Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, a quick scan of headlines in recent years provides a startling snapshot of the growing problem of elder abuse in our communities. A 2010 report found that up to three-quarters of all elder abuse in the territory was financial abuse, ranging from pressure to make purchases to cover family members' expenses to direct theft of cash or debit and credit cards. In 2011, we heard a call for improved data tracking that we might better understand the scope of the problem. In 2015, a new report confirmed that financial abuse and neglect continued as sources of elders' suffering in our territory.
Today, in 2017, we are halfway through the term of a five-year action plan created by the NWT Network to Prevent Abuse of Older Adults. This plan sought the GNWT's support and called on the government to engage Government Service Officers in championing elder abuse prevention, to collaborate with NGOs, and to implement a centralized reporting system for all cases of elder abuse. Still, the abuse persists.
[English translation not provided]
Mr. Speaker, Dene tradition tells us that elders are to be held in the highest regard. In the Canada of today, though many elders have lived through significant hardships, most of this was directly implemented by the state as in the residential school system or as part of colonialist policy on First Nations communities. These continue to impact younger generations: high rates of drug and alcohol addictions, as well as chronically scarce employment, create conditions in which abuse can take root.
As the government of today, we have a responsibility to address this historical negligence. I do not want to see the same headlines in ten years, Mr. Speaker. We know that the NWT population is aging and that the number of elders and seniors will continue to grow. They deserve to live in safety, confident in the support of their communities, and their government. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Sahtu.
