Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he will seek a formal apology from Pope Francis for the role the Roman Catholic Church played in the abuse of Canadian indigenous children in the church-run residential school.
Trudeau’s comment came following his meeting with five national aboriginal organizations to discuss the report released by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).
The TRC released its report detailing the physical and sexual abuses suffered by indigenous children in Canadian government boarding schools, where an estimated 3,200 children died from tuberculosis, malnutrition and other diseases resulting from poor living conditions.
The commission’s report includes the “94 calls to action” urging all government agencies to “work together to change policies and programs in a concerted effort to repair the harm caused by residential schools and move forward with reconciliation, Kicker Daily News reported.”
A papal apology was one of the 94 calls to action recommended by the commission. It read: “We call upon the Pope to issue an apology to survivors, their families, and communities for the Roman Catholic Church’s role in the spiritual, cultural, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children in Catholic-run residential schools.”
The Canadian Prime Minister, who is committed to implement the 94 recommendations issued by the TRC, said he could not guarantee that the Pope would issue an apology in behalf of the Roman Catholic Church, but vowed to raise the issue directly with the pontiff, given the opportunity.
An article published by Manila Bulletin on December 17, 2015 said that starting in 1874, 150,000 Indian, Inuit and Metis children were forcibly enrolled in boarding schools in an effort to integrate them to society. The schools were run by Christian Churches including the Catholic Church in behalf on the federal government.
The article said the children were abused by school headmasters and teachers, who stripped them of their cultural identities. 3,500 students never returned home. Most of the residential schools were shut down in the 1970s, while the last one was closed in 1996.