MMIWG Inquiry Analysis: Violence Against Indigenous Women and Girls

This case study provides an analysis of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG), examining its scope, powers, and limitations. It identifies the importance of trauma-informed and decolonizing approaches, as well as the “family first” approach in understanding the experiences of survivors. The study highlights common themes from earlier reports, emphasizing historical, social, and legal root causes of violence. It expands the definition of violence to include emotional and psychological harm and addresses the disproportionate impact of colonial violence on Indigenous women, girls, and LGBTQ2S people, detailing the forms of violence they experience. The study further explains the concepts of colonialism and colonization, concluding with the devastating statistic of over 1200 aboriginal women missing or murdered, with some studies suggesting the number may be as high as 5000. Desklib offers a platform for students to access this and other solved assignments.

a. Identify the scope of the National Inquiry. What are the Inquiry’s powers
and limitations?
The scope of the Enquiry
An inquiry should assimilate leadership from the side of indigenous and regions.
The inquiry should consider economic, cultural, political and social causes apart
from the circumstantial evidence associated with the inquiry. An inquiry should
consider unequal and unjust treatment of the aboriginal people and others.
The powers of the Enquiry
The commission can fix the flow of the events, like an adversarial hearing, cross-
examinations, open hearings, and confiscated hearings. It can ensure the interests
of victims, their families and others against the legal procedures and other events.
It can also examine current laws and policies under various surveys and
recommend amendments to the concerning bodies (Glowaki, 2017).
Limitations of the Enquiry
Commission has the power to fix a period for inquiry-based upon the
circumstances in the case. Apart from it the regional and provincial branches of
an inquiry can limit the rights of a commission and force them to work under the
permissible boundary allocated by the law (Buller, 2018).
b. What is the trauma-informed approach?

A trauma-informed approach is an approach where factors like safety,
transparency. Proper expert support, transparency, choice, gender issue, cultural
and historical issue have to be taken in an account prior to the implementation of
an action plan.
c. What is a “decolonizing approach”?
Under the decolonizing approach, certain political and social processes can be
taken into an account while settling down the narratives, history and the
prejudices attached with an aboriginal or indigenous community (Coletta, 2018).
d. Describe the “family first” approach.
The family first approach allows an investigator to listen to the traumatic
experience of the survivors and the individuals facing the agony of a crime which
is undetected or justice is not dispensed.
e. What do earlier reports, reviewed by the inquiry have in common?
Historical, social and legal root causes behind the agony of the survivors. Lack
in the policing system as a deterrence to the crime and supporting factor
during the investigation were mentioned in the previous reports as well
(Dhillo, 2015).
f. Provide an expanded definition of violence.
The basic definition of the power refers to the use of physical force with an
intention to threaten or injure oneself or the other individual, group, a
community that can bring in severe results like pain, injury and death etc. The
expanded definition also refers to actions or speech that can bring disharmony,

emotional unrest, and feeling of insult in an individual, group or community is
also violence.
g. How many Indigenous women and girls are missing or murdered?
The report released by the Native Women's Association in Canada identifies
more than 1200 aboriginal women that are either missing or murdered
(Coletta, 2018). This report is inconclusive because the study was stopped in
midway. However, certain other studies suggest that this number may be as
high as 5000.
h. According to the interim MMIWG report, what are colonialism and
colonization?
Colonialism is an ideology that advocates the process of colonization. The
process of Colonization has its root in the invasion of the Europeans.
i. How does colonial violence impact Indigenous women, girls, and
LGBTQ2S people differently?
Indigenous women suffered from intimate partner violence and family
violence mainly. In the case of LGBTQ2S, both these forms of the violence
were present along with homophobic acts, transphobic acts of violence.
Bibliography
Buller, M. (2018). The MMIWG inquiry cannot be allowed to fail. The Globe and Mail ,
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-mmiwg-inquiry-cannot-be-allowed-
to-fail/.
Coletta, A. (2018). Canada’s inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women gets a failing
grade. The Washington Post ,

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2018/05/12/a-new-report-gives-
canadas-inquiry-into-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women-a-failing-grade/?
utm_term=.80366780a4c4.
Dhillo, J. (2015). Violence against indigenous women is woven into Canada’s history. The Guardian ,
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/dec/14/violence-indigenous-woman-
canada-history-inquiry-racism.
Glowaki, L. (2017). MMIWG inquiry now reviewing conduct of police officers. CBC,
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/mmiwg-police-investigations-1.4224318.