Obviously, it's already been said that we have to invest in existing aboriginal resources, but we should also implement programs enabling people from the community to become multiplying agents. They themselves could intervene with their peers. Everything should be funded in a sustainable manner.
There also has to be an end to criminalization. I want to raise the veil on a repressive practice that is common in Montreal, the distribution of quadrangles. Women, whether they are homeless or sex workers, are prohibited from moving within a given area. If they don't comply, they are sent directly to prison. The quadrangles are usually between Saint-Urbain, Viau, Notre-Dame and Sherbrooke streets. These women therefore cannot frequent those areas. According to Health Canada statistics, 25% of the correctional population consists of aboriginal women, whereas they represent 3% of the general population. There really has to be an end to quadrangles. The women who live in those neighbourhoods hang around in the dark corners, sheltered from police officers, but they then run risks. That's where they suffer the most violence.
An enormous amount of work also has to be done to educate the police. Earlier we talked about the mere right to file a complaint when you suffer sexual assault or violence. In the past 15 years, we've tried to sensitize and educate the police officers, but it's only in the past year that we've established an agreement with three women police officers. The goal is for women who suffer a sexual assault, whether or not there is an arrest warrant out for them, to be able to file a complaint against their attackers. The agreement shouldn't just involve three female police officers, but other all police services.