Thank you. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Mr. Rabesca.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize some members from my constituency team in the gallery. The Rae-Edzo Junior Boys Soccer Team will represent the Northwest Territories and Canada at the upcoming 1997 Soccer Youth Cultural Exchange in Germany, March 19th to April 2nd.

During these two weeks, the team will play three indoor soccer tournaments in Hamburg, Neubrandenburg and Berlin, and partake in the various cultural events with their German counterparts, who are expected to visit the Northwest Territories in October of this same year.

Soccer has become a winning tradition in Rae-Edzo. The Rae-Edzo Warriors have earned five consecutive NWT soccer championships, a berth into the Arctic Winter Games in Slave Lake, and two bronze medals at the North American Indigenous Games in Saskatchewan and Minnesota. These are the only two medals won in the history of the Northwest Territories in outdoor soccer at an international tournament.

These young Rae-Edzo Warriors have been practising four to five nights a week over the past two years. They will also represent the Northwest Territories at this summer's North American Indigenous Games in Victoria, British Columbia.

The Soccer Youth Cultural Exchange is also special, because it allows our youth to explore another part of the world and build new friendships. It is a time to learn more about the game they love and play so well together, and a time to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime experience. These adventures help enrich our youth with positive goals and dreams and broadens their knowledge and horizons.

The team representing the NWT and Canada are:

Angus Black, Clayton Lafferty, Lonnie Zoe, Leroy Koyina, Eric Apples, Jimmy Ekendia, Trevor Mantla, Jasper Lamouelle, Caleb Behrens, Gordon Delorme, Jason Green, Michael Botermans, their coach. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

--- Applause

Thank you, Mr. Rabesca. Again, just to remind the Members that under the rules of recognition of visitors in the gallery, you have 30 seconds to do it. I think the Member went over two minutes. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize a very, very famous person in the gallery today, someone that everyone knows. He is CBC Northbeat news announcer, George Tuccaro, and he is also an all around good guy.

-- Applause

Thank you. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, oral questions. Mr. Ningark.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Honourable Minister of Wildlife Management. A few days ago I received a call from Taloyoak from a gentleman, a member of Nunavut Wildlife Management Board.

Over the telephone conversation, he indicated to me, Mr. Speaker, that people of Nunavut are concerned about the way the survey is done for polar bears in that area. He also indicated, over the telephone, that when the survey is being done in the Nunavut area, the polar is drugged subsequent to putting on a radio collar and then released. Once the polar bear has been given a radio collar, then the satellite will track the movements of the polar bear. Once the survey has been done and that particular animal is no longer needed, again the polar bear is drugged to remove the radio collar.

My question to the Honourable Minister is, does the Minister have any knowledge of alternative methods as opposed to the drug? Thank you.

The Minister responsible for Resources, Wildlife, and Economic Development, Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Ningark.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Supplementary to that same Honourable Minister. Mr. Speaker, there has been a

number of occasions whereby the polar bear that has been drugged is known to have lost weight. They are in poor health. In some cases, the polar bear died. Does the Minister have any knowledge of any polar bear that has been drugged a number of times, and subsequently died in the end? Does the Minister have that information from the people of Nunavut? Thank you.

Mr. Kakfwi.

Oral questions. Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for Mr. Ng. It is concerning the Department of Justice. I have had businessmen in Yellowknife calling about inmates selling crafts at the correctional centre in town here. They have pointed out that the inmates do not have to pay overhead while they are selling their crafts, while the businessmen in town that have businesses that sell crafts have overhead. They have stores, they have to pay their staff, all the rest of this kind of stuff. What I would like to know is whether this is actually happening or not, that the inmates are allowed to sell crafts at the YCC? Thank you.

The Minister of Justice, Mr. Ng.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, there is a carving program that operates at the Yellowknife Correctional Centre and the inmates do have the opportunity to sell some of their finished products through a display case at the correctional facility, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Do the inmates have to purchase their own materials for the crafts that they make?

Mr. Ng.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, they pay for their own materials as well as the tools that they use for making the products, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Is it appropriate for the government to allow crafts to be sold in such a way when private enterprise is already providing this service and they have to pay for all their overhead? Thank you.

Mr. Ng.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is important to recognize that it is a part of the rehabilitative process, the programming for some of the inmates and the fact that it provides them with an opportunity to develop some skills that produce some income when they get out of the correctional centre. It provides them with an opportunity to generate some income while they are in there to send back to their families to look after some of their basic needs. Many of them, unfortunately, do not have the opportunity to have income support from their home families when they are in the correctional centre. In that respect, it is an important issue for the inmates. In addition to that, they do use some of the payments sometimes for some of their fines that they have incurred as part of the sentence that they received, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.