QUEBEC CITY — Faced with criticism, Quebec Premier Francois Legault has flown to the rescue of his Minister responsible for Indigenous Affairs Sylvie D'Amours, and ensures that she is taking concrete action on the Viens report.
The report, tabled a year ago, underlines in particular that Indigenous people in Quebec are afraid to seek treatment in hospitals.
The report recommended legislation to provide "cultural security," a recommendation that "has been sleeping on the minister's desk for a year," according to Parti Quebecois (PQ) MNA from Joliette, Veronique Hivon.
Mother-of-seven Joyce Echaquan was a victim of disparaging and degrading remarks shortly before her death Monday at the Joliette Hospital.
- READ MORE: Que. nurse fired, coroner to investigate after dying Indigenous woman taunted in hospital
"Everything is there... in the Viens report," said Hivon on Thursday at a news briefing at the National Assembly. "It is inconceivable! It should have been a priority for action."
Two motions were passed in Parliament on Thursday, including one urging the government to pass a law ensuring that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is (UNDRIP) taken into account.
-- this report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 1, 2020.
