Valcourt to meet young First Nations members after 1,600-km trek to Ottawa

OTTAWA – Aboriginal Affairs Minister Bernard Valcourt says he will meet some of the young people who just completed a marathon winter trek to Ottawa from the shores of Hudson Bay.

Valcourt says he will meet the walkers on Parliament Hill.

The march began when David Kawapit Jr., a 17-year-old from the isolated community of Whapmagoostui in northern Quebec, decided to walk 1,600 kilometres to Ottawa in support of the Idle No More movement.

Since he and a half-dozen supporters departed in mid-January on snowshoes and towing their supplies, their ranks have slowly swelled to several hundred people.

They arrived about midday at Victoria Island, an outcrop which lies in the Ottawa River just north of Parliament Hill and has become a recognized focus for First Nations.

Valcourt says he wants to meet the marchers and hear what they have to say.

“I’m going to be listening,” he said. “This is about informing myself about their concerns.”