Statement by Minister Wilson-Raybould on National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women in Canada

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Dec. 6, 2016) - Department of Justice Canada

The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, has issued the following statement:

"On this day 27 years ago, 14 young female engineering students were murdered at l'École Polytechnique de Montréal. Many of us can remember exactly where we were when we heard the horrible news that these young students had been killed and that they were targeted because they were women. As a way of commemorating these women, in 1991, December 6 was established as the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women in Canada. It has become a day to not only commemorate the tragic loss of these 14 lives, but to bring necessary national attention to the need to end violence against all women and girls.

"Today, we remember the lives that were tragically lost that day, those whom we have lost since, and those who continue to endure violence in their day to day lives. In 2016, Indigenous women and girls face the highest levels of violence of any women in this country. This is unacceptable. Almost a year ago, our Government began the process of designing an Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls; today is our opportunity as Canadians to reflect on the importance of this national inquiry and how gender-based violence affects all of us.

"While much has changed since that day in 1989, there is still much to be done. It is our collective responsibility as Canadians to continue pushing ahead, and I encourage everyone to join the conversation online using the hashtag #ActionsMatter to talk about how we can eliminate gender-based violence in all of our communities."