Definition of ethnocide: destruction of the cultural identity of an ethnic group.
The caribou is a species sacred to the Innu and many other First Nations. It is this species that has kept us alive on our land for millennia. The decline of the woodland caribou has a huge impact on our culture and identity. To protect the species and promote its recovery, the Innu First Nation of Pessamit has invested substantial efforts, in particular sacrificing no longer to take the species at the risk of losing important elements of our knowledge, our know-how, our language and our spirituality associated with the species.
However, although the woodland caribou has been included in the Québec register of endangered species since 2005, no effective measure has been applied to date by the government.
Is it because of a lack of knowledge about the species or about the intervention measures necessary for its recovery? Absolutely not. However, this is what the CAQ government is pleading for in order to save time. Recall that the government had launched in December 2019 the order of a meta-analysis on the species which had then been widely criticized by scientists who believe that the knowledge is already amply sufficient to act. We now learn that the government would postpone the tabling of its Strategy to 2024, which was initially due to be made public in 2019, then in 2021.
For the government, acting now would impact the possibility of logging, which the forestry industry is fiercely opposed to.
Thus, the government’s strategy is simple: to save time by constantly postponing the filing of its protection plan so that the decline of the species continues. Then all that remains is to put the few remaining individuals in enclosures. This strategy has worked very well with the populations of Val-d’Or, Charlevoix and Gaspésie.
The next victim is the Pipmuacan caribou population north of Forestville, which particularly hinders logging companies. Already, the survival of the fawns is insufficient there to ensure the persistence of this population.
The disappearance of this population would cause a considerable decline in the continuous range of the species in Quebec, leaving the field open to extract as much wood as possible.
Since the establishment of the very first discussion forum on the Government Strategy for Caribou, we have been present. From the Partners’ Table to the regional operational groups, then through all possible communication channels, we have invested ourselves body and soul in order to raise our concerns and bring concrete, rigorous and realistic solutions to the government, such as our project. Pipmuakan protected area, without ever receiving adequate listening.
To date, the government has shown no real desire to protect either the caribou or our culture. By its inaction, the government directly infringes on our ancestral rights as well as our cultural identity. Such destruction of the cultural identity of an ethnic group results in ethnocide, or even “cultural genocide”.
Would Prime Minister Legault accept that Canada endanger Quebec culture to satisfy the rest of Canada for economic purposes? So why would it be acceptable to our people for our cultural identity to be in danger of disappearing? We will not remain passive in the face of the decline of the woodland caribou. We will fight to our last breath for our cultural survival.
What do you think? Express your opinion