TORONTO — Canadian officials said Tuesday they have reached $31.5 billion in agreements in principle with Indigenous groups to compensate First Nations children who were unnecessarily taken from their homes and put into the child welfare system, a major developmentin a dispute that has long been a sticking point in Ottawa’s efforts to advance reconciliation with Indigenous people.
Under the agreements, half of the money would go to children and families harmed by an underfunded and discriminatory child welfare system on First Nations reserves and in the Yukon, while the rest would be earmarked over five years for long-term reforms, the Indigenous services ministry said in a statement.
Final details are to be settled between the government and Indigenous advocates over the coming months. A final agreement will be submitted to a federal court and human rights tribunal for approval.https://6a3b3c2f6d6e52ba16e702fef094a7bb.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
The dispute, which includes a human rights complaint and several class-action lawsuits, has spanned nearly 15 years and several federal governments. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who came to power in 2015 vowing to put reconciliation with Indigenous people at the core of his agenda, has drawn criticism for his handling of it.
“This is the largest settlement in Canadian history, but no amount of money can reverse the harms experienced by First Nations children,” Marc Miller, Canada’s Crown-Indigenous relations minister, told reporters at a news conference in Ottawa. “Historic injustices require historic reparations.”
Cindy Woodhouse, the Manitoba regional chief for the Assembly of First Nations, said the agreements were “a long time coming.”
“First Nations from across Canada have had to work very hard for this day to provide redress for monumental wrongs against First Nations children,” she told reporters. “Wrongs fueled by an inherently biased system.”
