Inuit Leaders to Meet With Prime Minister Carney Amid Tensions Over Arctic Partnership
Inuit leaders will meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney and six federal ministers on Tuesday in Kuujjuaq, Quebec, at what marks the final meeting of the Inuit-to-Crown Partnership Committee (ICPC). The forum, which brings together Inuit leaders with federal cabinet ministers three times a year, was first established in 2017. Carney is among the attendees, along with Energy Minister Tim Hodgson, Defense Minister David McGuinty, Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty, Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty, and Northern Affairs Minister Rebecca Chartrand.
Palpable Tensions Ahead of the Meeting
Despite the high-level attendance, some Arctic observers note there are palpable tensions between Inuit leaders and the federal government heading into the gathering. The friction follows a forum on Arctic sovereignty hosted by Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) — the organization that represents Canada’s Inuit — in Ottawa earlier this month. That event culminated in calls for the federal government to be a better partner and a rejection of what ITK characterized as “outdated, colonial approaches to Arctic policy that repeat Canada’s previous mistakes of marginalizing” the Inuit.
Natan Obed, ITK’s president, told attendees at the forum that if the relationship with Ottawa is no longer viable, Inuit could look for other partnerships abroad. However, he later told The Canadian Press that the relationship with Ottawa remains positive and said his statement was not a threat. He added that under Carney there had been “a very big change” in the way Ottawa included Inuit in decisions affecting their communities.
Former MP Peter Ittinuar, the first Inuk elected to the lower house in 1979, called Obed’s comments “untimely” and said the ITK president did not have the same working relationship with Carney that he had with former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “I think it was ill-advised for Natan to make comments like that,” Ittinuar told The Canadian Press.
Concerns Over Shifting Federal Priorities
Obed has also raised concerns that under Carney, Ottawa was returning to a model of working more closely with territorial governments rather than Inuit organizations. “We don’t see the same opportunities or the same considerations for rights-based funding frameworks and tax policy. And that’s a big concern for Inuit,” Obed told The Canadian Press.
Sima Sahar Zerehi, CEO of the Arctic Opportunities Group who attended the ITK forum, said it was a “mistake” not to consult Inuit on decisions affecting the Arctic. However, she noted it was significant that the Carney government is still working with the ICPC process. “I think the Inuit are sending a very direct message to the Canadian government that if they do not participate in decision-making, it will be a failure and will have a negative impact on the development of Canadian sovereignty and security in the Arctic,” Zerehi said.
Nunavut Land Claims Agreement at Center of Debate
Former Nunavut Senator Dennis Patterson offered a different perspective, arguing that the ICPC process disregards Article 4 of the Nunavut Land Calls Agreement, which calls for a public government that serves all Nunavut citizens — Inuit and the small non-Inuit minority — equally. Patterson said his concerns apply specifically to Nunavut, as the other Inuit Nunangat regions of Nunavik, Nunatsiavut, and Inuvialuit operate under different governance structures.
“The ICPC process provides the money to the Inuit in Nunavut, namely Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., to implement programs in clear areas of the Government of Nunavut’s constitutional jurisdiction as set out in the Nunavut Act,” Patterson said. Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. represents Inuit in Nunavut and is responsible for ensuring the Nunavut Convention is implemented by Ottawa.
Patterson argued that the ICPC process has resulted in duplication of services in the territory and “caused some tension between Inuit organizations in Nunavut and the Government of Nunavut.” He went further, stating: “The ICPC process has essentially undermined the potential for collaboration by creating duplicative and sometimes competing bureaucracies. I would add the adjective wasteful.”
Tuberculosis Programs Highlight Coordination Challenges
The tensions extend to public health initiatives, including tuberculosis programs. Ottawa made a major push in 2017 with ITK to eradicate the disease in Inuit communities, where tuberculosis rates were more than 270 times higher than the rate among Canadian-born non-Indigenous people. In 2018, Ottawa allocated $27.5 million over five years to combat tuberculosis, dividing the money between the four Inuit regions.
A senior Nunavut government source who was not authorized to speak publicly said there are disagreements between the territorial government and Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. over the management of tuberculosis clinics, which has led to delays in the flow of money from the Nunavut government to carry out the work. Despite these differences, the source said coordination between the two sides has improved, particularly under an agreement reached under former premier PJ Akeeagok for the territorial government and Nunavut Tunngavik to work together on shared interests.
In February, Ottawa pledged an additional $27 million over five years to ITK to fight tuberculosis. ITK had asked for $131 million.
Calls for Meaningful Partnership
Zerehi, who has worked for both a regional Inuit organization and in a senior position in the Nunavut government, said there is a risk of pitting the territorial government and Inuit organizations against each other. “I think the cooperation agreement shows that desire and understanding that if the territory and the Inuit organizations don’t agree, there’s no way to move forward,” she said.
She added that she believes there are concerns that Inuit could be left behind as Ottawa strengthens its relationship with the territorial government. “And I think that no one wants to see the role of the Inuit, either at the territorial or national level, diminished,” Zerehi said.
Despite the challenges, some observers see reasons for cautious optimism. “I think the federal government going into session on Tuesday will have a bit of a tailwind,” Ittinuar said.
Zerehi issued a broader warning about the stakes involved: “I think that the federal or territorial government would all benefit from hearing the warning issued by the ITK. There has to be an ongoing, active and serious partnership with the Inuit every step of the way. Because otherwise none of this will make any sense.”
