House calls on Liberals to accelerate TRC calls to action, drop legal battles with First Nations

Ottawa -

MPs voted unanimously Monday to urge the federal government to quickly identify and document unmarked gravesites at residential schools and halt their legal battle with First Nations communities.

The Conservatives, Bloc Quebecois, Greens, Independents and some Liberal MPs put their support behind an NDP-backed motion that, while not binding, fuels the pressure campaign for Ottawa to take swift action on reconciliation after the remains of 215 children were found at a former Kamloops, B.C. residential school.

The motion calls on the government to accelerate the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) calls to action that require federal response. Among them, to provide funding to continue searches at residential school sites, to help contact families of children who died while attending one of the 139 schools, and to build a national death registry to document the lives lost.

For survivors, their families and their communities, it demands proper resources to “assist with the emotional, physical, spiritual, mental, and cultural trauma.”

It also asks that Ottawa cease its “belligerent and litigious approach to justice” for Indigenous children by dropping its appeals of Canadian Human Rights Tribunal rulings. The first deals with compensating First Nations families for failed or delayed child-welfare supports, while the second relates to widening the application of Jordan's Principle which ensures children living on and off reserve have access to necessary public services.

Several Liberals MPs and all cabinet ministers abstained from the vote, including Crown-Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett and Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller. No one voted against it.

Assembly of First Nations Chief Perry Bellegarde said he was “encouraged” by the result of the vote but was “deeply concerned” by the Liberal cabinet abstentions.

“This was a missed opportunity to show real action toward reconciliation. It’s long overdue that the federal government stop fighting residential survivors in court, and accept the orders of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal and end litigation against First Nations children,” he said on Twitter.

Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society echoed a similar sentiment on CTV News Channel’s Power Play Monday.

“It was really disappointing to see the cabinet not step up, I mean where are they?,” she said. “Canadians are way out in front of the government on this one and we need to make sure the government acts in honour of them and all First Nations, Metis, and Inuit people across this country. We can do it together.”

During question period earlier in the day Bennett reinforced the government’s commitment to complete the TRC calls to action, which she noted are 80 per cent complete, but said the work involves engagement with Indigenous communities on how best to proceed while respecting cultural needs.