Indigenous groups in Quebec demand resignation of CAQ MNA who dismissed alleged police abuse

Indigenous groups — including the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador and the Val-d'Or Native Friendship Centre — want a Coalition Avenir Québec MNA to resign after he suggested numerous Indigenous women lied about being sexually assaulted by police officers.

Ghislain Picard, the organization's chief, says the only "honourable" thing Pierre Dufour can do is resign as the Member of the National Assembly for Abitibi-Est after he made "disgraceful" comments about a Radio-Canada report alleging police abuse and about the conclusions of a public inquiry that followed the report.

"I think there are (members of the legislature) or ministers who have been asked to resign for less," Picard said in a phone interview on Monday.

Picard also called Dufour's comments "inexcusable" and said people need to be able to have a minimum of faith and trust in their elected officials.

"It's precisely because one is an elected official that they need to pay a bit more attention to what they say," he said.

Dufour spoke about homelessness at a city council meeting last week in Val d'Or, Que., about 500 kilometres northwest of Montreal.

After discussing the programs offered by the provincial government, Dufour told the council that a 2015 investigation by Radio-Canada that looked into physical and sexual assaults of Indigenous women in Val-d'Or by police, had contributed to the problem.

The show was "full of lies" and attacked "police officers that were very honest," Dufour said, before saying there may have been some crooked police officers in the community 30 years before.

"This report won awards, but it created a split between the police service and the community, which didn't protect the police officers afterward," he said.

A 'direct attack' on Indigenous women who came forward, says advocate 

Some Indigenous organizations in Quebec criticized Dufour's comments in a joint statement issued today and endorsed by organizations like Amnesty International.

The Val-d'Or Native Friendship Centre and its allies said Dufour's comments were unacceptable and that he had failed in his duty as an elected official. They said Dufour should have been more conscious of his influence in the community and should have realized that his comments could lead to even more discrimination against Indigenous people.

Édith Cloutier, executive director of the friendship centre, called the comments "unacceptable" and "disgraceful."

"It actually creates a socially tense climate that revives all of those old wounds that we are trying to heal," said Cloutier.

Cloutier says the MNA's comments were a "direct attack to the truth of Indigenous women" and could also discredit the testimony of the victims who came forward.

She said she spoke with one of the women who had been interviewed by Radio-Canada as part of its 2015 investigation.

"[She said] it's like living through post-traumatic syndrome," said Cloutier.

"When we have this type of situation that comes from an elected official that is supposed to represent everyone, someone that lives in the city, that has been working in the city all his life, well, you expect more."

The Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC) issued a statement Wednesday demanding Dufour's resignation, saying his comments "are a slap in the face to Indigenous people across Canada, especially to survivors of abuse."

"We cannot tolerate his harmful comments. Calling Indigenous women liars, who are survivors of abuse, while we are in the middle of a genocide of Indigenous women, girls and gender diverse peoples is egregious," said NWAC President Carol McBride.

"My heart goes out to anyone adversely impacted by his thoughtless words."

'Didn't think through all my words': Dufour

Dufour also criticized the conclusions of a public inquiry called following the broadcast. He said the inquiry, known as the Viens Commission, which launched partially in response to the Radio-Canada Enquête broadcast, said police were racist against Indigenous people because they ticketed more homeless people.

He said police officers didn't feel supported after the allegations and only did "the strict minimum" at their jobs, he said.

Val d'Or has been served by the Quebec provincial police since 2002.

Dufour later posted on Facebook that the comments were made while he was emotional and he misspoke.

"The situation in Val-d'Or is worrying. This is a sensitive and complex issue," he wrote in the post. 

"I expressed myself while emotional and didn't think through all my words."

He also wrote that he's working with the mayor and public security to ensure the safety of all citizens "without exception."

But for Picard, the comments ring hollow.

"For me, it's kind of a slap in the face to the efforts that we're trying to make to encourage a better understanding of the situation not just in Val d'Or but across Quebec," he said.

"Pierre Dufour's comments take us back to 2019, after the apologies [to the First Nations and the Inuit] pronounced by Premier [François] Legault, it just comes to taint these apologies."

On Wednesday, Ian Lafrenière, the province's minister responsible for relations with First Nations and Inuit, was asked if Dufour should resign. Although Lafrenière said he "completely disagreed" with Dufour's comments, he stood by his colleague.

"I understand the reaction and I understand that people could be upset about this. That's the reason I called up so many partners last week and I just confirmed our intention to still work together for the better," the minister said.