Abuse of Indigenous Peoples in Canadian Schools: Trudeau …

The Prime Minister of Canada, Justin trudeau, demanded this Friday that the Catholic Church and Pope Francis apologize publicly for the abuses suffered by many indigenous children in schools across his country, after a mass grave containing the remains of 215 students was discovered last week at Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia, western Canada.

“As a Catholic, I am deeply disappointed with the position of the Catholic Church,” Trudeau said and recalled that a few years ago he had personally asked the Pope during a trip to the Vatican from “s ‘apologize and beg forgiveness’ for what had happened in these types of institutions.

“I find it very difficult for the Catholic Church to continue to refuse to apologize and participate in this important process”, remarked the Prime Minister during a press conference.

Cabe resaltar que el gobierno de Canadá también posee sobre este tema debido a que fue el que estableció este sistema de residencias escolares between 1890 and 1996 y le otorgó su gestión a diferentes grupos religiosos con el objetivo de “integrar” a los pueblos del Country.

UN calls for investigation

A team of UN human rights specialists complained to Canada and the Vatican on Friday to initiate an investigation into the mass grave containing the remains of 215 Indigenous children at the Kamloops school residence.

Experts said in a statement that the investigation should include “forensic examinations of the remains and the identification and registration of missing children,” while it should cover not only the Kamloops center, but also ‘other former internships for indigenous peoples.

In turn, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (Acnudh) stressed on Thursday that the agency “could be relevant” when it comes to providing technical assistance in the task of investigating on school residences.

Despite this, Trudeau was reluctant to the proposal and said that “it is not the decision of international organizations to decide to come here, although they would be welcome.”

Tomb discovered at Kamloops Indian Residential School

Rosanne Casimir, leader of the indigenous community tk’emlúps te secwépemc, located in the province of British Columbia, demanded this Saturday at a press conference for a “public apology” from the Catholic Church for the role that she played against the mass grave discovered last week. “Not just for us, but for everyone,” said Casimir.

The Kamloops Institute, which for more than 80 years was part of the system of 130 school residences set up by the Canadian government, was managed by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. This religious group came to take care of almost half of these educational establishments for natives.

It is estimated that around 150,000 indigenous children have passed through these institutions and that at least 4,000 have died during their stay.

The rest of the school residences, where minors suffered systematic physical, psychological and sexual abuse, were run by other Christian groups or directly by Canadian government officials.

Hidden documents

Trudeau also accused the Catholic Church in Canada of not wanting to make available to the country’s indigenous population. registration of children forcibly interned in school residences, nor additional information on its operation.

However, several indigenous groups and experts have assured that the Canadian government is also responsible for these documents, because they are not public precisely because Ottawa has resorted to the courts to keep them under lock and key.

On the other hand, the prime minister said his administration was holding “conversations” with indigenous groups to determine the compensation that victims of school residences will receive.

Several people who survived the Sainte-Anne residential school demanded that Ottawa make the 12,300 documents detailing the physical and sexual abuse in this center, It was also managed by the Missionary Oblates between 1902 and 1976, although the Canadian government has been reluctant to comply with this request for years.