A staff member filed a complaint at workplace misconduct against Duma in March. Dumas was suspended and the investigation was taken over by a third party law firm. A final report was considered by the executive council on Wednesday afternoon, the assembly said in a press release. The contents are kept confidential in order to respect the sensitive nature of the investigation, AMC said. A special meeting is to be held to remove Duma from office through a vote of no confidence in accordance with the assembly’s constitution. Until then, it remains unpaid, the press release said on Thursday. Shauna Fontaine, who told CBC News earlier this month that she was the woman who filed the complaint against Dumas, also accused him of sexual assault. Fontaine said she was motivated to reveal her identity publicly after more than 200 people signed an open letter calling for an independent investigation into Duma. Winnipeg police said earlier that a number of incidents had been created for a complaint, but could not confirm the parties involved. On Thursday, Fontaine said she was pleased that the workplace investigation had examined the evidence and upheld her complaint, although she generally had mixed feelings. “Sexual harassment, you know, this is just the tip of the iceberg,” he said. “With my revelation that I was sexually assaulted, they do not even mention it, perhaps because it is a criminal matter.” Shauna Fontaine identified herself earlier this month as the woman who filed a complaint against the Grand Leader of the Manitoba Assembly of Leaders, Arlen Dumas. (Walther Bernal / CBC) Fontaine said she lives with trauma and fear and has experienced other negative effects as a result of her experience. “When we get to work we need to feel safe, especially as a native working in an indigenous environment,” Fontaine said. “At the same time I feel great support and love from the members of the community who approached me after I made my name public. I felt that they believed in me.” Fontaine said she has not received any direct communication from AMC or an apology. “A lot of the accountability is remedied and my employer, while doing this research, now sees evidence that he was wrong and that I was telling the truth, that I did not lie,” he said. “An apology to me for my experience, from the leaders or from someone at AMC, would really mean a lot to me as a survivor.” Dumas has not been charged and none of the allegations have been tried in court. CBC News has asked Duma for comment several times since March, but has not received a response. Dumas became a major leader in 2017 and was re-elected in 2021. Prior to that, he was head of the Mathias Colomb Cree Nation in northwestern Manitoba for more than a decade. Lake Manitoba First Nation chief Cornell McLean was appointed to chair the assembly on a temporary basis in April. Eric Redhead, leader of the Shamattawa First Nation, took over when Dumas was initially fired, but resigned shortly afterwards, citing time constraints and commitments. The Assembly stated that it is committed to reflecting on and reviewing its policies and practices in the workplace to ensure that it promotes a culture of support and respect. The Manitoba Assembly of Leaders represents the 62 First Nations in the province, with more than 151,000 people.
