Frequently asked questions about Nunavut
Editor's note: Information about
Nunavut on the Internet often disappears as quickly as it's produced,
and information on sites maintained by Nunavut organizations is
often inaccurate or outdated. We've tried to post the best links
available, but we can't guarantee their currency or their reliability.
A FAQ about Nunatsiaq News is also
available.
Nunavut is a new Canadian
territory that came into being on April 1, 1999, through the division of the Northwest
Territories.
Eighty-two per cent of Nunavut's people are Inuit. Since the
majority of voters in Nunavut are Inuit, Inuit in Nunavut control
their own legislative assembly through a form of self-government
under which non-Inuit residents are also guaranteed the right
to participate in elections for the Nunavut legislative assembly
and for Nunavut's 26 municipal governments.
The creation of the Nunavut territory is the result of two agreements:
the Nunavut political accord,
and the Nunavut land claims
agreement.
A Nunavut-wide Inuit organization called Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (also known
by the commonly-used acronym "NTI") is responsible for
administering the money and land that Nunavut Inuit now own under
their land claim agreement, for ensuring that governments and
others carry out their legal obligations under the agreement,
and for promoting Inuit language and culture. NTI is not, however,
responsible for creating the Government of Nunavut.
The Nunavut political accord laid the foundation for the Nunavut
Act, the federal law that serves as Nunavut's constitution.
You can read the April 1 souvenir edition of Nunatsiaq
News to learn more about how Nunavut came to be.
Here is a map of Nunavut's
19 electoral districts and a list of Nunavut's 19
MLAs.
This map [150k] shows the boundary
between Nunavut and the remainder of the Northwest Territories.
This map [50k] shows Nunavut in
relation to the rest of Canada.
In 1994, Ottawa appointed another organization, the Nunavut Implementation
Commission (also known by the commonly-used acronym "NIC")
, to provide advice on the creation of Nunavut. On May 25 1995,
the NIC released "Footprints in New Snow " — a
detailed plan for the design of Nunavut's government. In 1996,
the NIC produced "Footprints 2."
On April 15, 1997, the federal government appointed Jack Anawak
to serve as Interim Commissioner of Nunavut. Since then the Office
of the Interim Commissioner (also known by the commonly-used acronym
"OIC") has been responsible for carrying out the NIC's
design work.
On October 1, 1998, Nunavut leaders approved the OIC's plan for creating a decentralized Nunavut government according
to principles set out in the NIC's Footprints reports.
On April 1, 1999, Nunavut's elected government assumed responsiblity for
governing the new territory.
| When was Nunavut's
first election? |
All eligible Nunavut voters — Inuit and non-Inuit —
went to the polls
February 15 to elect Nunavut's first legislative assembly. Nunavut's new legislators
chose a speaker, a premier and a cabinet from among themselves.
This was done according to conve ntions
developed by the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories.
One of their first tasks was to approve Nunavut's first budget.
| How many people live
in Nunavut? |
You can find information about Nunavut's population, unemployment
rate and so at a site maintained by the Nunavut
Bureau of Statistics.
| What does the new flag and coat-of-arms look like? |
You can see and read about Nunavut's new flag and coat of arms
at www.nunavut.com/misc/english/flag.html
| Where can I find
more information? |
Below you'll find a list of some of the most useful Nunavut and
Arctic links on the Internet.
|