Thank you so much, Chair.
My first question is for Superintendent Taplin. We know there are ongoing issues with systemic discrimination and sexual violence in the RCMP. I want to point to an article that was published by the CBC in May 2021, in response to the Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action report, which states, “The report says they show evidence of a pattern of discrimination, harassment, and assault against women by officers of the RCMP.”
It goes on, and Pamela Palmater states, “If female RCMP officers are not safe from sexual assaults by male officers, it should be no surprise that marginalized Indigenous women and girls are not safe either”.
I want to point to an article that was published by the CBC in 2015 about Officer Kevin Theriault, in northern Manitoba, who took an intoxicated woman home from her jail cell, with the permission of the supervising officer, to pursue a relationship. I don't have the exact quote, but in light of that the supervising officer said, “You arrested her, you can do whatever the f--k you want to do” with her. This was reported on the CBC.
What's concerning to me is that the RCMP continue to investigate their own allegations of misconduct. I'm wondering what the RCMP is doing to address this kind of grotesque systemic racism and sexual violence that continues to happen, particularly against indigenous women and girls.