Kinew affirms commitment to landfill search on national day of action for MMIWG2S+

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This article was published 04/10/2023 (706 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba premier-designate Wab Kinew reinforced his commitment on Wednesday to search a Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of two Indigenous women, as the federal government put up more cash to study the recovery effort.

Wednesday was Canada’s National Day of Action for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, Two Spirit, and Gender-Diverse People.

“It will be important for us to deliver on this and again it’s important for us to try,” Kinew said during his first news conference after winning a majority government in Tuesday’s general election.

Kinew, who took questions from reporters at the Manitoba Legislative Building, said embarking on a search for the remains of Marcedes Myran and Morgan Harris — police believe they were slain by a serial killer — will be a priority for his administration. The NDP leader said he expected to speak with federal government representatives on the matter “very shortly.”

Ottawa committed another $740,000 Wednesday toward further assessing the scope of a search at Prairie Green Landfill, just north of the city.

Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree said more research is needed to determine how a search could be done.

The funds will be provided to Long Plain First Nation, where the two women were from.

Jeremy Skibicki has been charged with first-degree murder in their deaths and two others — Rebecca Contois, whose partial remains were found at Winnipeg’s Brady Road landfill last year, and an unidentified woman Indigenous leaders are calling Mashkode Bizhiki’ikwe, or Buffalo Woman.

A feasibility funded by the federal government found a search would be possible but toxic materials could pose a risk to workers. Anandasangaree said that meant more issues needed addressing.

The funding will cover additional collaboration with experts, the owners of the landfill and different levels of government.

Kinew said he also intends to get a second opinion on the search from unspecified experts, but disagreed further study is needed.

“I don’t think we have the time to commission another study,” he told reporters.

However, the premier-designate said he will work with other levels of government on the matter.

Later in the day, families of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people gathered on the north lawn of the Legislative Building to remember their loved ones and call for action.

Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grand Chief Cathy Merrick said she’s optimistic the provincial and federal governments will move forward on a search with Kinew in the premier’s office.

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“We’ve been at this for 10 months and there was a lot of work that we have done. We never gave up hope and we never would give up hope,” Merrick told reporters.

“I know it’s going to come into place because there was a barrier in this province when it came to the federal government and the provincial government.”

Progressive Conservative Premier Heather Stefanson had previously ruled out a search of the landfill, citing safety concerns.

— with files from The Canadian Press

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca