Tears, reproach flow after girl’s suicide

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This article was published 12/04/2013 (4747 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

HALIFAX — People filled a park in Halifax on Thursday night to remember Rehtaeh Parsons, holding candles and burning incense as native drummers played a drum song dedicated to the 17-year-old girl.

Many held photocopied pictures of Rehtaeh on a sunny evening as dusk fell. A native elder read a prayer: “We pray for an end to violence against young women and girls.”

A number of politicians attended the vigil, including Premier Darrell Dexter and Halifax Mayor Mike Savage.

The girl’s family says Rehtaeh hanged herself last week and was later taken off life-support following months of bullying after she was sexually assaulted by four boys and a photo of the alleged incident was distributed.

Rethaeh’s cousin Angella Parsons appealed for a reasoned response to Rehtaeh’s death.

“My family asks people not to respond with violence and aggression to this terrible tragedy,” she told the crowd through tears. “We are coming together in memory of Rehtaeh… to celebrate her life. She was a phenomenal young woman.”

The RCMP have said they are aware of reports some are suggesting harm against people involved in the Rehtaeh Parsons investigation.

In Calgary, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the story has shocked him and his wife, Laureen.

“I can just tell you Laureen and I, as parents of a teenage daughter, we’re just sickened seeing a story like this,” he said.

“I think we’ve got to stop using just the term bullying to describe some of these things. Bullying to me has a connotation of kind of kids misbehaving. What we are dealing with in some of these circumstances is simply criminal activity.

“It is youth criminal activity. It is violent criminal activity. It is sexual criminal activity and it is often Internet criminal activity.”

Harper said the government will continue to encourage anti-bullying strategies.

“Obviously we are looking at ways to combat this and to deal with this when it happens,” he added.

Earlier Thursday, Dexter told the legislature he wanted a timely response to satisfy the public’s concerns about Rehtaeh’s case.

“I will do everything in my power to create a community better equipped to prevent these situations, rather than a community that struggles to find a way to deal with them,” Dexter said.

Marilyn More, the minister responsible for the status of women, was appointed to oversee the provincial government’s response.

Dexter said he hopes a series of measures aimed at improving mental health services, policing and education will be rolled out as soon as possible.

The government has come under criticism after Justice Minister Ross Landry initially ruled out the possibility of reviewing how the RCMP handled allegations Rehtaeh was sexually assaulted in November 2011. Landry later changed course, saying he has asked senior officials for options to review how the Mounties and the Public Prosecution Service concluded there were insufficient grounds to lay charges against the boys.

— The Canadian Press