Longtime Inuit advocate and politician Cathy Towtongie has her own take on things like National Inuit Day.
Towtongie said she grew up with the name tag E31256 and was told never to forget it. And she never has.
She said as far as National Inuit Day is concerned, there has to be real action take place to make that mean something more than just lip service.
“We're living in Nunavut with a high cost of food security,” said Towtongie. “People are going hungry as Canadians (are).
“But you look at formulas such as the elder's pension, for example, and they are designed as if they're living in a city like Ottawa, not to address the fact they're living in the Arctic.
“I think the pride that is felt on National Inuit Day comes from regaining back our identity. For example, girls are relearning how to make kamiik and working on skins to make clothing that suits Nunavut.”
Towtongie said she's happy to see boys having hunting programs because too many Inuit children no longer want to eat traditional foods, which are far more healthy than the junk food they're buying.
She said a lot of Inuit today are buying junk food because it's cheaper, but Inuit traditional foods are healthier and more nutritious.
“This also has to be considered in hospitals in Winnipeg, as well. Many, many patients want to have their own food down there in the freezers. I know for a fact that as soon as we're in Winnipeg and we eat Chinese food, the one thing we all know is that we want our own frozen food such as whale, caribou and fermented items.
“I think, in my own viewpoint, things like National Inuit Day have been just lip service. Look at Nutrition North. Why not subsidize our traditional food? Baffin can't hunt caribou. They are under a strict quota system.
“The Kivalliq is trying to provide caribou for them by selling the meat individually, but there is no contribution policy to ensure that the people who are buying from the Kivalliq or Kitikmeot ever receive their caribou.
“We need to think ahead to five years time so Kivalliqmiut do not decimate their own herds to help Baffin or make more money. And, when Inuit in the Baffin do pay $400 or $600 for a caribou, we have to ensure that they do receive the meat. So Nutrition North has to change to reflect that reality in Nunavut.”
Towtongie said Nunavut can never have an uncontrolled kill.
She said the territory has to be strategically planning how to manage this type of uncontrolled sales of caribou and it's not happening because of the Land Claims agreement, which gives Inuit beneficiaries the right to kill and sell what they catch.
“Some, I will call them unprofessional hunters, are leaving dead caribou laying out on the land. They slit the hip part to see if it has fat and, if it doesn't, they just leave it. That has to end. I'm very concerned about that.
“We need professional hunters who know how to properly cut and butcher and don't leave untouched animals just laying dead out on the land.
“What we need is to have a domestic quota and a commercial quota. A domestic quota for the family and a commercial quota so that Inuit hunters can also sell caribou within reason.
“I think that would be the best approach and I've spoken previously about it in the legislative assembly. I have a number of things I want to accomplish if I get elected in as Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president and, once in, I plan to be open, transparent and accountable, which are things I am not seeing right now.”
