Maybe I can ask some questions now that the Minister’s mind isn’t blank anymore. I want to ask the Minister with regard to the justice committees’ strategies and philosophy, and Tough on Crime Initiative by the federal government and the way things are looking around the community with regard to what he heard from the Sahtu. Maybe he heard different in the other regions.
Is the department looking at the way restorative justice is looked at, the diversion programs, the restorative justice healing programs, victim services?
I say this, and also with crime prevention, because I’m reading a book for the second time called Return to the Teachings by Rupert Ross, who was an assistant Crown attorney who did some work. He wrote some very good articles and discussions with elders on justice. It was an eye-opening experience for him. He takes it from the point of view of being a non-native, white lawyer going into Aboriginal communities to administer the justice
that we have now and the different philosophies, and the way that the Aboriginal communities look at justice, and how he’s looking and saying this makes sense. What we’re doing doesn’t make sense.
Coming in, getting off the plane, going to the arena, doing our five minutes with the people, going to court, then take off into another community. It’s just not making sense. Is there somewhere in the strategy, within the life of this government, the Minister could think of maybe using that one book as a reference and having a strategy for the future? Are we going to continue with what we’re doing now and have our community justice play a more prominent role in restorative justice, the diversion programs?
Because we send them here to the North Slave Correctional Centre, we taxpayers are on this table, around this room here, are paying $106,000 for one person to stay there. We feed them, we clothe them, we keep them warm, we give them a few dollars to make phone calls to home, then we send them out after a year. Have they come out better or worse? Will we see them again?
We have to look at if it’s efficient and effective to make a contribution to our community with the people who have done harm to us. Isn’t that better than costing us? It may require a little more work, but the elders and the people know that.
We need to work on it. I’m looking for that. We have two more years left in this government. Is the Minister looking at this option here? I think this is the way to go. This means leaving a long-term legacy. We know what it costs us as taxpayers to put these people in our facilities. It’s great for the economy in Yellowknife, Hay River and Fort Smith, because we’re putting millions of dollars into their economies and putting, what, half a million at least into a region if you want to look at this initiative. I’m looking for that type of thinking moving forward. It will take a while. It will take a long time, but we have to start somewhere. I think that’s something I would like to have some discussion come by the Minister saying this is what we’re looking at. It might be done in 10 years.