Ontario First Nation 'reeling' after suicide of 11-year-old girl

The chief of a northern Ontario First Nation devastated by the suicide of an 11-year-old girl says Canada's healthcare system is designed "to respond only when we hold a news conference about a crisis."

Alyssa Nanokeesic died by suicide in Kithchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (Big Trout Lake First Nation) on Friday. 

"Everyone in our community, especially her family, friends, classmates and school staff, is reeling from the tragic death of this young girl," said Chief James Cutfeet in a news released issued by the First Nation on Tuesday.

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In the statement, Cutfeet called on Health Minister Jane Philpott to do more to help First Nations deal with the suicide crisis that has seen more than 500 people die by suicide in northern Ontario First Nations in the last 30 years.

"The federal health system is designed to ensure that we remain sick and our people continue to die," Cutfeet said. "First Nations continue to suffer from the shrapnel of a foreign system imposed on us. 

"This is the legacy of colonialism."

First Nations in the region declared a health emergency nearly a year ago and called for immediate action from both the province and the federal government, but Cutfeet said little has been done. 

Youth suicides in remote First Nations came to public attention in the early 1990s, he added.

"The government has had ample time to build capacity in the last quarter century, well before suicide became an epidemic in First Nations communities," Cutfeet said.

During a conference call on Monday with Philpott and provincial Health Minister Eric Hoskins as well as First Nations governments in the region, Cutfeet said an agreement was reached to form a working group to address youth suicide.

More details about that working group are expected later this week.