Status of Women committee  I know that there are obviously some national helplines. I'm not sure how many of them would have Inuktitut and the different dialects available to women calling. We also have to remember that a lot of women don't have access to a phone. I mean, obviously some do, but there are people who do not.

Status of Women committee  It's 65,000.

Status of Women committee  It's a bit of a different situation across Inuit Nunangat in terms of the fact that there's a large unemployment rate. I think it's double what it is in the south. However, women are more employed than men, which actually can create its own tensions. Much of the time, even though they may have more jobs, they're being paid less.

Status of Women committee  Iqaluit is 7,000.

Status of Women committee  I think the circuit court system, as Rebecca just mentioned, is a really good place to start on the effectiveness of the justice system across the north. There's definitely a lack of access to justice. There's a lack in terms of knowing your rights, which Rebecca also spoke to and which is something that we work hard on.

Status of Women committee  I think it's a lot, too, about the consultation with the different regions, because it's not a one-size-fits-all approach. We're not suggesting that what works in Hamilton, Ontario, for instance, will necessarily work in Rigolet in Nunatsiavut. They do have a safe.... That maybe wasn't a good example.

Status of Women committee  I think the issue is that they are forced to return. We see a lot of women flee south. Women do come to the south for opportunity, whether it's education, employment, a change of lifestyle, or whatever it is, but we also see that women are being pushed out of the community. We call it migration, but I see it as an ongoing episode of forced relocation because there are no services, programs, and resources in the community, so people are left without a choice in some cases and have to flee south, or they are following their children, or whatever it is.

Status of Women committee  Yes. Definitely. I'll pick up on what Rebecca is noting around prevention, education and awareness. I completely agree with everything you're saying, but I think we also have to come back to the basic fact that we have to ensure there are still places for these women to go and that no one can heal or be safe in a toxic environment.

Status of Women committee  Maybe I'll begin, and then I'll turn to Rebecca. The number one thing for us is that of course we want every single woman and child to have safe alternatives, but the reality is that building a shelter in a community where there are no other housing options, regardless of whether it's transition or second-stage, is such a band-aid solution.

Status of Women committee  Programs and services are often underfunded and not sustainable, Inuit-specific or consistent between communities. In the north, many positions in health, mental health and social workers are left vacant. For the approximately 15 existing safe shelters and transition homes, very high occupancy rates, combined with daily challenges to meet operating and human resource requirements, contribute to high staff turnover—

Status of Women committee  Sure. They contribute to high staff turnover rates due to burnout, lack of peer support, and often inadequate training because of geographic isolation and limited financial resources. Frequently, there is a lack of dedicated long-term funding, since funding is generally project-based and time-limited, making sustainability a continual challenge.

Status of Women committee  Shelters serving Inuit women in the Arctic are disallowed from accessing this funding because they are not on a reserve. This specifically excludes the development and access to shelters in the north. This also contravenes article 22 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which declares: States shall take measures, in conjunction with indigenous peoples, to ensure that indigenous women and children enjoy the full protection and guarantees against all forms of violence and discrimination.