Status of Women Committee on March 30th, 2023

[The Chair, Conservative, Karen Vecchio]

That's excellent. Thanks so much, Monica.

We're now going to pass it over to Andréanne.

Andréanne, you have six minutes.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I thank all of the witnesses for being with us today for this study.

When we look into the trafficking of girls and women, we find out a bit more every day. We peel back one layer and uncover another. What lies beneath is not always pretty. We discover that there are many sides to this problem.

Just this morning, I met with a representative from a CALACS, in Quebec. She was reminding me of the different projects in place in Quebec, which are currently focusing on the issue of human trafficking. A number of groups are working with victims of sexual assault, but they are also working on the issue of sex trafficking. I also met with an assault survivor. In her case, the assault took place in a sports environment. She pointed out that, even today, there is still the issue of education. Schools are sources of recruitment for sex trafficking. So you can see that this touches on many issues.

I will try to put questions to all the witnesses, but I will address Ms. Hansra first.

You brought up the language aspect concerning victims from abroad. I don't know if you are interested in that issue here within Canada's borders, but it is important here, as well. There is reportedly a trafficking network between Quebec and Alberta. Francophone victims from Montreal are taken to northern Alberta where, in an anglophone community, they cannot find any services in their language. What you say about victims from abroad is very true, and it happens even within Canada's borders. The issue of language is crucial if we are to help victims.

Can you comment on the importance of being able to provide services that are tailored to victims' culture and language?

[The Chair, Conservative, Karen Vecchio]

Raman, do you want to start?

[Raman Hansra]

Yes.

I think the need for culturally and linguistically appropriate services and resources is critical, especially in this kind of work, where individuals don't feel comfortable, for various reasons, talking about their situations. If they are willing to finally go out and get support but can't express themselves in the language they prefer, that's a big barrier. The trauma-informed approach and culturally and linguistically appropriate services are the key to supporting these survivors or victims.

Thank you.

[Monica Abdelkader]

I would like to add that I think it's very important to work closely with francophone communities. In Newfoundland and Labrador, one of the big problems is that not many services are available in French. Many people who have come through Roxham Road or from Haiti or other francophone countries have difficulty receiving services in French. We are working with the Fédération des francophones de Terre-Neuve et du Labrador, FFTNL.

You have raised an important point: it is not only important for newcomers, it is also important for francophones in Canada.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Thank you very much, Ms. Abdelkader.

Ms. Buckeridge, in your opening remarks, you mentioned that you were working with all levels of government to create a response plan for survivors of trafficking. Can you tell us more about that?

As I mentioned, this is a complex and multidimensional challenge. So working collaboratively is paramount. Since the beginning of our study, we have heard different sides of the story. As we have seen, this cuts across multiple departments and multiple levels of government.

What could the committee do to improve collaboration across departments and levels of government? You've already told us a little bit about this, but I'd like to know if you have any other potential solutions to suggest.

[Jakki Buckeridge]

Certainly.

The Peel human trafficking service providers committee comprises a variety of different folks who are service providers across the region. We follow strategies that stem from the federal government strategy on human trafficking, the province's, and then of course the region, which has its own. Because Peel is a very unique community, and we recognize that it's incredibly diverse, we felt that we needed a Peel approach to a care pathway for folks who were being trafficked.

To go back to the one piece around French inclusion and francophone women, Oasis Centre des Femmes is one of our members that sits at that particular planning table that helps develop that pathway.

We are really grateful that as a settlement agency—that was our primary role when we started 37 years ago— we're bringing that newcomer voice to it. Our WAGE-funded project is specific to develop a tool kit and test innovative practices for foreign-born individuals. However, we do our collective efforts around supporting individuals right here, because we know it happens right in our own backyard. We've been making those efforts for over a decade.

I recommend strongly.... I have my WAGE funder and MPPs and different levels of government at every single one of my meetings so that we can continue to have them spread the word and really work together, because the levels are defragmented, in all honesty.

[The Chair, Conservative, Karen Vecchio]

Thank you so much for that, Jakki.

We're going to move on. We'll go now to Leah Gazan.

Leah.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Thank you so much, Chair, and thank you to all the panellists today.

My first question is for Ieesha Sankar. I don't think it's any secret that I'm a huge fan of Ka Ni Kanichihk. This is a short brag—Ka Ni Kanichihk is in my riding and provides life-saving services.

I wanted to speak specifically to what you were talking about, strength-based frameworks. You use strength-based frameworks and you use strengths from within your nations, culture, which is foundational to that.

We've spoken about the importance of having a clear sense of culture and identity as prevention.

You spoke a little bit about having land-based programs as a support for prevention. Can you share a little bit more about that, please?

[Ieesha Sankar]

Yes. It's being able to get any of our participants back onto the land and reclaiming their culture, as culture has been lost with lots of our participants. This brings them back to their own self-awareness of things that are going on around them, whether they're being sex-trafficked, whether they're getting involved in the justice system—like I said, with the Mushkowzee Ikew program. It brings them that self-connection their culture, and then with relatives and people who are around them as well. It gives them that wellness and self-worth, and it empowers them to make the right decisions for themselves that will get them on their journey to be able to grow.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Building on that, there's no secret that we're doing a study on sex trafficking. We know groups that are most impacted—indigenous women, particularly, and gender-diverse folks are in that category, along with many migrant sex workers, and BIPOC communities.

We know that one reason why this is occurring is because of ongoing violent colonialism that's being perpetrated against indigenous women and girls and gender-diverse folks. We know that from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. We have the same sorts of occurrences that happen even in the House of Commons, as an indigenous woman in the House of Commons.

How does that place a lack of awareness, a lack of real response to that? How does that make young women and girls and gender-diverse folks more vulnerable to becoming sex trafficked?

[Ieesha Sankar]

It definitely does.

We can bring it back to the first comment there. It's housing, as well. A lot of the folks we work with in Winnipeg's core area are homeless. A lot of them don't have anywhere to go. If they don't have anywhere to go, they look for people who are going tell them that they are going to help, when realistically they are not trying to help them. They are trying to do whatever they are needing to do with them that way.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Moving beyond that, I've spoken a lot about the importance of differentiating between sex trafficking, sex work, and child sexual exploitation. One of the things I've been talking about is that when you make people illegal for whatever reason—you know we've heard in the panel today about citizenship, immigration status, and making people illegal—you place them at risk. Is that one of the reasons that any sorts of activities that people participant in for whatever reasons they end up doing them...? Is that why they're hesitant to go forward to police: for fear of persecution should, for example, they participate in something like sex work, which is illegal?

If something happens—for example, a sexual assault—do you think that's impacting people's ability to go forward to police?

[Ieesha Sankar]

Definitely.

Any repercussions if they do go forward with it.... If they are on the street and that person is the person who's helping them on the street to live and just get by, then there are going to be repercussions that they don't want to face for going forward to the police.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

We also know that indigenous women and girls have been hypersexualized and demeaned in terms of labels. We see that at Halloween it's the worst: the sexy squaw, the Pocahottie. They are more likely to be targets for sexual violence.

Would you agree that this continues to be perpetuated?

[Ieesha Sankar]

It still is, yes, for sure.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Would you agree that there continues to be a lack of response with regard to the severity of ongoing violence against indigenous women and girls in terms of any sort of sexual exploitation—a lack of response to address it?

[Ieesha Sankar]

I would agree with that, definitely.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

We just had a federal budget come out. I looked at the allocations for murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. It was very disappointing. I know that the federal government has put in funding for call for justice 1.7 for oversight.

However, when I looked at the funding in terms of supporting prevention and programs like your.... Why is it important to do major investment in prevention if we're going to deal with the crisis of violence against indigenous women and girls in this country?

[The Chair, Conservative, Karen Vecchio]

You have about 15 seconds.

[Ieesha Sankar]

It's very important for prevention.

I'll try to wrap it up really quickly.

More programs that can be out on the ground in the community for the community.... You'll even get statistics that way, as well, being on the ground with the people who are the ones needing any of the help, needing resources or access to resources. Through communities like Ka Ni Kanichihk, they are able to help mend and go through all those resources that they need and that they may not know of.

[The Chair, Conservative, Karen Vecchio]

Excellent.

Thank you so much.

We're now going to go to our next round.

It starts with five minutes, and I'll pass it over to Anna Roberts.

Anna.

[Anna Roberts, Conservative, King—Vaughan, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, all, for the efforts that are put into helping the situation.

I'm going to address my question to Monica. This is probably going to trigger something, so I'm just warning everybody upfront, please.

Monica, I met with Yazidi individuals, the people who came into my office and my constituency, and one of the stories really touched me. I'm going to go back to what my colleague, Michelle, said about housing.

Two sisters managed to get to Canada. After the older sister witnessed the murder of her husband and children, they were then thrown in jail and continuously raped, and the food that they ate was the remains of their family. I say this because it really impacted me.

However, they were very happy that they were able to come to Canada. Here's the problem. They came to Canada. There was no housing, no medication, no mental health services to help them emotionally get through what they had witnessed. We're promoting this, and you're a champion at this. You obviously care. However, how can we help these people, help the Yazidi people, come here? How can we make these promises? They have nowhere to live, no medication, no help, no counselling. When I think about, we're taking them out of the fire and putting them back into the frying pan. How do we change that?

[Monica Abdelkader]

There were a lot of services that the Yazidi community members were provided with when they were resettled to Canada. There were about 1,100 Yazidis who were resettled to four communities across Canada: London, Ontario; Toronto region; Calgary; and Winnipeg.

These communities receive funding from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada as part of the resettlement assistance program. Through those programs—the Association for New Canadians in St. John's, Newfoundland provides the service here—we are mandated to provide housing assistance and linkage to the provincial health system.

When the Yazidis arrived, the trauma that the Yazidis had experienced—I was part of one of those teams that responded in one of those communities—was unlike trauma I have ever seen. I have been working overseas and in Canada for almost 20 years now, and I will be honest, when they came, it was very traumatizing, even for those of us with experience in the sector, to hear their stories and to respond to their needs.

As you said, there was definitely a bit of a lag in our response at the outset. We, as a system of settlement service providers, both understood and came to understand the severity and the complexity of their traumas, but we also developed the appropriate mental health response.

In delivering mental health services to newcomers, we did a very rigorous research project and we introduced mental health screening at multiple milestones and touchpoints throughout their journey. Consistently, we find that newcomers who are resettled under the resettlement assistance program are really only ready for mental health services at the eighth month—

[Anna Roberts, Conservative, King—Vaughan, ON]

Monica, I want to get to my point, because I will be hosting another meeting with the Yazidi families who I've met.

The government is going to open up immigration to half a million people. We don't have housing. How can we make these false promises to individuals? I think, as Canadians, we want to help people. It breaks my heart to know that they're coming here and they'll be in shelters or some of them will have to live on the streets. They don't have the support, the housing, the medication or the treatment. How do we change that when we make these promises to them and we don't have anywhere to house them?