Madam Chair, I rise this evening not as the critic for Crown—indigenous relations, not as a member of Parliament, but as a father horrified by the tragic discovery in Kamloops of the 215 children buried and forgotten at a residential school in Tk’emlúps territory. I want to acknowledge the deep sadness and grief that all indigenous peoples and survivors of residential schools are experiencing at this time and wish to express my deepest sympathies to the first nation itself, and those surrounding indigenous communities who are sharing in this tragedy.
A new page is being written on the dark shameful narrative that is the Canadian residential school legacy, a legacy that has had a profoundly lasting and damaging impact on indigenous families, culture, heritage and language. While communities and families grapple with this unthinkable revelation, it is time for all of us to come together and aid in the healing process.
This must be more than just words. I cannot blame indigenous leaders and communities who are listening to us tonight, wondering if our sentiments are just that, just words. It is time to act, and that time was actually long ago. That includes all governments, not just this one. We need to put the resources in place to protect, honour and identify these children, and to find and bring home all the lost children throughout Canada.
Last night, the Conservative Party sent a letter to the government, respectfully recommending that the following actions be taken.
First, the development of a comprehensive plan to implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls to action 71 through 76 by July 1 of this year. The time for action is now.
Second, to put in place enough funding to investigate all former residential schools in Canada where unmarked graves exist, including the site where 215 children have already been discovered. I understand that only three of the 160 acres have been checked at the Kamloops location and the ramifications of that are too dreadful to even contemplate.
Third, ensure that proper resources are allocated for communities to commemorate and honour any individuals discovered through the investigation, according to the wishes of their next of kin. This must be done in consultation with the leadership of indigenous communities, to safeguard their wishes and to protect cultural practices.
Last, we must never forget what happened here. We call on the government to develop a detailed and thorough set of resources to educate Canadians of all ages of this tragic history of residential schools in Canada. I am sure all sides of this place will have recommendations, and I am sure the government will also table its actions and what it intends to move forward with. I look forward to seeing those details. As I mentioned, I offer my sincere assistance to the government in this regard.
Following the historic apology to residential schools, their students, their families and communities for Canada's role in the operation of the schools by former prime minister Stephen Harper, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada began the hard work and dedication of building public awareness about residential schools and to bring forward 94 recommendations to all levels of government, public and private institutions, and religious organizations. The goal of the commission's findings were to foster reconciliation, understanding and respect. The final report of the TRC helped to explain this dark chapter in Canadian history and the calls to action addressed the legacy of residential schools and advanced the process of reconciliation.
I thank the commission for its very hard work, but the torch has been passed. We need to address the outstanding recommendations in that report. They need to be addressed quickly so that we can move forward on the road to true reconciliation with Canada's indigenous peoples.
Manny Jules, the former chief of that first nation and survivor of the Kamloops residential school, said recently that everyone knew there were children buried on that site. He even went on to say that those children were also in unmarked graves in other places across Canada. He is demanding action, not just words. Indigenous people want action, not words, to find these lost children.
I implore the government to take action right now to fund and support the investigation of all residential schools in Canada, and bring those children home.