A/HRC/54/31/Add.2 C. Missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls 36. The Native Women’s Association of Canada found that at least 4,000 Indigenous women and girls had been murdered or disappeared in recent decades,17 and the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls has characterized the situation as an ongoing genocide. 18 According to Statistics Canada, almost two thirds of Indigenous women have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. 19 The homicide rate for Indigenous women in 2020 was more than five times higher than that of non-Indigenous women,20 and a recent study found that 50 per cent of women and girls who were trafficked in Canada were Indigenous.21 As the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, stated following her visit to Canada, Indigenous women are disadvantaged within their societies and at the national level. They face marginalization, exclusion and poverty because of institutional, systemic, multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination that have not been addressed adequately by the State. 22 37. Numerous United Nations treaty monitoring bodies23 and special procedure mandate holders24 have commented on this epidemic, including with regard to the low number of cases reported to police, the insufficiency of shelters and other protective measures, the failure to effectively investigate, prosecute and convict perpetrators and the lack of data collection.25 38. Indigenous Peoples are calling for the full implementation of the 231 Calls for Justice issued by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. While some initiatives are under way, many of the Calls for Justice have not been addressed.26 Despite the findings of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (published in 1996), the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (published in 2015), and the National Inquiry (published in 2019), the number of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls continues to increase, and domestic and other violence against Indigenous women and girls increased during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. 27 The National Inquiry found that violence increased with the presence of work camps providing temporary housing for employees of extraction projects located near Indigenous lands. 28 These fears have been expressed by Indigenous Peoples affected by the Coastal GasLink and Trans Mountain pipelines. Indigenous Peoples are also worried about the situation of missing and murdered Indigenous men and boys and are calling on the Government of Canada to conduct a separate inquiry. 39. Late in 2020, the Federal Government announced Can$ 724.1 million for a violence prevention strategy to expand access to culturally relevant supports for Indigenous women, children and two-spirited, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and gender-diverse persons, including construction of new shelters and transition housing on and off reserve. The following year, the Government and various partners released a national action plan aimed at ending violence against members of those groups. In that same year, the Government published the Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People and announced the investment of Can$ 2.2 billion over five years and Can$ 160.9 million per year ongoing to end violence against Indigenous women, girls and 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 8 A/HRC/41/42/Add.1, para. 74 “A legal analysis of genocide: supplementary report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls” (2019). Canada, Statistics Canada, “Violent victimization and perceptions of safety: experiences of First Nations, Métis and Inuit women in Canada” (2022). Ibid. A/HRC/41/42/Add.1, para. 74. A/HRC/41/42/Add.1, para. 75. CCPR/C/CAN/CO/6, paras. 8 and 9; and CEDAW/C/OP.8/CAN/1. See communication CAN 1/2011, available at https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=1459; and A/HRC/41/42/Add.1, paras. 75 and 76. See also United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, art. 22 (2). See communication CAN 4/2021. See A/75/185. National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, Reclaiming Power and Place. GE.23-13374