(Ottawa) The Federal Justice Minister is considering the idea of the Independent Adviser on Anonymous Burials, which is calling for a law to criminalize the denial of residential schools to Aboriginal children.
Updated yesterday at 4:58 p.m.
Stephanie Taylor The Canadian Press
Indigenous leaders have also made this demand.
In her interim report submitted in June, Kimberly Murray, the Independent Extraordinary Interlocutor on Missing Children and Anonymous Graves and Burials Linked to Indian Residential Schools, calls for federal parliamentarians to consider “legal mechanisms” to sanction denial of the site of child abuse in residential schools Local people.
One way to achieve this would be to amend the Criminal Code to criminalize this denial, as Parliament did in 2022 to combat negationism, an ideology that consists in denying the existence of the Shoah she said in a recent interview.
“We can do the same for Indigenous people. Denying the events in the boarding schools or trivializing them must be considered a criminal offense for inciting hatred against indigenous peoples. »
Ms Murray, whose two-year term ends next June, noted that all stakeholders she has spoken to, including Indigenous leaders, want such a change to the Criminal Code to be adopted.
More than 150,000 Métis, Inuit and First Nations children were housed in boarding schools, most of which were run by the Catholic Church.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada investigated this system for six years. She has heard from thousands of victims who suffered physical, emotional, sexual and spiritual abuse and suffered from neglect and malnutrition.
Approximately 6,000 Indigenous children died in these facilities. Several experts assume that this toll could be higher. The National Center for Truth and Reconciliation has listed the names of more than 4,000 victims.
At the time of the preliminary report, David Lametti was Minister of Justice. He said he was open to all legislative options to address residential school denial, particularly by “banning” them.
Mr Lametti has since been replaced by Arif Virani.
Chantelle Aubertin, a spokeswoman for Mr. Virani, said he was considering “all options” suggested by Ms. Murray in her preliminary report. The minister looks forward to reading the final recommendations, she added.
“We cannot ignore the lasting impact of these residential schools on Indigenous people. This intergenerational trauma is still felt today. “The denial of these atrocities is painful for the victims, families and communities,” she said Friday.
According to Ms. Aubertin, Ms. Murray’s final recommendations will be critical to establishing a federal legal framework aimed at protecting the rights and preserving the dignity of children buried in unmarked graves associated with residential schools.
In the meantime, Ms. Murray says she hopes Winnipeg Center NDP MP Leah Gazan soon introduces her private member’s bill criminalizing residential school denial.
Ms. Gaza recently told reporters that the project “continues to be refined.” She later confirmed that she intended to introduce the law, without specifying a date.
“I really hope she does.” She has all my support to get there. All victims would support him in his efforts, emphasizes Ms. Murray. We’re holding our breath and hoping she makes it this month. »