4K Women Missing, Murdered in Canada

The number of missing and murdered indigenous women in Canada may total 4,000—more than three times the number compiled in 2014, officials said. Patricia Hajdu, minister for the status of women, said research from the Native Women’s Association of Canada puts the figure of violent atrocities committed on the group of women over the past three decades much higher than the initially reported 1,200—a number compiled by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Activists have on their own collected at least 4,232 names of missing or murdered indigenous women. Victims’ families have long called for an official inquiry, but former Prime Minister Stephen Harper never yielded to their requests. Newly elected Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in December that he would make it a priority, adding that he hopes for a “total renewal” of Canada’s relationship with its aboriginal population. “The victims deserve justice, their families an opportunity to heal and to be heard,” Trudeau has said. “We must work together to put an end to this ongoing tragedy.”