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Introduction Tirigusuusiit, Piqujait and Maligait: Inuit Perspectives on Traditional Law Inuit concepts and traditional law Maligait, piqujait and tirigusuusiit refer to what had to be followed, done or not done in Inuit culture. Nowadays, these words are often used as equivalents to modern Western notions of law. Through these terms Western notions of law become more accessible to Inuit. In the Legal Glossary, authored by Desmond Brice-Bennet, Michèle Therrien (1997: p250) states: "New terminology is interesting because it uses 'old' materials to express today's experiences and concepts." In the process of translation, Western concepts as well as Inuit notions are changed. The Western concepts acquire new connotations and meanings associated with the old words that are not always sufficiently acknowledged by Westerners. The old concepts become imbued with new meanings attached to Western concepts of law. The use of these translations tends to obscure the fact that maligait, piqujait and tirigusuusiit on one side, and notions such as law on the other, derive from completely different cultural perspectives. In her instructive appendix to the Legal Glossary, Michèle Therrien explains some of the key notions in more detail. She is well aware of the risks involved in translating these terms into modern concepts. Her explanations are illuminating, as she carefully expounds the meaning and significance of these terms. Thus piqujaq is translated as 'Inuit customary law.' This translation is useful in the context of the modern law system, but obviously 'customary law' is a Western concept that did not exist in Inuit society before the introduction of the Canadian system of law. The back translation of piqujaq is 'which is asked to be done (by somebody)' and its implicit meaning is 'which is asked by an authorized person to be done'. Therrien (1997: p253) explains that piqujaq 'is used as a general concept pertaining to the obligation to respect rules imposed within Inuit society. These rules are orally transmitted and not codified. Only authorized persons have the right to make rules. Rules most often taught by parents concern offering help to the family or the elders, and respect due to animals'. In this explanation we come much closer to the meaning of piqujaq than in the translation 'customary law' but even here it is difficult to avoid such terms as 'rules' and 'authorized persons' that suggest a much more formalized structure than actually existed in Inuit society. Elders had much authority and were highly respected, but not in any formal way. The term 'rule' suggests a general principle, which is always applied whereas the term piqujaq emphasized the importance of the relation involved: people will comply with what those they respect ask from them. To understand how the principle worked we have to understand the social fabric of Inuit society. With respect to the term maligaq we are faced with similar problems. Nowadays, it is often translated as 'Canadian law'. But maligaq is a relational term. According to the glossary malik means 'to follow a person, an animal, an idea, an object. To travel with somebody not being the leader e. g. not owning the sled' (Therrien, 1997: p255). Therrien, (1997: p256) explains that maligaq means, 'which is followed in an inherent manner' and comments, "Using maligaq or maliksaq instead of piqujaq for customary law would mean that the focus is put on the result of a request (the obligation to obey) rather than the request itself (the wish to obey)."
It is doubtful whether the notion of law is helpful in understanding beliefs and practices covered by these concepts. An extensive literature exists on the question, to what extent Inuit had law. In 1954, Adamson Hoebel devoted the first chapter of The Law of Primitive Man to the Inuit and concluded that only 'rudimentary law, ' existed among them. Van den Steenhoven did fieldwork among the Inuit of the Keewatin district. He gave a systematic account of many cases of conflict and finally concluded (1962: p1130) that the existence of some form of law among the Keewatin Inuit could not be demonstrated. Van den Steenhoven was well aware that Inuit were perfectly capable of managing their own affairs and in the last chapter of his book he discusses the problem of the maintenance of peace. Here he examines some of the principles which served that purpose in Inuit communities. In many respects the consequences of Van den Steenhoven's pioneer study were never fully realized as many scholars continued to search for some sort of legal system in Inuit societies which could be studied as an equivalent to the Western system of law (Rouland, 1979). Other researchers opted for an alternative strategy by studying the 'maintenance of the peace' (Van den Steenhoven, 1962) or 'social control' (Rasing, 1994). These categories are useful in applying Western theoretical perspectives to Inuit society, but they do not help us to understand the Inuit perspectives. Inuit leaders and elders did not see themselves as agents of law and order or social control. In this book the focus is on Inuit perspectives. Therefore we will not discuss the merits of Western notions such as traditional law or social control, but explore Inuit notions instead. The main emphasis is then on tirigusuusiit, piqujait and maligait. The notion of traditional law provides a first indication of the subject of this book, but the Inuit perspective encompasses much more. It focuses on the way tirigusuusiit, piqujaq and maligaq are embedded in social and cosmic relationships. From this perspective it can be understood why Susan Enuaraq (1995) who participated in the course, begins her paper on 'Traditional Justice among the Inuit' with an account of the famous creation myth of the woman who did not want to get a husband and then married a dog. For Susan, a discussion of traditional law begins with a discussion of the origin of the cosmic order of the world. This woman became the ancestress of different peoples as well as the mother of sea mammals, illustrating that the relations between human beings on one side, and between human beings and game on the other, cannot be separated from each other. Looking for a social order that only aims for social control and does not involve the relationship to game and the spirits, would make no sense to Inuit before the introduction of Christianity. In the interviews the elders repeatedly emphasized that transgressions were not so much sanctioned by the community as by spiritual 'agencies' such as the weather or the game. Stingy people would catch less game. Sins would evoke bad weather. Again, a distinction between social and ritual rules hardly applies to Inuit culture. A murderer would have a short life. In case of transgressions, the elders would try to make the culprit see the foolishness of his behaviour. The introduction of Canadian law into the North was a gradual process that is by no means complete. Even before the 1920's, Canadian law intervened in occasions of famous murder cases such as the killings of Rouvi�re and Le Roux, and Robert Janes. Even though Canadian Law is now a generally accepted institution in the North, its perception by Inuit and qallunaat is still quite different. Images of Justice by Dorothy Eber (1997) aptly illustrates the problems of applying Western principles of law to Inuit culture, in her description of a few famous cases in the fifties and sixties. Nowadays, Inuit elders feel that their own perceptions of law deserve more attention. Looking back, Aupilaarjuk contrasts the written law of the qallunaat with the unwritten laws of Inuit. The introduction of Canadian law into the North was a gradual process that is by no means complete. Even before the 1920's, Canadian law intervened in occasions of famous murder cases such as the killings of Rouvi�re and Le Roux, and Robert Janes. Even though Canadian Law is now a generally accepted institution in the North, its perception by Inuit and qallunaat is still quite different. Images of Justice by Dorothy Eber (1997) aptly illustrates the problems of applying Western principles of law to Inuit culture, in her description of a few famous cases in the fifties and sixties. Nowadays, Inuit elders feel that their own perceptions of law deserve more attention. Looking back, Aupilaarjuk contrasts the written law of the qallunaat with the unwritten laws of Inuit. It was only because my mother and father went through many hardships that we survived. They only survived because they followed the maligait of the Inuit. If they hadn�t followed the maligait our lives would have been more difficult. We are told today that Inuit never had laws or maligait. Why? They say, "Because they are not written on paper." When I think of paper, I think you can tear it up, and the laws are gone. The maligait of the Inuit are not on paper. They are inside people�s heads and they will not disappear or be torn to pieces. Even if a person dies the maligait will not disappear. It is part of a person. It�s what makes a person strong. But not only were these laws unwritten, they were of a different nature. Breaking those laws was not so much sanctioned by the community as by the wildlife. Aupilaarjuk continues: When Inuit used to ataaq- , go down to the coast from inland, or when they would look for game, they would have to do this according to the maligait. There was a piqujaq that the sewing of all caribou clothing had to be completed before we migrated from inland to the sea; only repairs could be done once we reached the sea. Why did they do this? They did not want to break the piqujaq because they did not want to go through hardships while they were out seal hunting. Aupilaarjuk frequently compared maligait and tirigusuusiit, emphasizing that breaking the law and transgressing tirigusuusiit has similar consequences. Tirigusuusiit were not only concerned with social relationships, but also with wildlife, and the weather itself. The elders frequently stressed that if people did not respect wildlife or the weather they would have to pay the price. The weather and wildlife would turn against them and disaster would ensue. Lucassie Nutaraaluk stated: I believe we are disciplined for our actions through the weather. Ottawa and Montreal are perfect examples [the interviews were conducted right after the ice storm of '97]. I believe a lot of people just see that as an act of nature or a scientifically explainable act, but to my mind it is a way of being disciplined for what we have done. Anytime there is too much wrong- doing being committed we get disciplined in various ways such as earthquakes. Even here in Iqaluit if we start fighting too much there could be an earthquake or really bad weather could come upon us.
The moral order implied respect for game. Imaruittuq said: There is a story about a man who shot a caribou in the leg disabling it. The wounded caribou was still alive when he cut off its nose because he wanted to eat it. As a result of this, later in his life his nose became decayed and it fell off. This is what happens if you mistreat wildlife. The Inuit elders were not concerned with theory, but with practice. They related traditional values to modern issues. Modern Western law has had a strong impact on Inuit society and Inuit elders are not too impressed by its efficacy. They feel that the many social problems in modern Inuit society should be dealt with within the community itself. The law should only be invoked for serious offences. Inuit communities should rely much more on their own traditions of counselling. Akisu stated: If offenders were not made to feel embarrassed, and they understood what was said to them, there would be more of a chance to improve a person's behaviour. The way it is now, it seems that people are left on their own. If we started to follow the way of our ancestors again, people would be helped and this would be very positive. Here in our community, when our young people started attending school, our elders were not included in their education. We were left behind. But now we want to take part in what is happening. That is why we should keep on talking about how things used to be done. Because it is not written, people think it does not exist. This makes us feel like we are caught in the middle. As our land Nunavut is different from the land down South, in the same way the culture of the two people is different from each other. Not everything that is taught in school is useful to our situation up here. You who have been educated in the school system, are probably unable to make use of the Inuit piusiq . If you began to understand this, then it could be put to use. Although we speak different dialects and are from different regions, for example, Aaju has come from Greenland, when we are speaking amongst each other, often the only differences are the terms that we use. My fellow elders do not speak the same dialect that I do. My dialect is uqqurmiutitut, but I understand what they are saying. They are saying the same things about the piqujait and piusiq of our ancestors. If these were understood by the younger generation, they could come alive again.
Emile Imaruittuq stated, "We should have used traditional practices when dealing with crimes." The elders were greatly concerned with contemporary problems, notably among the adolescents. They felt the need for a new synthesis of Inuit and Western culture. The elders were not so much interested in punishment as in the correction and integration of an individual into society. Each human being was considered to be potentially valuable to the society. But when a person proved unable or unwilling to reconsider his position and accept the guidance of elders, camp leaders or kinsmen, he could be dealt with very harshly. He could be killed and often close kinsmen who somehow seemed to have accepted the responsibility for getting rid of the unmanageable relative conducted the killing. There was not the intent to do justice to this person. The reason was the wish to protect the survival of the community and to prevent (further) killings. The elders were very frank and prepared to discuss controversial issues such as shamanism, murder and tirigusuusiit in detail. They gave much information on how Inuit managed their society in the past and they also conveyed the perspective behind it to a younger generation that now faces the task of integrating these insights into the Inuit society of the future. The courses The first course In addition to developing the skills required for the academic study of law and acquiring a basic knowledge of contract law and criminal law, it was evident to all involved in the Legal Studies Program that the traditional Inuit methods of dealing with rule-violations and violators should be an integral part of the program. The students would benefit most if they not only learned about the 'traditional' ways of maintaining order in Inuit communities but also acquired and developed (elementary) skills for interviewing Inuit elders. This would enable them to discover more about the Inuit techniques of preserving order in their communities. In view of these objectives, the students not only received instruction on the specific skills of interviewing but could also 'practice' these during the 'traditional knowledge' course, as Inuit elders from various Nunavut communities had accepted an invitation to participate in the program. The results of these interviews are presented in the first part of this book. The Inuit elders who participated in the course were residents of various communities representing distinct regions in the Canadian Eastern Arctic, both genders and the two prevailing religious denominations. Mariano Aupilaarjuk and his wife Marie Tulimaaq from Rankin Inlet represented the Keewatin District (on the West Coast of Hudson Bay), although they are Natsilingmiut, originally from the Pelly Bay area in the Central Canadian Arctic. Aupilaarjuk, the son of a well- known shaman, and his wife Tulimaaq have been a married couple for many years. They spent the greater part of their lives hunting, and taking care of each other and their children. At present they reside in Rankin Inlet, respected as knowledgeable elders and consulted by many younger residents. Akisu Joamie spent his entire life in southeastern parts of Baffin Island and is a long- term resident of Iqaluit. Emile Imaruittuq, from Iglulik, was the fourth elder and represented the North Baffin region. For the students and staff of the program it was a special and gratifying experience to work with and learn from these elders. Given the presence of four elders, a program was set up that would allow students to gain maximum benefit from the course. Apart from the opening and closing sessions in which all the elders and students participated, the actual interviews were conducted in simultaneous sessions that involved one or two elders with a smaller number of students. It was thought this would provide better opportunities for each of the students to practice their interviewing skills. Working in smaller groups could also be more comfortable for the elders and for some of the less assertive students. In addition, working in groups would enable the elders to provide more information. To counter the problem that not all students would receive the same information, they were given the opportunity to attend another session that focused on the same topic and were encouraged to share their information with each other. All interviews were audio taped facilitating exchange of information. The interview-sessions greatly benefitted from the presence and the excellent assistance of Aaju Peter. She solved many practical problems, from attending to the needs of the elders during and after the interviews to taking care of the audio tapes and equipment. Her assistance in and outside classes was valuable and much appreciated. It must be added that all interview sessions were eased by, and clearly profited from, the simultaneous translations of the skilled interpreters, Adamie Pitseolak and Deborah Qitsualik. The options for the program were discussed during a meeting between the instructor/supervisor and the elders. All agreed to have simultaneous sessions dealing with four distinct themes. Each of these themes would be the subject of at least two other sessions so as to allow each student to acquire information on these subjects. The domain of rules pertaining to legal matters would be discussed in sessions dealing with four distinguishable categories:
The data were subsequently organized into four chapters which compose Part One of this book. The first of these deals with the data pertaining to tirigusuusiit and maligait. The second discusses respect for wildlife. The third chapter deals with dealing with wrong-doers and the fourth chapter deals with advice for women. Prior to the interviews, the students were instructed on the nature, skills and problems of interviewing people in general and Inuit elders in particular. They were also encouraged to prepare their interviews and were assigned to make a brief summary of each interview session. These summaries were to serve as a basis for the preparation of the next interview and could facilitate the preparations of their final assignment. This consisted of writing a five-page essay, in which they were to reflect on their findings by addressing the question of how Inuit ways of problem solving relate to the present- day with respect to the Canadian legal system and possibilities provided by the advent of Nunavut. The second course Obviously, it was not possible in a three- week course to deal with the whole complex of ideas, principles, and customs of Inuit society. Therefore the course focused on specific aspects of society and tried to assess how transgressions in such a domain were dealt with. The problem was discussed with the students who selected four topics which seemed of particular interest to them:
The elders in the course were Lucassie Nutaraaluk from Iqaluit (originally from Kinngait), and Emile Imaruittuq from Iglulik. The students were Susan Enuaraq, Myna Ishulutaq, Nancy Kisa, Bernice Kootoo, Aaju Peter, Jeannie Shaimayuk, Julia Shaimayuk (second year students), Vera Arnatsiaq, Matthew Boki, Kim Kangok and Johnny Kopak (first year students). The second year students had already participated in the 1996 oral tradition course supervised by Alexina Kublu, Frédéric Laugrand and Jarich Oosten. They had experience in interviewing elders and were familiar with the approach of the instructors. For the new students it was their first opportunity to participate in a course focusing on interviewing elders and they benefitted from the experience of the second year students. We followed the same method as in the 1996 oral tradition course. An outline of the method and the philosophy behind it can be found in Interviewing Inuit Elders: Introduction (Iqaluit, 1999). Interviews were conducted in a relaxed atmosphere and an informal setting. Interviews were prepared and conducted by the students. The first sessions focused on the life stories of the elders. After that, the discussions focused on the four themes that were chosen by the students. This approach enabled the students to connect their questions directly to the personal experience of the elders.
The students were divided into four teams, each team focusing on a different theme. A first year student was included in each of the four teams. Each team conducted interviews. The members of the teams took turns in the interviews. On the basis of the experience of the 1996 course, it was decided that transcription of the interviews from audio tapes into syllabics should be part of the course. Each team transcribed the interviews it had conducted with the elders. That was quite a job and it was usually not possible to complete the transcription in the hours reserved for the course. Much work had to be done at home. As most of the students had families to care for this was not an easy task. But the teams managed to complete the transcriptions in time. All students also wrote a brief essay on what they had learned during the course. During the interviews the atmosphere was relaxed. Tables were removed from the classroom. The elders were sitting on a couch, the students were sitting on the floor before them. The instructors remained in the background and refrained from interfering in the interviews. They discussed questions and answers with the students before and after the interviews. We thank the staff of the residence for supporting the course and providing the elders with snacks, tea and coffee so they would be comfortable during their interviews. We wish to thank Archie Angnakak for providing the simultaneous interpretation. Format of the book We wish to thank Alexina Kublu and Susan Sammons for the translation of these transcripts and Sally Mikijuk for typing them. We would also like to thank Roberta Roberts from Nortext for her help and support. Thanks are also due to Marja Korhonen for paraphrasing the introduction to the book and the introduction to each chapter. Thanks also to Julia Shaimaijuk for typing the revisions to the Inuktitut manuscript. Many thanks also to Noel McDermott for proofreading the English version of this manuscript and to Mick Mallon for proofing the Inuktitut. We would also like to acknowledge the support of Inuktitut magazine which granted us permission to include the story of Ailaq and Papik written by Elizabeth Nutarakittuq and first published in Inuktitut #69, 1990. We are also grateful to the Nunavut Planning Commission for granting us permission to use their map, which has been slightly altered for use in this book. The courses proved quite strenuous for all involved. A lot of work was done in three weeks, but it was also quite enjoyable. There was time for the wonderful songs of Emile Imaruittuq and games of checkers with Lucassie Nutaraaluk. We were impressed by the sincerity and wisdom of the elders and the skills of the students. For the instructors it was a privilege to be part of the process. The skill and competence shown by the students gives confidence in their capacity to contribute significantly to the task of shaping Inuit society and culture in the wider context of Nunavut. We wish to thank the elders, the students, the translators, the organizers and all others who contributed to the success of these courses. Frédéric Laugrand
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