Thunder Bay's MMIWG community hearing delayed 3 months

The national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls has delayed the date it is scheduled to stop in Thunder Bay, Ont., by three months.

Two other communities Saskatoon and RankinInlet, Nunavut have also had their scheduled hearings pushed back.

The inquiry is tasked with examining the systemic causes of violence directed against Indigenous women and girls across Canada and to find a way to memorialize the missing and murdered victims, estimated to be in the thousands.

• Carolyn Bennett promises Canada will not let down families of MMIW

• Families of missing, murdered Indigenous women split over how inquiry should proceed

Thunder Bay was slated to be the first stop for the inquiry in the fall, with community hearings in the northwestern Ontario city set to start September 10.

The schedule on the national inquiry's website was changed to show that a community visit is now planned for September 11, with the actual hearings starting during the week of December 4.

Saskatoon saw its hearing moved from the week of October 23 to the week of November 20. Hearings in RankinInlet have been pushed back a week from the originally-announced December 4 start date.

The inquiry has come under fire from a number of families and grassroots organizations, with many but not all withdrawing support. A number of inquiry staff, and one of the commissioners, have also left over the past several weeks.

• Tanya Kappo resigns from MMIWG national inquiry staff

• Q & A: Marilyn Poitras on why she resigned as MMIWG commissioner and her hopes for change