(Chief Commissioner Marion Buller at the launch of the #MMIWG National Inquiry. Photo: APTN)
APTN National News
The national inquiry into missing and murder Indigenous women will travel the country and could arrive in various forms according to Chief Commissioner Marion Buller.
Buller, speaking for the time since being appointed chief commissioner, told APTN that the terms of reference allow the commissioners to use various tools to hear from families of women who are either missing or have been murdered.
“We have different ways of doing that,” said Buller. “We have the hearing with commissioners as an option, that could be public or if needed, in private. We also have, under the terms of reference, the option of using, what I call statement takers. These are people that will be trained to do interviews in a thoughtful and careful manner.”
Buller had few details to share about when the hearings will start. She will be meeting with the other four commissioners, Michéle Audette, Marilyn Poitras, Brian Eyolfson and Qajaq Robinson, next week in Vancouver.
They must find an office, staff it and hire trauma workers before the hearings can begin and decide how to proceed.
One issue that will undoubtedly come up at the hearings is how police handled any number of cases of Indigenous women who have vanished or murdered. Many say police indifference or outright racism stalled or ended cases.
“That’s something that the commissioners and I will have to discuss amongst ourselves,” said Buller. “How we’re going to deal with that situation, if and when it arises.”
Buller expects the five commissioners will be able to complete their task at hand within the given timeframe.
“Our terms of reference set out specific deadlines for our interim reports, also for our final report,” she said. “The commissioners and I are committed to working very hard to reach those deadlines and it will be hard work, we know that.”
The commission will find, as the police already have, that the biggest threat to native women is native men.