A Northern Ontario MP was a key contributor on a federal report that deals with violence against young women and girls. Marc Serre of Nickel Belt provided input in the report which has 43 recommendations to help victims in this group. Some of the recommendations are prevention-based. Others deal with changing how laws are enforced when someone commits violence against a young woman or girl. It also recommends changes to reporting and support for this group.
What helped parliamentarians put the report together was the testimony of many victims. Serre says this showed courage on their part because they talked about the violence committed against them. “I want to offer my sincere gratitude to all the victims who showed incredible bravery by sharing their personal experiences of harassment, violence and trauma,” said Serre. The Liberal MP readily admits he can’t imagine how difficult this must have been for the victims. Serre says one area of the report deals with how law enforcement agencies respond to violence against young women and girls. He says the report recommends improving training for the responding agencies as well as response mechanisms. What it also recommends is that law enforcement professionals share their best practices with other jurisdictions. Serre hopes the federal government will adopt the recommendations.
