March 4, 2010

MCFADYEN TO SELINGER: CALL PUBLIC INQUIRY INTO DEATH OF PHOENIX SINCLAIR

Time to follow through on promised public inquiry

In light of the Court of Appeal’s unanimous ruling to uphold the first-degree murder convictions against Phoenix Sinclair’s mother and boyfriend, Opposition Leader Hugh McFadyen said today it is time to move toward concluding this dark chapter.

“We owe it to Phoenix Sinclair and her loved ones to get real answers about the child welfare system in Manitoba and how it failed to protect this little girl,” said McFadyen. “With the criminal case effectively resolved, there is no reason why this long-promised inquiry can’t occur.”

Phoenix Sinclair was killed in June of 2005 -- just three months after Child and Family Services returned her to her birth mother and closed the case. Officials had lost track of Phoenix until her death was uncovered nine months later.

In reaction to swift public outrage regarding the mismanagement of the child welfare system in October 2006, the NDP committed to a full public inquiry. The inquiry has since been postponed, pending the conclusion of criminal proceedings.  Family Services Minister Gord Mackintosh said in December 2008 the terms of an inquiry were drafted and a shortlist of potential candidates for commissioner had been established.

“The family deserves closure to this horrific case, and the public has a right to know how a child can disappear for nine months without being noticed or detected by child welfare authorities,” said McFadyen.

In spite of several reviews being conducted since Sinclair’s death, there have been no assurances that the system has improved. The NDP has not fulfilled a commitment to obtain digital photographs of each child in the system, and caseloads for front-line social workers are at an all-time high.

“It is incumbent upon us to ensure history never repeats itself and that not one more child in Manitoba endures the horrors that Phoenix Sinclair did,” said McFadyen.