The commissioners of the problem-plagued inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women say they have been hampered by bureaucracy and need more than the two years the federal Liberal government allotted to complete their mission.

They also want Ottawa and the provinces to create a national police task force that is sensitive to Indigenous issues to reopen or review cases the commissioners believe were given short shrift.

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These two recommendations were part of an interim report the commission released on Wednesday. The report looks back at the 98 previous studies that touched upon the disproportionately large number of Indigenous women and girls in Canada who have become victims of violent crime. It says many of the recommendations of those studies went unheeded, and it makes repeated allegations of pervasive racism on the part of police forces, the media and others.

It also looks at ways in which government rules have impeded the inquiry's progress.

"We have faced several obstacles from a bureaucratic and procedural and policy perspective in getting our national inquiry up and running and mobilized all across Canada," Marion Buller, the chief commissioner, told a news conference.

They include, among other things, cross-jurisdictional issues between the federal government and the provinces, a refusal by Ottawa to give the inquiry information it gathered before the formal inquiry began, delays caused by federal procurement rules, technological barriers and burdensome federal contracting regimes. The commissioners recommend that the federal government take steps to provide "options and alternatives" that would allow them to get around those challenges.

But they also say they have been given an impossibly short deadline for finding the causes behind the complex problem of murdered and missing Indigenous women. More than 900 people are now registered to appear before them, and the list is growing.

"We need enough time to do the job properly," Ms. Buller told reporters. "The TRC, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission [which examined abuses at residential schools], had approximately five years. That was a problem that was historical. Our problem's that we're looking at are issues that are historical and ongoing."

The commissioners were not specific about how much more time and money they will need. Ms. Buller said that is still being determined and she will go to the government when she knows exactly what her request will be.

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Carolyn Bennett, the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Affairs, said she will strike a working group of all government departments to ensure that the commission gets the bureaucratic flexibility it needs.

As for the extra money and time, Dr. Bennett said she will be happy to have a conversation when a formal request is received. But, she said, "I think that families have said they don't want this to take forever."

The $54-million inquiry, which has already spent about a third of its budget, has been criticized for failing to communicate adequately with families of missing and murdered women, the public and the media.

The interim report, which was due on Wednesday, could not incorporate testimony from families of victims because hearings with the relatives did not begin in earnest until this fall – after the first draft was written.

Some of the families have said the entire process has been flawed and should be restarted.

The commissioners say they recognize that criticism and are working hard to resolve their operational issues. And, even though this is an interim report, they make 10 recommendations, including the call for a reduction in the bureaucratic impediments.

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They want the government to contact the families and survivors who participated in the prehearing process to tell them how to take part in the actual inquiry.

They want more money to help Indigenous organizations participate in it, and financing for commemorative events and initiatives, and programs to support those affected emotionally by the commission's work.

And they want a police task force to look into cases as the inquiry passes them along.

Ms. Buller said families have consistently said they want to know what happened to their lost loved ones, why investigations were stopped and why leads were not followed.

The commissioners said they have already heard evidence to suggest incidents of improper or inadequate policing, and that a properly trained task force with members who understand Indigenous languages and culture is a necessity. The commissioners need a police task force, Ms. Buller said, "to help survivors and families get the answers that they so desperately want and need to have."