An indigenous group from the Canada announced last Tuesday (13) the discovery of 160 other unidentified graves on the grounds of a former residential school in the province of British Columbia.
Read also: Canada discovers more than 182 graves of anonymous Indigenous children
The new find brings the total number of graves located in recent months in Catholic homes for Native Canadian children to 1,275.
In a statement, the Penelakut tribe said the graves were found in the area of the former school residence on Kuper Island, known as Alcatraz Canada, which was administered between 1890 and 1975 by the ‘Catholic Church.
According to some survivors, some children died after trying to flee school by sea to escape abuse.
“We are at another time when we have to face the trauma caused by these acts of genocide,” Penelakut community leader Joan Brown said in a statement.
crisis in canada
In just over a month, more than a thousand graves have been discovered near boarding schools for indigenous people, thanks to the use of radars that scan the ground and several investigations opened across the country.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged “concrete action” and said he would work with Indigenous peoples to address discrimination and systemic racism, but he did not detail any initiatives. In addition, he deplores the new discovery of the anonymous graves.
“It breaks my heart. We cannot bring back the dead, but we can continue to speak the truth, just as we will continue to work with Indigenous peoples to address discrimination and systemic racism through real, concrete action.” , said the Canadian Prime Minister. .
From the 19th century to the 1970s, at least 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend so-called “residential schools,” a network funded by the Canadian government and administered by the Catholic Church, as part of a campaign to to assimilate them to the dominant culture. . The last school closed in the 90s.
The Vatican has never apologized for its treatment of indigenous children. However, earlier this month, Pope Francis announced he would host a delegation of Indigenous peoples from Canada in December.
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