Pope Francis expressed “pain” after discovering the remains of 215 indigenous students, but did not provide the long-sought apology for boarding school survivors.

Pope Francis expresses pain over remains found in Canada 215 Indigenous children Forced to attend a boarding school run by the church, but did not provide the apology sought by the survivors of the system, which the Commission of Inquiry said amounted to “cultural genocide.”

Pope Francis said in his usual speech to the public at noon on Sunday that he “painfully followed the disturbing news from Canada about the discovery of the remains of 215 children.”

He said: “I join the bishop of Canada and the entire Catholic Church in Canada to express my closeness to the Canadian people who have been traumatized by the shocking news.”

From the 1870s to the 1990s, more than 150,000 Aboriginal, Metis, and Inuit children were forced to attend more than 130 boarding schools across Canada in order to integrate them into Canadian society.

Physical, mental, and sexual abuse are rampant in schools, and students are beaten for speaking indigenous languages ??and other human rights violations.

On May 31, 2021, flowers and tributes were left at Kamloops Indian Boarding School to commemorate the remains of 215 children found at the site [Nicholas Rausch/AFP]

Ground penetrating radar is used Confirm the remains At the end of last month, children at the Kamloops Indian Boarding School in Kamloops, British Columbia.

This school is the largest such facility in Canada, with 500 students enrolled during the peak enrollment period, and was operated by the Catholic Church from 1890 to 1969. The government took over until the school closed in 1978.

Trudeau Friday Exploded The church was “silent” and “not strengthening”, and called for a formal apology, and asked the church to make up for its prominent role in the boarding school system.

“We still see resistance from the church, possibly from the church in Canada,” said Trudeau, who also formally asked the Pope to apologize in 2017.

Rosanne Casimir, chief of Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation in British Columbia, said her country hopes the Catholic Church will apologize publicly.

She also said that the Consecration of the Missionaries of the Immaculate Conception, which runs nearly half of Canada’s boarding schools, has not yet released any records about the Kamloops School.

In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission established by the government made many recommendations, including an apology from the Pope.

‘Heinous crime’

On Sunday, the Pope called on Canada’s political and religious leaders to work together to “clarify this matter” while also working on the path of “reconciliation and healing”.

“These difficult times represent a strong call for us to distance ourselves from the colonial model and today’s ideological colonization, and to walk side by side in dialogue, mutual respect, and recognition of the rights and cultural values ??of all Canadian daughters and sons,” he said. Say.

The United Church, the Presbyterian Church and the Anglican Church have apologized for the abuse they suffered at school, and the Canadian government has also provided compensation.

UN human rights experts issued a statement on Friday Appeal to Canada and the Catholic Church A prompt and thorough investigation into the incident was conducted.

Experts also stated that criminal investigations should also be launched on all allegations of suspicious deaths and allegations of torture and sexual violence against school children.

The UN expert added that the perpetrators and concealers who may still be alive should be prosecuted and sanctioned, and said that Canada and the Vatican are “unthinkable” that the whereabouts of this “heinous crime” are unknown.