The Nipissing Violence Against Women Coordinating Committee is accusing North Bay council members of "refusing to acknowledge intimate partner violence (IPV) as a municipal concern."
Other area municipalities have declared IPV an epidemic, but not North Bay council, says the group.
That includes Mattawa, Mattawan, West Nipissing, Chisholm and Bonfield.
"Obstructions were encountered in both East Ferris and North Bay," says a news release. "While East Ferris has since declared IPV an epidemic VAWCC delegates were disappointed to hear from one councillor that denied any cases of IPV in East Ferris."
Despite more than 40 municipalities across the province declaring IPV an epidemic, no delegation was allowed in front of North Bay City council as IPV was not considered a municipal issue, claims the group.
“It is disheartening to not have the support of our largest municipality” states Executive Director of Victim Services of Nipissing, Kathleen Jodouin.
The request comes in response to the 86 recommendations from the Renfrew County inquest last year into the deaths of Carol Culleton, (strangulation) and Anastasia Kuzyk, and Nathalie Warmerdam who both died from shotgun wounds to their chest and neck. The deaths were declared homicides.
The jury's first recommendation was that the Ontario government "formally declare intimate partner violence as an epidemic."
It also encouraged "that IPV be integrated into every municipality’s community safety and well-being plan" and recommended, "Study the best approach for permitting disclosure of information about a perpetrator’s history of IPV and the potential risk to new and future partners who request such information, with a view to developing and implementing legislation."
The jury also wants to "Set up an IPV Registry for repeat IPV offenders similar to the Sex Offender Information Registry Act registry."
The local group has been actively petitioning the provincial and municipal governments to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic.
"The VAWCC has presented to the North Bay Police Services Board and is set to present to the Nipissing District Social Services Administration Board in November. The VAWCC has also sent a letter to the North Bay Parry Sound Public Health Unit requesting their acknowledgement of IPV being an epidemic in accordance with the World Health Organization and Public Health Ontario," says the release.
The VAWCC has asked municipalities to pass the motion and include IPV in their community safety and well-being plan and to notify the Health Unit and Provincial government of their declaration. The Federal government and many other municipalities such as Toronto and Ottawa have declared IPV an epidemic. The provincial government has refused to do so says the local group.
“Members of our own community have lost loved ones as the result of intimate partner violence," adds Jodouin. "More victims/survivors share their experiences of severe violence including strangulation and use of weapons. It is disheartening that our community isn’t fully committed to addressing IPV and rather is passing its responsibility down the line.”
The release says every six days in Canada a woman is killed by her current or former intimate partner. In 2022, 52 females lost their lives in Ontario.
