Call for immediate public inquiry shelved after systemic racism commissioner met with Higgs

For the last two years, Indigenous leaders in New Brunswick have steadfastly called on the provincial government to launch a public inquiry into systemic racism against Indigenous peoples in criminal justice and policing.

Premier Blaine Higgs has just as steadfastly refused to do so, saying there are recommendations from other reviews that could address some issues.

Manju Varma, New Brunswick's commissioner on systemic racism, was poised to publicly call on the government to launch an inquiry this past spring.

But Varma's plan to release a mid-term report, which urged the government to call a public inquiry, came to a halt after an April 13 meeting with Higgs and Aboriginal Affairs Minister Arlene Dunn.

That has prompted the chiefs of nine Mi'kmaw communities in New Brunswick to say they will no longer participate in the commissioner's process.

On Monday, the chiefs released a statement saying the process isn't independent from the provincial government and alleging the government suppressed Varma's report.

"We need that inquiry," Natoaganeg First Nation Chief George Ginnish, who also co-chairs Mi'gmawe'l Tplu'taqnn Inc., or MTI, a non-profit made up of the nine Mi'kmaw communities, said in an interview with CBC.

"That's got to happen. Regardless of what government thinks, it has to happen or we're not going to be satisfied that our reality is being given the attention that it deserves, and that there will be change that will give us that hope." 

They join the six chiefs of the Wolastoqey Nation, who had declined to participate in the systemic racism commissioner's work, describing it as an "ill-equipped and ineffective alternative to an inquiry."

In a statement, Varma said the report was meant to be a draft and only begins to reflect observations from some meetings she's had with organizations and individuals.

"As I continue with my consultations, I expect that my findings will continue to evolve until my final report is prepared and released upon completion of my mandate," the statement says.

"That final report will contain my final recommendations, and any suggestion that any of the proposals contained in any update released prior to that are my final recommendations, is pure speculation."

The statement doesn't say whether Varma supports a public inquiry or explain why her recommendation changed after meeting with Higgs and Dunn. 

"I have little to no confidence that there's actually going to be a call for a full inquiry," Ginnish said. "And that's troublesome.