OTTAWA, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- Indigenous peoples in Canada continued to face a disproportionate risk of homicide with their overrepresentation increasing in 2024, Statistics Canada said Tuesday.
Indigenous peoples, comprising First Nations, Métis and Inuit, accounted for 30 percent of all homicide victims, despite making up just 5 percent of the country's total population, said the national statistical agency.
The trend is deeply rooted in the historical and present-day effects of colonization, including systemic discrimination, poverty and intergenerational trauma, the agency noted, adding that the proportion of Indigenous homicide victims increased by 4 percentage points from 2023.
With a homicide rate of 10.84 per 100,000 people in 2024, Indigenous peoples were victims of homicide at a rate over eight times higher than that of non-Indigenous Canadians, the agency said.
Among Indigenous homicide victims, increases were more pronounced for Indigenous women, with the number of homicides rising from 50 in 2023 to 71 in 2024, while homicides among Indigenous men increased from 144 to 152, it said.
Police services reported a total of 788 homicides across Canada in 2024, 8 fewer homicides than the previous year, and the national homicide rate decreased 4 percent in 2024, dropping from 1.99 to 1.91 homicides per 100,000 people, said Statistics Canada.
