02) RCMP SLAMMED FOR ABUSE OF INDIGENOUS WOMEN

PV Vancouver Bureau

            For many years, indigenous women living in northern British Columbia have been the targets of deadly attacks, especially along the "Highway of Tears" from Prince George to Prince Rupert.

            Now, the U.S.-based Human Rights Watch group (HRW) has presented evidence that the RCMP has failed to prevent such violence, and that some officers have even been responsible for excessive use of force, and physical and sexual assault.

            Released on Feb. 13, an 89‑page report by HRW, "Those Who Take Us Away", documents allegations of police failures to protect indigenous women and girls. These failures and abuses add to longstanding tensions between the RCMP and indigenous communities, Human Rights Watch said, calling on the federal government to establish a commission of inquiry into the murders and disappearances of indigenous women and girls.

            "The threat of domestic and random violence on one side, and mistreatment by RCMP officers on the other, leaves indigenous women in a constant state of insecurity," said Meghan Rhoad, women's rights researcher at HRW. "Where can they turn for help when the police are known to be unresponsive and, in some cases, abusive."

            Human Rights Watch conducted research along Highway 97, and the 724‑kilometer stretch of Highway 16 where dozens of women and girls have gone missing or were found dead since the late 1960s. Last July and August, researchers interviewed 50 indigenous women and girls, and conducted another 37 interviews with families of murdered and missing women, indigenous leaders, community service providers, and others across 10 communities.

            Those interviews said that the RCMP has failed to protect them, and described excessive use of force, strip searches of women by male officers, and physical and sexual abuse. One woman said that in July, four police officers took her to a remote location, raped her, and threatened to kill her if she told anyone.

            Women who call the police for help have been blamed for the abuse, shamed over alcohol or substance use, and found themselves at risk of arrest for actions taken in self‑defense, women and community service providers told Human Rights Watch.

            Despite policies requiring investigation of all reports of missing persons, some family members and service providers who made calls to police said the RCMP failed to take prompt action.

            Researchers say the fear expressed by women they interviewed was comparable to post‑conflict countries, where security forces have played an integral role in government abuses. While Human Rights Watch has informed the RCMP about the allegations, details of specific incidents were not included because of victims' fears of police retaliation.

            Victims of police abuse or neglect can take their cases to the Commission for Public Complaints. But as HRW says, the process is time consuming and the investigation is likely to fall to the RCMP itself or to another police force. British Columbia recently established the Independent Investigations Office (IIO) to carry out independent civilian investigations regarding police‑related incidents. But HRW says the province must expand the mandate of the Office to include allegations of sexual assault by police.

            It also recommends improved training and monitoring of the RCMP, the elimination of searches and monitoring of women and girls by male police officers in "all but extraordinary circumstances," and the prohibition of cross‑gender strip‑searches.

(The above article is from the March 1-15, 2013, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)