(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What I would like to talk to you about is using our mother language. Today I would like to talk about the importance of one's culture. This government has talked a lot about the importance of languages and culture. On June 28, 1984, we passed the Official Languages Act (Translation ends) which created eight official languages, six of which are aboriginal. It is an indication of the many cultures here in the Northwest Territories.
Mr. Speaker, in this day and age, there are still incidents which occur every day somewhere in the north where language barriers still exist. Mr. Speaker, one such incident has been brought to my attention and I feel it must be brought to the attention of the Legislative Assembly. This particular incident occurred when court proceedings were being held in Fort Liard. The circumstances surrounding this incident could have been a factor in this case. You see, Mr. Speaker, the court that was held in Fort Liard was held in the community airport hangar because of the lack of a community hall, and this will be the subject of another statement later.
As a result, Mr. Speaker, the facility was inadequate. Regardless of the facility, this cannot justify having an individual compromise his or her speaking the language with which they are most comfortable. Mr. Speaker, what has been most disturbing about the incident was the individual, Mr. Betsaka of Nahanni Butte, was outrightly denied his request to speak his choice of language without explanation by the presiding judge.
Mr. Speaker, the judge's decision to deny Mr. Betsaka's right to speak Slavey undermines the efforts of all who have worked toward enhancing the justice system so all can be comfortable and all have the right to procedural fairness. Mr. Speaker, this case was heard by the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories, I believe, and the presiding judge's decision to deny Mr. Betsaka's request to speak Slavey, thus denying procedural fairness, resulted in a denial of natural justice. Now a new preliminary inquiry has been ordered for Mr. Betsaka.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement. Mahsi.