Pope has not apologized for Canadian residential school deaths Children’s Rights News

Pope Francis expresses “pain” after finding the remains of 215 indigenous students found, but he does not offer the forgiveness that those who have survived have long sought.

Pope Francis has expressed his grief over the discovery of remains in Canada 215 native children the church was forced to go to a boarding school, but did not apologize to those who survived the system, a commission of inquiry said it said it was a “cultural genocide.”

Pope Francis said in a statement to the public at noon on Sunday that “news of the horrific discovery of the remains of 215 children is continuing with grief.”

“I join the bishops of Canada and the entire Catholic Church of Canada in expressing my closeness to the people of Canada who have been traumatized by the shocking news,” he said.

More than 150,000 First Nation, Métis and Inuit children were forced to attend 130 residential schools in Canada from the 1870s to the 1990s in a campaign to integrate into Canadian society.

Physical, mental and sexual abuse was rampant in schools and students were beaten for speaking their indigenous languages, among other rights violations.

Radar that went into the ground was used confirm the remains Kamloops, British Columbia, among children at Kamloops Indian Residential School at the end of last month.

The school was the largest such facility in Canada, with 500 students attending the highest enrollment point and run by the Catholic Church between 1890 and 1969. Later, the government took over until the school closed in 1978.

Trudeau on Friday exhausted for the church’s “silence” and “repeal,” and apologized and for the church’s outstanding role in the residential school system.

“We are still seeing resistance from the church, perhaps from the Canadian church,” said Trudeau, who also made a formal request in 2017 to apologize to the pope.

Rosanne Casimir, head of Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation in British Columbia – after decades of work found in the Kamloops residential school – said her country wants public forgiveness from the Catholic Church.

The Oblate Missionary of Mary Immaculate, who ran nearly half of the Canadian-based schools, has yet to publish a document on the Kamloops school, he said.

Among the many recommendations made by the government in 2015 by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was the Pope’s pardon.

“Serious Crimes”

On Sunday, the Pope called on Canada’s political and religious leaders to work together to “clarify this issue,” while advocating a path to “reconciliation and healing”.

“These difficult times represent a strong call to move away from the colonial model and current ideological colonization and to distance ourselves from dialogue, mutual respect, and recognition of the cultural rights and values ​​of all Canadian daughters and sons,” he said. he said.

The United Church, Presbyterians and Anglicans have apologized for the roles they have been abused in schools, as well as the government of Canada, which has offered compensation.

A United Nations rights expert said in a statement on Friday He called on Canada and the Catholic Church for quick and in-depth investigations into the affair.

Experts also said criminal investigations should be launched to report suspicious deaths and torture and allegations of sexual violence against children in schools.

UN experts added that surviving perpetrators and concealers should be tried and punished, saying it was “unthinkable” for Canada and the Vatican to ignore such “heinous crimes”.