David Macdonald in his recent article in the Conversation raises the question: How is it that Canada has the courage to condemn the genocide that has occurred through time in nations across our globe yet is incapable of recognizing the crimes of genocide perpetrated on indigenous children in residential schools across Canada? He argues that evidence of the state’s intentions and subsequent actions is clear and well documented and fall within Article 11 of the UN Convention on Genocide defined as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:
(a) Killing members of the group;
(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group. He argues, along with Indigenous leaders, that recognition of the grievous acts committed in residential schools constitute genocide and naming these acts is an essential step in establishing the truth and a way forward to a future of healing, understanding, and resolution. – Joey Edwardh
Click here to view original web page at theconversation.com
“A motion [in Parliament] to recognize the Indian Residential School system as a violation of Article 2e [forcibly transferring children of the group to another group] of the UN Genocide Convention can go some way towards establishing a ground floor of truth on which we can build for the coming generations.” […]
