IGLOOLIK, Nunavut — Uvagut TV is taking its fight for the right to rebroadcast public hearings into Baffinland Iron Mines Corp.’s proposed Mary River Mine expansion to the Nunavut Court of Justice.
The Inuktut-language TV channel announced today it has filed for a judicial review asking the Nunavut Court to find the Nunavut Impact Review Board’s (NIRB) refusal to grant Uvagut TV rebroadcasting rights for the public hearing to be “incorrect and unreasonable,” according to a press release.
Nunavut Independent Television Network (NITV), the Igloolik-based not-for-profit that owns and operates Uvagut TV, filed a legal motion with the NIRB in October to secure rebroadcasting rights for the final round of hearings, which the NIRB rejected.
This last round of hearings is being conducted by the NIRB in Iqaluit and Pond Inlet this week from Nov. 1-6.
Uvagut TV will broadcast this week’s hearings live, but has been fighting since April for the right to rebroadcast current and previous proceedings at alternate times “in order to increase accessibility for impacted Inuit,” the press release says.
“We are continuing to stand for Inuit rights to participate in the NIRB process and to be meaningfully informed about what is happening on Inuit lands,” says Lucy Tulugarjuk (pictured above), Uvagut TV’s managing director, in the release.
According to Uvagut TV’s press release, the NIRB “has claimed that a rebroadcast of the public hearings might ‘interfere, disrupt or distract’ from the Board’s objective in conducting proceedings.”
In its request for a judicial review, Uvagut TV’s owner NITV “contends that NIRB failed to consider the significant obstacles facing Inuit in remote Arctic communities to watch the hearings. NITV argues that NIRB has a responsibility to create enhanced conditions for participation and transparency,” the release says.
Uvagut TV’s press release points out “Internet is notoriously slow and costly in the Arctic, so the availability of Uvagut TV on cable and satellite dramatically increases access of Inuit to the proceedings.”
NITV also argues the NIRB “failed to respect and apply the principles of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement and consider the broader legal framework of Indigenous Rights and Human Rights Law, including the overarching principles of Honour of the Crown, the Duty to Consult, and Reconciliation.”
“We know the Judicial Review won’t be concluded in time to make a difference for these hearings,” says Tulugarjuk, “but we hope to set a precedent for future hearings especially since global warming and new technology are opening up the Arctic to more mining projects. These decisions have huge impacts. Our land is our life and Inuit have the right to be informed and to participate in decision making.”
Photo courtesy of Uvagut TV.
