Residential schools in Canada: Catholic Church apologizes for abuse
A memorial to the child victims of the former Indian Residential School in Kamloops, British Columbia on July 15, 2021. AP - DARRYL DYCK
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
The Catholic bishops of Canada offered, Friday, September 24, a formal and "
unequivocal
"
apology
to the indigenous peoples after the discovery, in recent months, of more than a thousand graves near former residential schools.
The apology comes ahead of the first National Truth and Reconciliation Day on September 30.
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The scandal has shaken Canada since the end of May and a first macabre discovery. In British Columbia, in the far west of the country, under the site of a former residential school,
the remains of at least 215 children
have been found. They were members of the Aboriginal community and had come together in these residential schools created to assimilate these peoples into mainstream society. Since this first discovery, other graves in other residential schools have been found throughout the summer. In total, there are over a thousand graves of indigenous children.
In a statement released Friday, the Catholic bishops of Canada make their mea culpa.
“
We, the Catholic Bishops of Canada, express our deep remorse and offer an unequivocal apology
,” they indicate.
They also recognized “
the suffering experienced in the residential schools
” and the “
serious abuses that were committed by certain members
” of the Catholic community in these residential schools.
► To read also
: Native residential schools in Canada, a belated awakening
“
Many religious communities and Catholic dioceses have served in this system which has led to the suppression of indigenous languages, culture and spirituality, without respecting the rich history, traditions and wisdom of indigenous peoples.
", Continue the Catholic bishops of Canada, who admit a"
historical and continuous trauma
".
In early June, Canadian Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau
expressed his desire "
for the Catholic Church to recognize its responsibility, its share of guilt
."
According to the head of government, this was one of the “
healing stages
” of this dark page in Canadian history.
He also deplored the silence of Pope Francis on this subject.
Between the late 19th century and the 1990s, some 150,000 Amerindian, Inuit and Métis children were torn from their families and forcibly enrolled in 139 residential schools.
With therefore, in some cases, terrible physical and sexual abuse.
September 30 will be the first National Truth and Reconciliation Day, honoring missing children and residential school survivors.
(With AFP)
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