In the nations of Inuit that formed, government systems acted differently compared to Canada today.
- The Inuit had no real “Law”. They say that laws are written on paper, and paper can be torn and ripped. They prefer using their words. (and there is probably not a lot of paper to be had in the arctic)
- Though there was no specific “Law(s)”, Inuit still had a set way of doing things, passed down by generations, that had to be followed:
- “Maligait” refers to what had to be followed
- “Piqujait” refers to what had to be done
- “Tirigusuusit” refers to what has to be avoided
- A basic rule that implied to a lot of Inuit life was “no one may, without reason, avoid the struggle for food and clothing”. This shows that they were a very community-type people, and everyone was expected to help.
- If someone went against either of the 3 statements, the Angakkuq (also known as the Shaman) may have had to intervene