Murder of young P.A. woman on local, provincial radar

The discovery of a young Prince Albert woman’s body on Saturday has prompted a call for action from both the community and province.

RCMP identified the body of Monica Lee Burns, 28, and noted her as a member of the Sturgeon Lake First Nation on Monday.

The issue of aboriginal women being murdered in the area is not lost on concerned citizen Larry Zepp.

He said as a spokesperson for the group “Citizens Concerned About Aboriginal Women Being Killed in Prince Albert” the goal is to organize people and meet to discuss the issue.

Zepp added in the past he was the driving force behind another group called “citizens concerned about the homeless who had frozen to death in Prince Albert.”

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The issue came to a head when a number of people died during the winter of 2012.

It led to the addition of 10 new beds for intoxicated homeless people in YWCA’s Our House, largely through the efforts of its executive director Donna Brooks.

“From that group, money came in from the chiefs in Prince Albert, from social services, and support came in from the police department,” said Zepp.

While he doesn’t have an action plan for the group, he said the struggles and risks to First Nations women need to be addressed.

“Aboriginal women are the most vulnerable in Prince Albert. And when one of them gets killed, on Saturday, the people of Prince Albert should be concerned about this.”

Provincial action

Burns’ death is yet another on a long list of missing and murdered aboriginal women across Canada.

Provincial representatives are heeding the call for action with a trip to Ottawa next month.

Betty-Ann Pottruf is co-chair of the Provincial Partnership Committee on Missing Persons through the Ministry of Justice.

Pottruf said there are additional difficulties with solving the murders of aboriginal women.

She said they are more vulnerable because they “may be living in higher risk situations.” This can include hitchhiking, “higher levels of violence,” and “street life activities.”

Pottruf said she has not seen the agenda yet for next month’s meetings but she expects people will be talking about the root causes for violence against aboriginal women and what can be done to prevent them.

The 90 per cent solve rates for murders of aboriginal and non – aboriginal women contrasts starkly to the overall solve rate for murders of high risk women – at 60 percent.

She explained one reason behind it.

“Women who are in high risk situations are often some of the hardest to resolve because there is less information about them.”

RCMP reported Burns was a sex trade worker, and they are hoping someone who may have seen her prior to the weekend, will come forward and share what information they have.

An RCMP report in May of 2014 outlined some tough numbers related to missing aboriginal women. At the time of the report, there were 16 missing aboriginal women in Saskatchewan, and now there are 18. Another troubling statistic from the report was that there were 13 unsolved aboriginal homicides.

In October, 2013, the federal, provincial, and territorial ministers responsible for justice issued a draft framework addressing violence against aboriginal women.

Over the past year the province has been out discussing that framework with aboriginal women and other groups, getting feedback.

Pottruf said that material will be rolled up and presented back to the Minister of Justice next fall.

– With files from paNOW’s Chelsea Laskowski

nmaxwell@panow.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell