Evidence of meeting #7 for Status of Women in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was communities.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Marilyn Gladu
No, you're out of time. Now we're going to Ms. Shin in our second round for five minutes.
Conservative
Nelly Shin Conservative Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Thank you.
I'd like to thank all the witnesses today for sharing your testimonies. I'm disturbed and moved at the same time.
My first question is for Ms. Martin. I am very disturbed by your testimony on the entrenched culture in remote communities, where fear because of power dynamics prevents people from speaking up and prevents justice from happening. It creates a code of silence that's intergenerational and perpetual.
Do you have any suggestions in terms of how those kinds of communities...? It's cultural corporate behaviour, isn't it, really? What are some ways that we can break that silence and that stronghold?
As an Individual
As well as being negative, it has positives, because everybody knows everybody, so hopefully you can find the one person who will support you, help you, give you the transportation you might need, or at least listen to you and maybe share resources.
What I would really like to say is that I think our government system shows abuse. In question period, I would really like to see the government give an example of working positively together. When somebody stands up and says that this is what they think we could do, then the other party could say, “Gee, what about that?”, rather than saying it's a really stupid idea.
I would like it to start at the top, where we should show respect and listen and care about other people.
Sorry. That's my little political bugaboo.
Conservative
Nelly Shin Conservative Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Thank you. Point taken on that. I would agree in terms of being more positive in the House.
My second question has to do with Clare's law. I don't know if you're all familiar with it. I know it has been enacted in Saskatchewan, and there's a loophole. For those in favour of Clare's Law, if amendments are made to the Privacy Act, then the RCMP would be able to disclose violent records of perpetrators to their intimate partners. Is this something that you see is worth pursuing for amendments in Parliament?
I leave that for anyone.
Conservative
Nelly Shin Conservative Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Thank you so much.
I have time for one more question.
What are some success stories in terms of men who are educated? Obviously, that's a very critical piece in terms of getting rid of violence against women and these types of issues. What are some success stories we can walk away with?
President and Vice-Chancellor, Memorial University of Newfoundland
I think you've hit on something that is critically important. Gender violence and violence against women is not a women's issue and it's not a gender issue; it's a societal issue. We have to educate men, as well as women, in disclosing it, on being bystanders, on how to step in and how to handle it and work with it.
I think there are many positive stories of men who have stood up and who have supported women in these situations, but there is still the old boys culture and club, particularly in sports and in universities. There's a culture around the male team bonding and things like that. We still have a lot of work to do. We need to educate our young men to be able to make sure that we reduce violence against women. Our young men are critical.
As an Individual
I have a cute story to add to that. When I worked at the shelter, sometimes we sheltered Inuit women from the north. I had a friend who was a pilot at the Carp Airport, and he would deliver food to the north. When we did have Inuit women in the shelter, I would get in touch with him, and he would bring back roasts of caribou for them. He was a good guy.
Conservative
Liberal
Conservative
Liberal
Marc Serré Liberal Nickel Belt, ON
Thank you, Madame Chair; and thank you to the witnesses, the three of you, and especially Ms. Martin.
Your testimony is one of the big reasons I've been part of the status of women committee for the past four years. MP Shin mentioned the intergenerational aspect, and I hope we can spend more time on this. As indicated, the injustices we've provided to our first nations women are atrocious, and many of the same issues apply to women in rural areas.
Ms. Martin, you talked about the family secrets and the intergenerational and rural aspects. You painted a picture that things haven't changed in 50 years, but this is where we're at in trying to move things forward.
In 2018, we had a $1.8-million strategy for men and boys, but we are also now, as a government, getting involved with provinces, indigenous communities and municipalities on developing a national strategy action plan for gender-based violence.
I'll be asking Dr. Timmons also, but Angèle McCaie, from a rural perspective, hopefully you can be engaged and provide some feedback. You mentioned education. Today, what would you recommend in terms of that action plan to address more of these systemic issues in rural Canada in your neck of the woods?
General Manager, Village of Rogersville
Thank you.
It's having the resources in smaller communities and having access to programs and funding. It doesn't need to be large funding, but having it readily accessible is very important. The Femmes Fortes program started with a small wellness grant for $5,000 and developed into this large system that we have, and other municipalities as well throughout New Brunswick. Sometimes it's just that seed and that encouragement for local government and local resources to get something started, because all of rural Canada is not a one-size-fits-all. Everyone has specific issues they need addressed. In Rogersville, we don't necessarily have that Internet access issue, but we have that language barrier.
Consulting with the communities and giving them resources is so essential to develop what they need in communities for women and girls.
President and Vice-Chancellor, Memorial University of Newfoundland
I'll add also that investing in women's organizations is critical, and our government has done that. When we took money away from women's organizations in this country, we left a lot of women vulnerable.
Women's shelters that include children, shelters to which they're allowed to bring children, are critical. Many communities have homeless shelters, but they're for men; we need homeless shelters for women also. We need transition houses and we need to make sure that we support and fund them.
When I was in Regina, I was stunned at how many women had to be turned away from the shelter because of the waiting list. They didn't have the room. When you turn women away, you often put their children in jeopardy. If we want to make sure we support women in our communities, we need to support those organizations that are front-line workers, who work every day, as Ms. Martin did for so many years, supporting vulnerable women.
Liberal
Marc Serré Liberal Nickel Belt, ON
Dr. Timmons, you would probably recommend that all our workers in shelters should be classified as essential workers across every province and every country moving forward.
President and Vice-Chancellor, Memorial University of Newfoundland
They are essential.
Liberal
Marc Serré Liberal Nickel Belt, ON
I want to congratulate you on being a university president. Fewer than 20% of university presidents are female; so we have to do better.
Thank you.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Marilyn Gladu
Excellent.
Now we go to Madame Larouche for two and a half minutes.
Bloc
Andréanne Larouche Bloc Shefford, QC
Thank you, Madam Chair.
I will continue my tour of the witnesses. I have not yet had the opportunity to speak with Ms. Martin.
Ms. Martin, in your testimony, it is clear that, for a woman living in a rural environment, access to services related to good reproductive health may not be adequate. I hear you loud and clear. Good reproductive health ranges from free choice to proper pregnancy monitoring.
I would particularly like to hear your views on the lack of specialists to support women in rural areas.
As an Individual
I'm not a specialist in women's health in rural areas, but certainly the abortion issue is critical for many women, and I guess public health units are critical. They're the people who, when I was telling the story about north Lanark and the congenital heart anomalies probably due to incest.... In 1992 or 1996, a health unit was built in that area. I think that would make a huge difference. They would have access to education and all of that, including abortion services.
Bloc
Andréanne Larouche Bloc Shefford, QC
Ms. Martin, perhaps better health transfers for Quebec and the provinces could create a better situation in rural areas as well.
It is probably more difficult to reach women, particularly in situations of domestic violence and prostitution, because they are isolated.
What tools could help these women—who ask for help and don't really know how to leave their communities or where to seek help—to find a way out?
As an Individual
It probably comes back to emergency services. The police are most likely to be the intervenors, and they need to be educated.
They need to have the support. They probably need to have women go with them—shelter workers or female officers—to some of these situations so that they can talk with the women.
Conservative
NDP
Lindsay Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON
Let's see what I can get in.
My questioning will probably stem from that of my colleague Madame Larouche. I had been talking about universality and about the Canada Health Act.
Ms. McCaie, in New Brunswick, Clinic 554, for example, is the only abortion services and reproductive health clinic in your entire province. What has its closing meant, for you and the women you interact with, for accessing those services rurally?
