Premier John Horgan has issued the following statement in support of the Moose Hide Campaign’s Provincial Gathering and Day of Fasting on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020:

“Over half of the women in our province have experienced physical or sexual violence at some point in their lives after age 16. In Canada, Indigenous women are three times more likely than non-Indigenous women to experience domestic violence and three times more likely than non-Indigenous women to be killed by someone they know.

“There have been too many women and girls who have been hurt, murdered or gone missing, or do not feel safe in their own homes. The Moose Hide Campaign aims to change that and today, we recognize the hard work they’ve done over the past nine years to help end the violence against women and children.

“The Moose Hide Campaign’s Provincial Gathering and Day of Fasting is an opportunity for people throughout the province to bring about positive change in our families and communities while encouraging men to speak up, speak out and take action against gender-based violence.

“It’s my hope that by proclaiming Feb. 24, 2020, Moose Hide Campaign Day and by wearing the moose hide pin, we will spark millions of conversations in every corner of the province and across the country about how we can help end gender-based violence in our communities.

“Our government is committed to developing a path forward to end violence against Indigenous women, girls, gender-diverse and two-spirit people that will be directly informed by survivors, family members and communities. We will work with partners and communities to take actions and develop a path forward to ending violence together.

“The conversations we have today will help shape a safer, more secure future for tomorrow.”

For a French translation, visit: http://news.gov.bc.ca/files/Moosehide-Campaign-2020_French.pdf