Marijuana Party Sticks With DeVries; Greens Still Undecided Iqaluit's Amanda Ford-Rogers will represent the New Democratic Party in the Jan. 23 federal election. "People have been asking me to run for two years," Ford-Rogers said Wednesday. "This time I finally caved in." Originally from Whale Cove, Ford-Rogers moved to Iqaluit in 1999. She now lives in Apex with her husband and three sons, who are now, at ages 12, 10 and 6, old enough for her to campaign, Ford-Rogers said. [continues 485 words]
"The threat comes from members of their own extended families or spouses" Step-by-step, residents of Kangirsuk are taking a stand against violence in their community, by speaking out on local radio, and marching through the streets in a protest spearheaded by the local justice committee and the school on Oct. 24. The recently re-elected mayor of Kangirsuk, Joseph Annahatak, who participated in the march against violence, received more than 75 per cent of the vote in last week's municipal election, a strong vote of confidence in his leadership during these hard times. [continues 675 words]
Funding Problems Plague Programs In Other Communities Kicking booze and drug habits just got easier for several Cambridge Bay men signed up for a three-week counselling program starting Monday at the Community Wellness Centre, but people in other communities in the region aren't nearly so lucky. "We try to run something every month," said Alice Isnor, the hamlet's wellness coordinator, who alternates male and female counselling sessions. That makes Cambridge Bay unique in the Kitikmeot. Not only can people get treatment and counselling, but they can sign up when they're ready for it -- and not just when it's available. [continues 763 words]
"This is bigger than you can imagine" A series of recent arrests in Montreal and Inukjuak have netted several kilograms of marijuana, hashish and hashish oil. But this is just a small part of the rapidly growing market for drugs and booze in Nunavik that involves many people, police say. On May 12, the RCMP arrested Boulaem Laichi, 50, in Montreal. Boulaem, a former bellhop at the Manoir Lemoyne hotel, was found in possession of a large quantity of drugs bound for Nunavik. The Manoir Lemoyne (now the Clarion), is a suite hotel on De Maisonneuve West that's popular with visiting northerners. [continues 437 words]
A new campaign against alcohol and drugs started this week in Greenland. The two-year campaign, organized by Paarisa, the Greenland government department responsible for preventing drug and alcohol abuse, has three key themes: * Kids shouldn't drink alcohol; * We should take care of kids. Parents have responsibility and society has a responsibility, too; * It's cool to say "no thanks" to drugs. [end]
Advisors Say Study Will Help Inuit Around The World Advisors to a research team in Nunavik hope a study beginning this month will lead to better treatment facilities for Inuit alcoholics and drug addicts. The study, which will take up to three years to complete, specifically targets youth, in hopes of better understanding their attitudes towards drug and alcohol. A team of researchers from L'universite du Quebec a Trois-Rivieres will meet with students, ranging in age from 11 to 18, at Jaanimmarik School in Kuujjuaq this week, to ask them about their habits and feelings related to drugs and alcohol. [continues 574 words]
The Surete du Quebec's bomb squad was called to Umiujaq last week after a suspicious package sent to a resident was opened at the community's police station. "When they opened the parcel, they found a shoebox, and inside the shoebox was a plastic bag. The constable believed what he saw inside there was a bomb," said Capt. George Okpik, spokesperson for the Kativik Regional Police Force. By mid-afternoon last Thursday, following consultation with KRPF in Kuujjuaraapik and Kuujjuaq, police in Umijuaq were advised to leave and lock up the police station. [continues 92 words]
One thing I've noticed over the years concerns northern students from the communities entering college programs in bigger cities. Alcohol and drug abuse is, unfortunately, a very real factor for students with tremendous potential who lose out and quit their programs. This would include studies in the nursing and medical fields, as well as others. We desperately need nurses who are representative of our people, both here in the Northwest Territories, and in Nunavut, to serve our own people. I want to strongly urge our governments, colleges and universities to provide pre-college counselling for students so they can be ready for life in the big city, where alcohol and drugs are always available. [continues 311 words]
In response to the letter in Nunatsiaq News, written from Cape Dorset on July 25, concerning dope use being a natural thing. I have to disagree with it because not everyone, as the writer puts it, spends all their money on drugs and leaves their family hungry. Although people here do drugs, they at least buy food first before dope. I'd say dope is no use if it just creates more problems, like letting your children be hungry. Name withheld by request Cape Dorset [end]
It's a great irony that those who have likely profited the most from distributing marijuana and hash to Baffin and Nunavik Inuit over the years include at least some members of a blatantly white-supremacist organization -- the notorious motorcycle gang known as the Hell's Angels. So one of the strongest arguments that can possibly made for the eventual legalization of cannabis is that society's thugs, low-lifes and bottom-feeders would no longer get rich by selling a substance that many believe is less harmful to human health than tobacco or alcohol. [continues 848 words]
We the people up here have always struggled to survive off of the resources of our land, and it hasn't always been easy. These days aren't any different. We're able to go the stores to buy food, but we don't always have the money to buy food. We have no money to buy food because most of us buy these $60 grams of hash or grass. The grams aren't always full weight either, so we tend to buy two or three more to get ahead on our need for dope. [continues 235 words]
Federal "Decriminalization" Bill Would Impose Fines For Possession At the same time that Nunavut is becoming one of the toughest jurisdictions in Canada for tobacco control, the federal government is developing legislation to lighten penalties for marijuana possession. Quttiktuq MLA Rebekah Williams pointed out the contradiction during a member's statement in the legislative assembly in early June. "I have been shocked by the decision of our national government to introduce legislation to decriminalize possession of certain amounts of marijuana," she said. [continues 576 words]
Three people arrested, more than 15 kilograms of illegal drugs seized The Kativik Regional Police Force put eastern Arctic drug dealers on notice May 1, warning a recent police operation that seized 15 kilograms of illegal drugs and arrested three people is only the start of a major crackdown. Police issued a press release last week saying "Operation White Fox" had hauled in enough bootlegged alcohol and illegal marijuana, hash and cocaine to fetch $800,000 in Nunavik. So far, the police have made only three arrests in connection with the operation. But Brian Jones, chief of Nunavik's regional police force, promised more arrests would follow in the coming weeks. [continues 581 words]
Police, Quaqtaq council use rewards to lure drug tips A new tips reward project has helped the town of Quaqtaq and Kativik Regional Police seize about a kilogram of marijuana and arrest five drug dealers. Since the end of January, Quaqtaq's municipal council has posted rewards worth $1,000 each for tips on drug shipments and dealers. The rewards allowed police to net more than 975 grams of marijuana with a Nunavik street value of $51,465 and confiscate $2,685 in drug-related cash, Johnny Oovaut, the mayor of Quaqtaq, said this week. [continues 311 words]
Nunavut's proposed detoxification facility will be located in a non-decentralized community that has yet to be determined, Health Minister Ed Picco said in the legislative assembly in Pangnirtung last week. Premier Paul Okalik first mentioned the creation of a detox centre during a speech at an alcohol and drug addictions conference in Montreal in September. Picco clarified the plan in the House on Oct. 29. It will be a "limited detox centre" aided by community wellness programs aimed at treating alcohol and drug abuse with a "holistic approach," he said. In putting together the program, the department is focusing on creating an "IQ for detoxification," he said. [end]
Ottawa centre helps Inuit strung out on booze, crack-cocaine and pot OTTAWA--Tungasuvvingat Inuit, Ontario's Inuit community centre, is running a first-of-its-kind treatment program for Inuit addicted to drugs and alcohol. The treatment program, which got off the ground in mid-September, now has 11 Inuit clients, many of whom have lived away from Nunavut and Nunavik for more than five years. A three-storey, century-old brick house in Ottawa serves as the addictions centre's base and is staffed by one full-time and one part-time addictions counsellor. It's a day program that can take up to a dozen clients. [continues 537 words]
Some girls went to the Legion all messed up on ecstasy on Oct. 26. One of the girls fell to the floor and stopped breathing and her heart stopped as well. Mind you the Legion staff didn't do anything. The only person that did something to help her was a guy by the name of Jason (he used to work at the Legion up until a week ago). Thank God that he decided to go out that night or else that girl would have died. It makes you wonder what the hell the Legion staff were doing -- apparently not their job or else they would have noticed that something was wrong with her. [continues 188 words]
"My optimism is personal," Nunavut premier says Nunavut Premier Paul Okalik: "My name is Paul and I am an alcoholic." Paul Okalik brought his own inspiring tale of addiction and recovery to the opening in Montreal this week of the first worldwide forum on drugs and dependencies. Nunavut's premier opened the week-long international gathering, which attracted more than 3,000 delegates from about 50 countries to Montreal's Palais de Congres, with a dramatic declaration: "My name is Paul and I am an alcoholic." [continues 607 words]
