Stop Violence Against Women
A project of The Advocates for Human Rights
Domestic Violence
General Information Best Practices Law and Policy Ongoing Developments
Human Trafficking
Human Trafficking Overview Training and Advocacy Ongoing Developments Sex Trafficking and Safe Harbor Resource Pack
Sexual Harassment
General Information Training and Advocacy Law and Policy Ongoing Developments
Sexual Assault
General Information Advocacy and Training Law and Policy Ongoing Developments
Other Forms of Violence Against Women
Crimes Committed in the Name of "Honor" Dowry-Related Violence Female Environmental Refugees Female Genital Mutilation Femicide Forced and Early Marriage Forced/Coerced Sterilization Gender-Based Asylum Harmful Practices Indigenous Women Maltreatment of Widows Son Preference Violence Against LGBT Women Violence Against the Girl Child Violence Against Women and HIV/AIDS Women and Armed Conflict Violence Against Women with Disabilities
Russian Site
  1. Home
  2. What's New

Canada: CEDAW Committee Seeks Information on Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women

Friday, December 16, 2011

The United Nation’s Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has written to the Canadian government concerning missing and murdered aboriginal women. Two Canadian women’s groups have pressed the UN Committee for a full inquiry, stating that the federal government has failed to fulfill the duties described in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The Native Women’s Association of Canada claims that at least 600 aboriginal women have gone missing or been murdered since 1990. It further argues that the response from law enforcement has been “slow, often dismissive [. . .], uncoordinated and generally inadequate.” The Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action maintains that the murders and vanishings are the result of the denial of basic social and economic rights.

Rona Ambrose, Status of Women Minister for Canada, informed the House of Commons that the Canadian government has taken the concerns of the women’s groups seriously. It is in the process of creating a Royal Canadian Mounted Police Centre for Missing Persons & Unidentified Remains and a national website for the public to leave tips on missing persons, and has been funding 30 aboriginal community organizations which educate and raise awareness of causes of violence among aboriginal women. However, Nycole Turmel, interim leader of the New Democratic Party, welcomed the international intervention. Turmel claims that the conservative government has done nothing on this issue and has not taken the crisis seriously since the United Nations first questioned the Canadian government three years ago.

Compiled from: Missing Aboriginal Women Prompt UN Letter, CBC News (13 December 2011).

For More Information:

See the Femicide, Violence against Indigenous Women, and the Women's Convention and Optional Protocol sections of this website.

lg
md
sm