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    • Independent investigation needed to identify unmarked mass graves: Sinclair

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    As the federal government commits its support to Indigenous communities to uncover burial sites of children of Canada’s residential school system, the former chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) says an independent investigation is needed.

    Speaking before the Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee Thursday, Murray Sinclair said a search must be conducted outside the purview of a government department.

    “We have a huge task still remaining … and I think that we need to see that in order for us to deal with this properly, we need to ensure that there is an independent study that is done into that question of those burial sites, where they are and what the numbers are going to tell us,†he told committee members.

    On Wednesday, the federal government announced that $27 million – already earmarked to assist Indigenous communities in locating and memorializing children who died at residential schools – would be distributed to those who request it.

    On May 28, the Tk’emlúps te SecweÌpemc First Nation in Kamloops, B.C. announced that it had found the remains of 215 children buried at the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, using ground-penetrating radar.

    In the days that have followed this discovery, there have been calls from First Nations leaders, residential school survivors, and opposition parties for the federal government to fund the research and excavation of all sites of former residential schools for unmarked graves.

    Sinclair said an independent probe should be “overseen by a parliamentary committee that will ensure that it’s done in a proper way as opposed to having anyone within the justice department or the department of Indigenous affairs controlling the process.â€

    During his introductory statement he noted that he contemplated appearing before the committee on Thursday, which held an emergency meeting on specific TRC calls to action, out of fear that what is said about the discovery could be used for political gain.

    “I debated with myself for awhile, the better part of a day and a half or so as to whether I wanted to participate in this or not mainly because I hate the possibility that something as significant as this, as personal as this, and as triggering as this could become a political football,†he said.

    Sinclair said he has spoken with “about 200 survivors†over the course of the last few days, who have expressed their “grief, their feelings of anger, their feelings of frustration†over the situation.

    He was joined by the two other TRC commissioners who underscored the importance of a non-partisan response to this work and acknowledging accountability as a country for past and present hurt.

    Marie Wilson said the type of language used to describe the residential school system is also critical.

    “I would ask for honest language, that we not make ourselves comfortable with phrases such as a ‘sad chapter in our history.’ Is it that or is it a human rights atrocity? It is a social policy mistake or in this story was it a breeding ground for crime and abuse?â€

    Federal governments have been criticized for failing to fully implement all sections of the 2015 TRC report that either solely or partially involve Ottawa’s efforts and resources.

    Calls to action 72 to 76 focus specifically on what needs to be done to address the missing children and unmarked graves at residential schools.

    This includes maps showing the location of deceased residential school children; appropriate ceremonies, markers, and reburials; procedures for the ongoing identification, documentation, maintenance, commemoration, and protection of residential school cemeteries or other sites at which residential school children were buried.

    Government officials from the Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs also appeared before the committee, stating that during consultations with communities over the past several years it was understood that working in partnership with Indigenous peoples was paramount.

    “We knew it was our job to listen to what they had to say, we know it was our job not to repeat the mistakes in the past that in fact led to many of these situations by governments simply making their own decisions about what they thought was best,†said Deputy Minister Daniel Quan-Watson.

    “The idea that the Crown would go in against their wishes to begin work I think is something that we would reject outright but where they want that work, then we would definitely support it.â€

    Quan-Watson said while some communities intend to memorialize burial sites, others are keen to engage in forensic work to identify remains, which means a one-size-fits-all approach out of Ottawa won’t work.

    With files from Â鶹´«Ã½â€™ Rachel Aiello

    --

    If you are a former residential school student in distress, or have been affected by the residential school system and need help, you can contact the 24-hour Indian Residential Schools Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419

    Additional mental-health support and resources for Indigenous people are available here.

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