Premier digs deep hole with unilateral landfill search decision

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/07/2023 (788 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There was a right and a wrong way of responding to a feasibility study on the search for the remains of two Indigenous women at the Prairie Green Landfill, just north of Winnipeg.

Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson chose the wrong way. Her political opponent, NDP Leader Wab Kinew, got it right.

Stefanson announced last week her Tory government would not support a landfill search for the remains of Morgan Harris, 39, and Marcedes Myran, 26 — whom city police say were the victims of an alleged serial killer.

It is not the potential cost of the search — estimated between $84 million and $184 million — that was the deciding factor, Stefanson said. The premier is against such an excavation because it is “complex” and poses a safety and health hazard to those who would conduct it, she said.

Kinew said he supports a search, arguing there are other ways to conduct one that should be looked at. “We have to try,” Kinew said Monday, adding doing nothing is not an option.

It was a skillful response, the kind one might expect from a politician who wants to become the next premier of Manitoba. It was also the right one.

Kinew offered a path, a measure of hope that, by working with the impacted families and the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, efforts could be made to organize a search that may be conducted safely.

The Indigenous-led committee that looked into the feasibility of a search found there were ways of mitigating risk. That means there are options worth exploring.

Stefanson, by contrast, shut down any possibility, leaving the Indigenous community with no hope and a feeling government doesn’t care.

The premier knew, or ought to have known, her response would trigger a backlash. She sought no middle ground, no further investigation of what options may exist to conduct a safe search. With today’s technology and the industrial sector’s ability to safely manage and handle hazardous materials, there are options. It takes political will to pursue them.

The recommendation against a search (which would have been made to Stefanson by provincial government officials) was a bureaucratic one.

“We have to try.”–NDP Leader Wab Kinew

Bureaucrats provide advice to cabinet based on what they perceive to be the costs and benefits of an issue. Their technical input is valuable, but they tend to be risk-averse. If their analysis shows a net cost to government, they usually advise against proceeding.

In this case, they opposed a search because they believed the combined price tag and the health and safety risks to workers outweighed the benefits.

However, those calculations tend to be narrow in scope and don’t always capture the intangible elements politicians must consider when making difficult decisions. In cases like these, compassion, empathy and the ability to see issues through a wider lens is what separates successful politicians from unsuccessful ones.

Stefanson’s decision puts her squarely in the latter category.

This will only get worse for the premier. Protests will continue and may intensify. Fairly or unfairly, the narrative Stefanson is uncaring and uncompassionate (a self-inflicted image the premier has been battling since taking over from Brian Pallister in 2021) will grow.

It’s not the image she wants to portray going into the Oct. 3 provincial election.

Stefanson made the wrong decision. She should have directed government officials to further explore how a possible search could be conducted safely. The province should have collaborated with the families, Indigenous groups and the federal government to find common ground on how best to proceed by building on the findings of the feasibility study.

The decision should have been a collective one by all stakeholders, not a final, unilateral edict by the premier.

She (Stefanson) should have directed government officials to further explore how a possible search could be conducted safely.

This is a difficult issue. The likelihood of finding remains is slim. There are costs and safety issues to consider. But there are also broader, less tangible factors that must be taken into account, not only with respect to the families, but also related to the larger issue of how Indigenous women are being disproportionately murdered in Canada.

It is not only the horrific and despicable nature of these killings that must be assessed, but also how they are connected to racism and the treatment of Indigenous people in Canadian society.

The premier is showing she has a weak grasp of the latter. If she doesn’t reconsider, this will follow her all the way to the polls Oct. 3.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Dan Lett | Not for Attribution

Tuesdays

A weekly look at politics close to home and around the world.

Sign up for Dan Lett | Not for Attribution

Sign Up

I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Tom Brodbeck
Columnist

Tom Brodbeck is an award-winning author and columnist with over 30 years experience in print media. He joined the Free Press in 2019. Born and raised in Montreal, Tom graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and commerce. Read more about Tom.

Tom provides commentary and analysis on political and related issues at the municipal, provincial and federal level. His columns are built on research and coverage of local events. The Free Press’s editing team reviews Tom’s columns before they are posted online or published in print – part of the Free Press’s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.