PAGC Grand Chief Ron Michel receives one of many hugs after announcing he wouldn’t seek re-election. Photo by Chelsea Laskowski
The recent suicides of three girls from Lac La Ronge is weighing heavily on Prince Albert Grand Council’s Annual Assembly.
Each leader’s opening remarks touched on the losses.
“It really hurts to lose young people,” said Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation Chief Peter Beatty.
He’s urging leadership to take action on the preventative problem.
PAGC Vice-Chief Joseph Tsannie spoke about the struggles young people are having.
“We need to rise up, we need to come together and tackle the issue. Our young people are calling, we know that. Our communities are grieving continuously. It’s never ending. We lose our loved ones, especially our children. That’s something that we can never get over. We have to stand together,” he said.
Tsannie said drugs, alcohol and the residential school era have left scars in PAGC’s communities.
He said the tribal council is trying to implement a program to address suicide, and a group called youth action council is available for interested communities to access.
Both Tsannie and Grand Chief Ron Michel commended the Lac La Ronge Indian Band for its action to support the community in the past few weeks.
Michel has another important matter to address: his retirement.
He says after about 40 years leadership, first with Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation and for the past 12 years with PAGC, he’s decided not to run for re-election next year.
Michel is keeping a sense of humour, saying with a laugh that he would go back to fishing and trapping “but I was no good at that anyways so I can’t go back. So I’ll go back and stay with my wife that I left for 35 years.”
A long line of the hundreds of people in attendance lined up to hug Grand Chief Michel after his speech.
The annual meeting continued Monday afternoon with a review of PAGC financials, procedures, and PAGC’s annual report.
A harvesting protocol resolution and a special recognition ceremony for women in leadership were also on the docket.
The assembly continues on Tuesday with vice-chief elections. Brian Hardlotte is the incumbent.
