Labrador and Aboriginal Affairs
December 15, 2008

The following statement was issued by the Honourable Patty Pottle, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs. It was also read in the House of Assembly:

Aboriginal Women Participate in Suicide Intervention Training

I rise in this house to inform my honourable colleagues of the work Aboriginal women are doing to tackle the problem of suicide in their communities. Aboriginal women from across the island portion of the province participated in a suicide intervention workshop that took place in Stephenville November 29 and 30.

The suicide intervention training workshop was the final in a series that was part of the Breaking Barriers � Building Strong Minds initiative. Developed by the Newfoundland Aboriginal Women�s Network (NAWN), an organization, which represents Aboriginal women on the island part of the province, some 53 women from 18 communities across the island took part in one or more of the workshops.

I am pleased to report to you that 36 women completed all the training, including the suicide prevention training. Many of the women attending these sessions now have the tools to recognize the risk factors for suicide and as well, when called upon, they are able to intervene.

Suicide, particularly among young people, is a serious issue for all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, but has proven to be especially troubling in Aboriginal communities, where suicide rates for those communities have been traditionally higher than the provincial average. The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, through the Department of Labrador and Aboriginal Affairs, was proud to provide financial support for this important initiative. In Budget 2008, $100,000 was supplied to provide grants to Aboriginal governments and organizations to address suicide and detrimental lifestyle issues among Aboriginal young people throughout our province.

This suicide intervention training is providing Aboriginal women with the skills to recognize the warning signs of suicide and to take the necessary steps to help prevent a tragedy.

Aboriginal women have always played a vital leadership role and continue to demonstrate a strong commitment to improve the circumstances and wellbeing of their communities. I ask my honourable colleagues of this house to applaud the Newfoundland Aboriginal Women�s Network, the organizers of these workshops, and most importantly, the Aboriginal women who have the courage to take their newly-acquired skills back to their communities.

2008 12 15                                                          2:55 p.m.


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