On Friday, the federal government, alongside the Manitoba government committed to spending $20 million each to search a landfill for the remains of 4 Indigenous women who were allegedly murdered.
The two governments agreed to split the cost. According to an Indigenous leader and members of the victim’s families, they disclosed the news during a conference after meeting with officials in their push for action.
Indigenous rights activists set up a blockade on the main road into the Brady Road landfill just outside of Winnipeg, Man., seen Wednesday July 12, 2023. David Lipnowski for The Globe and Mail
The bodies of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran are believed to have been dumped at the Prairie Green Landfill, north of Winnipeg. The partial remains of another victim Rebecca Contois, were found in a different landfill, while the body of a fourth unidentified woman, whom community members have named Mashkode Bizhiki’ikwe or Buffalo Woman has not been found.
During a news conference on Friday, Grand Chief Cathy Merrick of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs announced a commitment to search the landfills.
A lot of money has been spent to convince governments to do the right thing, and today, meeting with the federal government and provincial government, there was a commitment from them to search the landfills.
The provincial government also committed $500,000 to help the families during the trial of the man accused of killing three Indigenous women, while the federal government promised another $200,000 for the mental well-being of the families.
The search won’t start until after the trial of Jeremy Skibicki, who is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Harris, Myran and Contois and Buffalo Woman who’s remains have not been found. Skibicki’s jury trial is schedulded for 28 days starting on April 29.
The leader of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs hopes that funding will be provided by the government for any necessary search efforts.
We don’t want to go back again to ask that this work be complete. We want to ensure that we find the loved ones that have been there for 15 months now.
During Friday’s conference, Merrick referred to the completion of those reports as historic. She also mentioned that there have been searches conducted at other landfills where feasibility studies were not required to determine the worth or cost of the search.
Merrick said, the federal government granted $500,000 in funding to carry out the initial feasibility study. Following the feasibility study, which was funded by the federal government, they provided a further $740,000 to conduct additional research on how to safely conduct a search. The feasibility study found that it would be possible to conduct the search, but there could be a risk to workers due to the presence of toxic materials.
A search of the Manitoba landfill has originally been dismissed as officials said there was no guarantee of success and was too risky given asbestos and other toxic materal at the site.
Cambria Harris, the daughter of Morgan Harris shared that Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew promised a thorough search would be done.
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