The discovery of anonymous graves on the sites of former Indian residential schools had turned Canada upside down. The government on Friday, October 29, asked the country’s federal appeals court to overturn a landmark ruling awarding billions of dollars in compensation to Indigenous children removed from their homes, saying it preferred a negotiated deal instead.
In 2019, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) ordered Ottawa to pay compensation of C $ 40,000 to each of the thousands of First Nations children removed from parental care and placed in the child care system. child protection after 2006. The decision was validated during the last month.
Canadian authorities said Friday that the compensation was much needed, but said they preferred to settle the details in a negotiated agreement.
“We will compensate those aggrieved by child and family services policies to right the wrongs of the past and to lay the foundations for a more just and stronger future for First Nations children, their families and their communities ”Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller posted on Twitter. “The focus will be on reaching an agreement out of court and at the bargaining table. “
Disappointment for the main stakeholders
Several representatives of First Nations children expressed their disappointment.
But, according to Ottawa, two groups, including the Assembly of First Nations, have agreed to talk to the authorities to try to reach an agreement by the end of December.
These twists and turns occur in the midst of introspection of the country as to the harm caused to the natives. Since May, more than a thousand anonymous graves have been found on the sites of former Indian residential schools, shedding light on a dark chapter in Canadian history and its policy of forced assimilation of First Nations.