Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I haven’t really spoken with regards to this. Today I will support the motion with regard to the caribou, due to lack of consultation to accommodate the aboriginal governments or aboriginal people of this area or the people using the herd, to bring all groups together to allow an open expression of the key issues on conservation and aboriginal rights,
Like Mr. Krutko said earlier, in Nunakput, in some of my communities we have to drive almost 300 kilometres one way to go and hunt caribou in our hunting zones because of the bagging system. We, as Inuvialuit, want to conserve our herds for our youth and our grandchildren.
The biggest thing is the approach that was taken on this was not right, It was sort of like blunt force trauma. We have to have an open-minded approach to get this resolved. The people that are impacted, Mr. Speaker, are not us in here. It’s the people in the communities who have to go out and hunt and try to survive. In the communities, not everyone has a government job. We have elders out there and families that rely heavily on the caribou herd. We have to try to take it upon ourselves to try to preserve and not over hunt. That draws another question. What are we going to supplement to the people who can’t hunt the caribou? Are we going to get muskox? Are we going to get bison? What are we going to get? That’s another question that has to be answered.
Today the conservation of the caribou herd has to be sorted out sooner than later with the GNWT and the aboriginal governments. So, like I said, I will support the motion and look forward to a good
dialogue with aboriginal governments. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.