr. Tapardjuk, is this under grants and contributions, or is this money geared to the organizations at the community level?
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): These monies are geared for Clyde River and Cambridge Bay, for projects that encourage and promote the strengthening of Inuit societal values.
That is for Cambridge Bay and Clyde River.
In regard to those two communities, do you get requests from the other communities also?
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Well, this is a new program. I think we started that in December.
There was a meeting here in Iqaluit, and even though Cambridge Bay did participate, the other communities were here when we started looking into setting up this program.
We are going to be using these two communities as a pilot project.
This money has been set aside to encourage, promote, and strengthen Inuit society values.
For Clyde River and Cambridge Bay, these monies are just for those communities alone and not for the other communities.
This is also to promote healthy communities.
I didn’t realize that it was just a pilot project, but you mentioned earlier that suicide prevention committees ask for funding. I wonder where we would be able to identify this in these main estimates.
Chairman (interpretation): Mr. Tapardjuk.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): That funding is available under Community Programs; it’s under F-13.
Those programs can be found under F-13, and that lists community programs. We’ll be able to identify who can apply for those.
Mr. Alagalak (interpretation): Those two communities that you mentioned, what are they going to accomplish?
Will they be developing something that the other communities can follow because if other communities were considered…When will that study, or research, or project be completed?
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): We are hoping that in 2006-07, and if the budget under these estimates is approved, they will do the pilot project.
What we are expecting is that if we start this now, that we have different committees. There is the Community Justice Committee, and they have Social Workers, the Justice Committee, and there is the RCMP, and then the Nurses and Doctors. They look after people who have gotten into trouble.
So we may be looking at crime prevention, or in teaching them Inuit traditions.
I know that in one of the communities, they actually do a radio show now where if you do this, this way, it will be better for your children, or if you and your partner live this way, then it will be better for the communities.
So they are incorporating Inuit traditions and values, and they will be working with health services, the RCMP, Social Services, based on Inuit traditions.
And we will be doing a study as to how we can hold on; if we understand the root of our problems then we will be able to identify solutions.
Perhaps, after two years, if we can see the difference in the reduction of crimes that occur, or that have to appear before the court, and if we go through this route, then we can certainly pass this on to the other communities for the betterment of those communities, so they will experience fewer problems.
As I stated earlier, the youth councils or the elders’ societies also deal with a lot of problems that go on in our communities.
I’m not going to name one specific problem. Where I want to show my support is that whether they are a youth council or an elders’ council, if they have a problem, whom can they go to for assistance or for support?
Can we make information available as to where those committees can get more support?
I was happy to hear that they do get phone calls from the youth council, but I also understood that there was somebody within your department who is available to assist with the operations of those different committees in the communities.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): The community-based committees like the youth councils or elders, we have an office in Igloolik and I understand that we have an employee who is the elders’ and youth council support staff.
In the budget, it’s identified that those positions are funded. So if they request assistance in regard to making a proposal or if they have questions, then we also have a toll-free number they can contact.
I tried it once, but it didn’t work. I will look into the toll-free number we have to make sure it’s functioning properly.
Yes to his questions.
Yes, we do have a concern about this. For example, in Hall Beach, the Elders’ Society really wants to do something, but they don’t have anybody to work in the office. So those are the kinds of things that we are concerned about and looking into.
Yes, that’s what I wanted to hear. He said that there will be some funding available, but we will probably come across it later.
The youth councils ask for funding from your department.
Is there somebody from your department who can actually check with the communities and ask if everything is running smoothly?
You said earlier that they don’t have enough office managers or workers; especially the elders’ committees have a hard time because in the first place, this kind of operation is new to them.
I wonder, within your department, if you can make one or more employees available to assist those. So will the funding that is there include that person who will be able to assist and support the committees in the communities?
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): To clarify what I said, yes we will be able to identify who will be the elder’s coordinator and the youth coordinator.
In the communities they will have a coordinator for elders and for youth and we also have elders here in Iqaluit within our staff who are unilingual that work in our offices here in Iqaluit and in Igloolik.
To further clarify, we received a proposal from one of the communities from the Elders’ Committee and we asked for further information from that group. We also advised that if you did this you might be able to get more funding, so we are trying to help those committees.
We are not putting pieces of paper in front of them and telling them to apply for funding, but we are trying to assist them.
Chairman (interpretation): Mr. Kilabuk
Final comment.
The Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth, I feel, should be able to recognize and appreciate this because they are working with the people in the communities to try and assist the communities and their coordinators.
We should be able to help them further because they are also responsible for carrying out these programs.
And I would like to encourage the minister to try and put this in the budget.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Thank you. I think the Cabinet in this government is trying to look at other ways that Nunavut can have better representation.
It certainly would help with the problems we encounter; yes we realize that this is the problem and we are certainly trying to do something about it, Mr. Chairman.
Are you done Mr. Kilabuk?
Just to re-supplement to my comment, to see if he is in full agreement with me when we talk about Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit.
What I feel is how to survive out on the land and to be proud of the Inuit tradition.
We had this from way back and there are not very many of us in Canada and we are losing the Inuit way really fast.
What I have thought of is when the youth need to know the traditional skills, and in a better family setting and once they go out hunting it’s very helpful for the mind whether it be summer or winter for those young people who go out hunting to know the traditional skills.
The youth get their own share of problems too, but when they go out hunting they don’t just listen to or watch television or listen to rock and roll.
My suggestion is that as volunteers because we have a shortage of funding; we have to volunteer.
I heard earlier that this person wants to go out hunting, but they don’t know who to ask, a young person doesn’t know who to ask.
I wonder if there is a connection between the suicide rate and the lack of knowledge of Inuit traditional skills. I wonder if there is a connection to that. I’d like to ask the minister about that.
I probably can’t answer him adequately.
It’s not just the Inuit, there are some Indians, or in Australia when the Europeans, or the Qallunaat came up then they tried to change our culture.
It feels like we are lost in the middle because of that what we are trying to do is to re-introduce and teach the Inuit skills.
This will be done in Cambridge Bay and Clyde River.
What we have gone through as Inuit; we have gone through very harsh times, then there are other times where we have it so easy. That comes with a heavy price. We knew that.
So for that reason, we will be doing research in those two communities in regard to parenting because we can’t just survive; live life, eat, sleep, and work, our life has to be meaningful; why we have to live. Those are the things that we are trying to work on. That is the only response that I can give him.
We are on pages F-5 and F-6. (interpretation ends) Total Operations and Maintenance. $3,350,000.
F-7 and F-8.
Culture, Language, Elders and Youth. Branch Summary.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $2,626,000.
Chairman (interpretation): Going to F-9, F-10, and F-11 are included in that page.
I’d like to ask the minister in regard to library services. I’m not really sure how they are run? I know that they are very important, but the libraries; what kinds of guidelines do they have for library services?
What’s the capacity? How does it exactly operate? What kinds of books do they order; do they have a guideline as to what kinds of books that they have to provide the public, or provide in the library?
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Yes, I will get my deputy minister to respond to the question.
Yes, there are two aspects to the operations of library services.
Some of them get their money through grants to the communities, and also in some part, we have our own resources here in Iqaluit and Rankin Inlet, but our employees that work in the library services have an agreement in place that they have to order or share books from various communities, or various places.
They share with each other, and then also order new books, and then they share books from other communities. They don’t really have discretion as to what kinds of books that they would like to have. That’s the way that they operate right now.
They also have to have Inuit literature in the library services available.
That’s very important.
The reason I wanted to ask that question is because sometimes in Nunavut we think that because we’re a new government, it’s like we have no history.
Do I make myself clear? Just because we are a new government, it seems like our history is not. I just think of it as generations forgotten, but whenever the minister says something new; then I think about us being the oldest culture in the world.
Even before there was Canada, that’s our history. Nunavut is our history.
Perhaps the minister can provide a policy or establish a policy whereby there is a history connection with Inuit, such as the history that is made of the explorers, and expeditions that were done.
As Inuit, we have to be included in there.
There were people that came to do mapping of the north, and there is also oral history, the whalers, the fur trade, and so on. If we don’t do that, and the young people don’t know that, they can’t become scholars.
There have been a lot of whalers and explorers that have been assisted by Inuit and all that stuff. That kind of history has to be visible in the library to encourage our young people that we have a very good helpful history as Inuit.
Perhaps the minister can think about producing a document in Inuktitut, or get somebody to write our history, and work with Southern people that could advise the elders on how to record the history of Inuit because the libraries have to be very attractive for young people.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Yes, the member is correct.
Our staff that work with the library services can be encouraged to do something that the member is talking about and to talk with the elders that know the oral history and to start writing it down before they pass on.
We are trying to do some recording of what happened years ago.
In regard to languages, what we did last year, we had a literary competition from the people of Nunavut about the history of the legends that the Inuit have passed on to the younger generation and us.
Those are the types of things that we would like to do because we don’t have a written history.
We have an oral history and I believe that Mr. Curley’s comment is very correct. Because we are more oral than written, it seems like we have no history. As soon as you see things such as carvings and other materials that are made by the Inuit people, there’s a lot of history just by looking at them even though they are not written.
So my department can do more things to have those things in visual or written form, which can be very helpful.
I thank the minister for his comments.
I would also like to write to you, Mr. Minister, about that too as well.
Ever since the whalers and the expedition people came up north, there are groups of people that helped out with the whalers and the Hudson Bay people.
It would be nice if the young people could start finding out if they are related to those individuals that helped out the whalers, the fur traders, and the Hudson Bay Company.
You could see in the colours of their skin that they are Inuit people.
They all speak Inuktitut.
The whalers and the Hudson Bay people, they are a generation.
When one child finds out about that, they feel a lot better because they feel connected to somebody or something.
There have been a lot of those southerners that are related to us and when they found out about those people, then it made them feel more connected.
If the early contacts that the Inuit had could be put in library services, it would be helpful for those children.
They can talk with their elders and feel more comfortable and connected as to who they are.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Yes, definitely.
We would like to hear all of those things from anyone.
We have funding out there for languages and other things such as history. Those are the types of things that we would like to hear from the public.
Perhaps I will make a first preamble. I know that in Nunavik they made a dictionary. I can’t really recall in Nunavut or other dialects if we have made Inuktitut dictionaries.
So that’s my first question. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Thank you. Through the computer, we do have a dictionary that was made in Pond Inlet.
I don’t know what you call them in Inuktitut, but we do have dictionaries.
We have another dictionary called Asuilaak.
Also, ICI, when they were still operating, initiated the process of writing a dictionary, but to date it is incomplete. They are still working on it. They have collected over 80,000 words in Inuktitut in the Asuilaak dictionary.
Also, from the three regions, we are requesting terms from all the regions, because the dialects are different in each region.
Mr. Kattuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I thank the minister.
I want to state my views.
I’m just going to use myself as an example. In Hudson Bay I am called Maligaliuqti, a Member of the Legislature. Mr. Henry Hudson, who passed through my community, was asked a question.
There were Inuit that lived in the Belcher Islands 4,000 years ago.
Mr. Henry Hudson passed through the Belcher Islands less than 100 years ago, but my constituency is still called Hudson Bay. We still have to abide by that term.
It goes back to an individual who didn’t live here for many years. So I believe that you should look into this further; changing place names from English to Inuktitut, because the majority of our places are named after Europeans. For example, in Sanikiluaq we have over 300 archipelagos, but some islands are named after Europeans.
Perhaps, some time in the future, your Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth can try and rectify this situation, or find some funding. I’m just encouraging the minister to look into this seriously.
Yes, within our main estimates within the Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth, we have a mapping project and also place names.
We have a $100,000 line item for that purpose. If that is approved, we will be able to provide that assistance by way of applications so that they can make changes to the place names.
We do now have a committee of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, and they are reviewing all the place names that need to be changed. I don’t know how many they’ve reviewed so far.
Oh...they have already reviewed 54 places to change the names.
For example, Broughton Island; we now call it Qikiqtarjuaq, and Lake Harbour, we now call it Kimmirut.
This is an ongoing process and we are waiting for the communities. We will have funding once this budget is approved.
Maybe Hudson Bay will be Kattuk Bay, Mr. Kattuk.
Mr. Kilabuk I am sure is anxious to ask questions. Mr. Kilabuk.
I would like to ask a question in regard to what the minister had stated that if you can review the actual history. Perhaps if you can look into the history we can find out as to who our forefathers are.
I also heard someone stating, before that was asked, in regards of our history, that the last 30 years it seems that we don’t have a history. I heard my colleague say that.
I don’t agree with that. The last 30 years are very important to me because my relatives and my immediate family, within just 30 years all these people were born and many couples have made children within those 30 years.
If we want to find out who their forefathers are we need to include the 30 years without a gap. It has to be done continually. We have to use all of them to be comprehensive.
I can’t agree to 30 years of no history.
These are very important to us.
My family members are still alive, and we are still alive. Aren’t we as important?
I can’t agree with that statement.
Also I would like to agree with the minister that if we are going to be collecting history, it will be comprehensive.
I welcome Mr. Minister and his officials to the meeting. I hope I’m in the right section here on culture and heritage. I’m on F-9.
Is that the correct page?
I want to ask about the comments in your opening statements, the recent announcement that a Nunavut Heritage Centre be located in Iqaluit. I noted in your business plan on page F-19 that you had a capital finance study for the Nunavut Heritage Centre.
I am wondering, Mr. Minister, how the decision came about to base the heritage centre in Iqaluit?
I noted in your announcement that Cambridge Bay was considered and some other communities.
I am wondering if the capital financing study is available as well for the information of the Members of the Legislative Assembly.
Since I also noted in your news release that the heritage centre would cost $55 million, I am interested in that information. I am wondering if that is available.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): I think back in 2002, we tabled a study that was done by those people. They did a feasibility study as to how much it would cost. Everything is identified in that report.
I don’t know when, but back in 2003, I tabled that the report of the feasibility study as to how much it would cost and how this building was to be used.
So you can get all information from the feasibility study. And they also did research on all the communities; we did a study of all the communities.
The working group included a representative from Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, Inuit Heritage Trust, and government representatives. They are starting to identify the cost of the building and that it will cost $55 million and Government of Nunavut has identified $10 million. They also will research how the heritage centre will operate.
They are looking at the governance and also they will be reviewing where we can identify the funding and how it’s going to be operated. Everything is identified and we encourage this to be done urgently because the heritage centre is needed urgently. So that’s when they identified Iqaluit as a location in the feasibility study.
I don’t think there’s any argument that a heritage centre is needed in Nunavut.
The concern from my riding is, from some of the people who came to me about this when they heard about the decision, was how were the people from the Kitikmeot going to visit the heritage centre in Iqaluit, because it’s virtually impossible to do that due to cost and other factors.
So my next questions lead into what you’re saying: I know there are a few heritage centres across Nunavut, I know there’s one in Cambridge Bay that was constructed a couple of years ago; how many heritage centres are in Nunavut?
And where are they located? And how would they tie in with the large heritage centre based in Iqaluit? How would they support each other?