Manitoba chiefs call for premier’s resignation

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This article was published 18/08/2023 (793 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs wants Premier Heather Stefanson to resign less than two months before Manitobans go to the polls.

Grand Chief Cathy Merrick said the assembly, which represents 62 First Nations, voted unanimously to call for Stefanson’s resignation, at its annual meeting this week.

They are upset because her government has refused to support a search of a landfill, north of Winnipeg, for the remains of three Indigenous women slain by an alleged serial killer, who is set to go on trial next year. Partial remains of a fourth alleged victim were located at a landfill south of the city in the spring.

Merrick said Stefanson’s decision is contrary to the part of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples that says governments are “encouraged to collaborate with Indigenous communities… to facilitate access to and repatriation of ceremonial objects and human remains within their possession.”

“It is apparent that Heather Stefanson is not suitable as premier of this province,” Merrick said in a statement Friday.

On July 5, Stefanson announced her government wouldn’t support a search of the Praire Green Landfill, estimated to cost as much as $184 million. She said it would put at risk the safety of searchers, due to the high amount of asbestos in the landfills, and it could jeopardize the criminal case against Jeremy Skibicki, who is charged with four counts of first-degree murder.

“We understand the desire to leave no stone unturned. However, the search process described in the report is complex, and comes with long-term human health and safety concerns that simply cannot be ignored. Based on the report, we cannot knowingly risk Manitoba workers’ health and safety for a search without a guarantee,” the government said in a statement at the time.

Merrick accused the premier of not reading the final report from the landfill search feasibility study committee.

“Her disregard for human rights as a public servant, and her failing role in reconciliation, are testament to her inadequacy for office.”

Neither Stefanson nor the Progressive Conservative party responded to a request for comment Friday.

Long Plain First Nation chief Kyra Wilson said searches will take place whether the premier wants to support them or not.

“These hurdles, although frustrating, are temporary setbacks in the face of the inevitable progress we’re determined to make,” she said in a statement.

The assembly is supporting the families of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran, who have been identified as two of the victims. A third victim, known as Buffalo Woman, has yet to be identified. Remains of the fourth victim, Rebecca Contois, were found in the Brady Road landfill south of the Winnipeg.

The assembly is also supporting the family of Tanya Nepinak, who went missing in 2011. A 2012 search of the Brady Road landfill for Nepinak’s remains was unsuccessful.

Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont said he doubts Stefanson will step down.

“Stefanson may not resign,” he said. “That’s what elections are for.”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca