The Ombudsman de Montréal says she is encouraged by the actions taken by the City to tackle the problem of Aboriginal homelessness in the Milton-Parc district, but is still waiting to see the concrete results.
“We are showing lucid and cautious optimism,” commented the Ombudsman, Nadine Mailloux, in an interview on Monday shortly before the tabling of her report for the year 2022.
In May 2022, Me Mailloux had unveiled an investigation in which she described as a “humanitarian crisis” the situation in the Milton-Parc sector, a gathering place for homeless Aboriginals and Inuit.
Entitled Don’t look awaythis report made several observations about the distress experienced by the homeless population that frequents this sector of the Plateau-Mont-Royal, and the problems of cohabitation with the citizens who live there.
The ombudsman deplored the blatant lack of consultation and collaboration between the various organizations and authorities working with homeless Aboriginal people in Montreal, who often “pass the buck”.
It made five recommendations, including the establishment of a “stable and safe emergency accommodation resource that meets the needs of Inuit people”.
A year later, the shelter of Projets Artisanat du Québec (PAQ2), open at all times, is “on the verge of being made permanent”, rejoices Mr.e Mailloux.
Prevention
She also notes that the municipal services are trying to act in prevention, to prevent the Inuit and Aboriginals, who often arrive in Montreal to receive care, from ending up in the Milton-Parc sector. “As soon as people set foot in Montreal, you have to immediately cut off the trajectory that leads to a destructive spiral,” she notes.
“We see that the City is on the move and that it has received the signal about the urgency of the situation. »
The ombudsman calls on stakeholders to show creativity in the search for solutions. “We must move away at all costs from slogans, from Excel sheets that only serve to tick boxes rather than truly concretize the final objectives. It must be verified that the measures taken directly benefit the people concerned and not the performance reports of the authorities,” she wrote in the introduction to her 2022 report.
During the city council session, which began Monday afternoon, the leader of the opposition in city hall, Aref Salem, said he recently met with residents of the area, who still complain about the difficult living with the homeless. According to him, the Plante administration is not doing enough to solve the problem, in particular because a multifunctional center has still not been created.
Mayor Valérie Plante replied to him, emphasizing in particular that the establishment of resources for the homeless is done with the Government of Quebec, and that the ombudsman of Montreal had called on the Québec Ombudsman in the file of Milton Park.
Unsubstantiated allegations of discrimination
In his report on the actions taken last year, the ombudsman points out that he handled 2,308 cases and 1,922 complaints. It launched 219 investigations and made 10 recommendations.
It has looked at subjects as diverse as access to alleys, the lack of on-street parking, sanitation in the apartments of the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal, lighting in parks, noise pollution and changes in the direction of the streets.
The ombudsman has also received a few complaints of discrimination. In one case, a citizen wearing the veil and the burkini to go to a municipal swimming pool alleged that she was the victim of racism because municipal employees had asked her to respect certain regulations of the place. Disputes with the pool attendants escalated until cross-complaints were filed with the police and the citizen was expelled from the pool. The ombudsman, however, concluded that this was not a case of racism or discrimination.