A protest camp set up in Memorial Park in Winnipeg on Aug. 21 has been growing each day.
Organizers said it began with just four people sleeping in tents in the park and by Monday night, more than 50 people were camping at the site.
Organizers said the gruesome discovery of the body of 15-year-old-murder victim Tina Fontaine in the Red River inspired them to take action.
Camp organizer Chelsea Cardinal said the group wants the federal government to hold an inquiry into the issue of missing and murdered indigenous women in Canada because nearly 1,200 have disappeared or been killed since 1980.
Acknowledging the fact Prime Minister Stephen Harper has so far rebuffed calls for a national inquiry, Cardinal said she would like to see Manitoba take the lead and launch a provincial inquiry to find out why nearly 50 per cent of female homicide victims in the province since 1980 have been indigenous women and girls.
Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger has previously supported calls for a national inquiry.
He issued a statement on Tuesday.
"It’s critical to have the federal government at the table working with provinces and territories. It would not be possible to address the systemic issues that persist in First Nations communities without federal participation," said Selinger.
