Inuit Tapariit Kanatami has declined an invitation to attend a meeting between national Indigenous leaders and premiers of Canada’s provinces and territories being held in Huntsville, Ont., this week, saying non-rights-holding groups will also be attending.

The three-day meeting starts July 21 and includes all 13 provincial and territorial premiers and “follows a pattern of the Council of the Federation to include organisations that represent fraudulent collectives that falsely claim to represent Inuit,” said an ITK news release issued Thursday.

“We continue to encourage Canada’s premiers to respect Inuit democratic governance, our constitutional rights and our right to self-determination.”

The news release does not specify any groups and ITK spokesperson Patricia D’Souza declined to elaborate.

Instead, she said: “Our position on fraudulent collectives is well-documented.”

ITK president Natan Obed was not available for an interview.

This is not the first time ITK, which is the national organisation representing Inuit in Canada, has skipped a meeting of the Council of Federation, which is the name of the organisation of the heads of Canada’s provincial and territorial governments.

In 2023, ITK president Natan Obed declined the invitation to the meeting in Winnipeg and along with Cassidy Caron, president of the Métis National Council, criticised the federation for allowing Congress of Aboriginal Peoples and Native Women’s Association of Canada to attend.

Those two organisations are once again on the list of invitees for this week’s meeting.

“ITK generally welcomes any opportunity to share Inuit priorities with territorial and provincial leaders, but any such meeting should be done with clear objectives and be respectful of Inuit governance,” Obed said at the time.

The National Chief of the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples Brendan Moore called ITK decision “unfortunate,” in an email to Nunatsiaq News on Friday.

“We respect their decision and wish them well in their continued efforts,” said Moore.

Representatives of the Native Women’s Association of Canada declined to comment.

Over the years, ITK has opposed participation in public or government engagement events with groups it considers illegitimate.

In 2024, the Northern Lights Business and Cultural Showcase was cancelled because of ITK’s concerns about the involvement of the NunatuKavut Community Council, a collective representing approximately 6,000 people in northern Labrador who claim to be Inuit.

Source: Nunatsiaq News