Police Abuse of Indigenous Women in Saskatchewan and Failures to Protect Indigenous Women from Violence

Methodology, Page 1-2:

"This submission outlines Human Rights Watch's findings on police interactions with Indigenous women in Saskatchewan based on six weeks of fact-finding carried out from January to July 2016, in addition to interviews and correspondence with police authorities and complaint mechanisms from August 2016 to January 2017. The cases documented in this submission fall within Treaty Six Territory and the jurisdiction of the Saskatchewan RCMP "F" Division, as well as the municipal police services of Prince Albert, Regina, and Saskatoon.

The objective of the investigation is to provide an account of police treatment of Indigenous women in Saskatchewan that is grounded in their lived experiences. In August 2016, Human Rights Watch shared preliminary findings with all the police services implicated in this submission, as well as with the municipal police and RCMP complaint mechanisms - the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) and the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC), respectively. These letters informed authorities of our investigation in Saskatchewan, provided an overview of preliminary findings, and listed detailed questions and requests for data on policing policies and practices, accountability, and training. In October 2016, Human Rights Watch staff met with all municipal police chiefs implicated in this submission, the Commanding Officer of the RCMP "F" Division, members of the PCC, and provincial government officials. By January 2017, all police services and complaints mechanisms had submitted written responses to Human Rights Watch. In March 2017, Human Rights Watch met with a member of the CRCC.

Human Rights Watch researchers interviewed 64 Indigenous women and social service providers in Prince Albert, Regina, Saskatoon, and more rural communities in northern and central Saskatchewan to complete this investigation. All interviewees provided oral informed consent to participate. Interviews were conducted in private and individuals were assured that they could end the interview at any time or decline to answer any questions without consequence. The identity of these interviewees has been disguised with randomly-selected pseudonyms and in some cases certain other identifying information has been withheld to protect their privacy and safety.

A working group composed of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous community workers from frontline organizations, academics, and local leaders provided direction and guidance during the investigation." (1-2).

Access the Report here