The Ombudsman de Montréal comments on the municipal administration's response and continues her watch
Follow-up to the investigation into Indigenous homelessness in the Milton-Parc neighbourhood of Montréal
- Overall, the Ombudsman de Montréal (OdM) positively welcomes the Status Report prepared by the municipal administration following her recommendations in this matter.
- The OdM notes that real efforts have been made in terms of increasing internal collaboration among partners: new initiatives in this regard are promising.
- Of the five recommendations, two are on track (flexibility in planning regulations and citizen participation) and one is fully implemented (funding for non-profit organizations).
- With respect to the two recommendations dealing, respectively, with the critical areas of homeless shelter and prevention, much work remains to be done: the OdM is looking for concrete results and is following up quarterly until full completion.
MONTRÉAL, Dec. 14, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ - The Ombudsman de Montréal (OdM) has issued comments on the Status Report she received from the municipal administration in November 2022 following her report Don't look the other way, made public on May 4, regarding Indigenous homelessness in the Milton-Parc neighbourhood. In general, the OdM positively welcomes the Status Report, prepared by the municipal administration in response to her recommendations.
The OdM's recommendations were not only aimed at responding to demands made by citizens that initially prompted her intervention. They also sought to close gaps, revealed by the investigation, that exist in the support and essential services being offered to First Nations and Inuit members experiencing homelessness in Montréal. The Ombudsman recently consulted major players in the Indigenous community to gauge the progress of efforts that have been made since the release of her report in May 2022.
The City of Montréal is creating two new decision-making committees following the OdM's request that all relevant stakeholders and various cross-sectors work together more effectively and be jointly accountable for measurable progress.
Me Nadine Mailloux, Ombudsman de Montréal, says she hopes that these committees will be catalysts for implementing the recommendations that they are overseeing.
"The City of Montréal's response demonstrates a genuine and strong commitment to carry out the recommendations outlined in the report," notes Me Mailloux. "We understand that the implementation of our recommendations is a work in progress that cannot be achieved overnight. That being said, some actions are still too slow to materialize."
Unfortunately, contrary to Me Mailloux's expectations, the establishment of a stable and safe emergency shelter resource for the Inuit community, at the heart of the housing recommendation, was not achieved in 2022. Indeed, the renewal of PAQ2 (Second shelter of Projets Autochtones du Québec) after March 2023 is still not guaranteed, which in itself is worrying.
In terms of prevention, the establishment of the Intergovernmental Strategic Committee on Inuit Homelessness, in which the Inuit community is participating through Makivik Corporation, is a step forward. However, the actions outlined in the Status Report appear vague and abstract.
Also on the subject of prevention, the OdM recommended, among other things, that the City of Montréal position itself "as an active partner in developing services and a community gathering and cultural dissemination point like a multidisciplinary centre by and for the Inuit community in Montréal."
The OdM is calling on the City to clearly lay out its contribution to the establishment of this Inuit multidisciplinary centre, something that has been strongly demanded and expected by stakeholders in the Indigenous community. This could be achieved, for example, by defining a more tangible and noteworthy contribution than what is currently on the table.
Me Mailloux acknowledges that the health and social services network has broader powers than the City when it comes to homelessness resources and programs and also plays a central role in their design and implementation. But the City of Montréal nevertheless has an opportunity to be a forerunner and a model in this area. Me Mailloux invites the City to assume this leadership position.
"We believe that the City can be a vector of change and push its partners into action, whether it be to launch or establish a housing resource or a multi-service community and cultural centre. This is not a luxury, it is essential to improve the quality of life of all citizens and, more specifically, those belonging to the Inuit community," says Me Mailloux.
The OdM says that she will verify the deliverables stemming from her recommendations during the course of their implementation until the final completion of each of them.
"It is our office's duty to monitor this until completion," concludes Me Mailloux. "This is for the benefit of residents who have placed their trust in our global, pragmatic and humane approach to resolving the cohabitation difficulties that they were experiencing at the time of the report and are still experiencing today."
It is also in the public interest that the City of Montréal stays the course on these recommendations by supporting the Inuit on its territory and finally giving them the chance, and the hope, of embracing their identity with full dignity. All of this goes hand in hand with a harmonious and safe living environment in the heart of Montréal. The City must persevere in this field of action which is its own: the urban environment.
The OdM intervenes on the basis of complaints or on its own initiative to ensure that citizens' civic rights are respected and that their files are treated with respect, justice, fairness and goodwill by all municipal stakeholders. The OdM also provides the only available recourse to ensure compliance with the Montréal Charter of Rights and Responsibilities. Each intervention of the OdM is an opportunity to promote a culture of transparency and respect, quality of services and fair and equitable decision-making processes.
Having recourse to the OdM is free of charge and easily accessible. The Don't Look the Other Way report and its French version, as well as all other OdM reports, including the annual reports, are available on the website.
SOURCE OMBUDSMAN DE MONTREAL
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