#nunavik

Aside from Puvirnituq, CBC has heard from residents in four other Nunavik villages who say voting booths closed early in their communities.

In a statement, Elections Canada said weather issues were affecting flights for workers.

"The returning officer attempted to implement several different strategies to provide voting services to communities," it said in a statement.

So they didn’t hire anyone from the community to work for the election, though I’m certain there are people capable of doing so.

They didn’t make alternate arrangements for people to vote on election day, nor did they make arrangements for what they would do if there were issues with weather, which is a pretty basic thing to make a backup plan for in remote communities at this time of year.

For what reason are alternate methods of voting not utilized to ensure folks in remote communities have the ability to exercise their right to vote? That’s a pretty basic thing to expect the government to accommodate.

Leaders in Nunavik are exploring the idea of banishment as a way to stop the flow of drugs and alcohol into their communities. Banishment is a historical practice that a growing number of Indigenous communities have been bringing back. Pita Aatami, president of Makivvik which represents Inuit in Nunavik, says the policy, if implemented, would largely target non-Nunavik residents bringing in contrabands. He says substance use is "killing our people.”

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