Good morning. I'm Irene Mathyssen. I'm the vice-chair of the committee for the status of women.
I would like to welcome Karen Kuzemczak and Darlene Angeconeb. If I haven't said your names exactly right, please correct me.
Thank you so much for being here.
We are hoping that Chief Angus Toulouse joins us shortly, but because time is important, we want to get started.
I'll begin by introducing the committee and explaining our purpose in being here. We have Madame Michelle Simson, a member of the Liberal Party and Her Majesty's loyal opposition; Madame Nicole Demers, a member of the Bloc; for the Conservatives, Mr. Greg Rickford; and I am a member of the New Democratic Party.
I'm very, very glad to see you. I want to say thank you to the hotel and the people of Sioux Lookout for the very kind welcome.
Our purpose here today is to pursue a study in regard to violence perpetrated against aboriginal women. We began the study last spring and have had the privilege of travelling across the country to talk to the people who know, the people who can give us the best advice.
The parameters, the mandate of our study, involve the root causes of the violence that women and their families experience, the nature of that violence, what happens to families and to women, the extent of the violence, how far it has spread, and who suffers. Finally, what we really want is your advice in regard to solutions. This is something that our communities have been grappling with for far too long. There is a real sense that we can find real solutions for people. So we are looking for that guidance from you.
Just one technical bit of information. Madame Demers will be conversing in French. We have translators, and we have the translating device here.
Again, thank you very much. I'm going to give you seven minutes.
Darlene, are you the spokesperson, or Karen, or are you both participating?