TORONTO, ONTARIO, NEWS RELEASE–(CCNMatthews – March 29, 2007) – Nothing less than a full national apology by the Canadian government to Canada’s Aboriginal peoples is acceptable, says The United Church of Canada.
The church’s statement was released today in response to comments made earlier this week by Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice indicating that the Conservative government would not issue an apology as a part of its Settlement Agreement with survivors of Indian Residential Schools.
“It is completely unacceptable for the Harper government to use the fact that an apology was not part of the Settlement Agreement as an excuse not to apologize,” says the Rev. James Scott, the United Church’s General Council Officer for Residential Schools. “After all, the Common Experience Payment, which is a central component of the Agreement, recognizes the systemic harms that were inherent in the education policy of operating residential schools.”
Read the original article at: CNN Mathews
