Details

The Royal Commission was established following the Oka Crisis, a 78-day standoff between Mohawk protesters and Canadian authorities over a proposed development on a Mohawk burial ground which exposed serious problems with the handling of Aboriginal affairs. The purpose of this Inquiry was to explore the evolving relationship between the Aboriginal peoples of Canada, the Canadian government and Canadian society. The Commissioners were instructed to draw from local and international experiences to make recommendations about how to address the problems with that relationship and also the issues facing Aboriginal peoples through constitutional change and welfare policies. The Indian residential school system, wherein Aboriginal children were removed from their families with the stated aim of providing them with a basic western education, formed part of that investigation. Please note: this was a wide-ranging inquiry but the focus of this summary is primarily on aspects relating to the residential school system.

The Process
Under the oversight of six commissioners, four of whom were Aboriginal, the Royal Commission undertook a broad research agenda. It held public hearings and received briefs and submissions from individuals and groups, it commissioned research studies, published reports and held round tables on Aboriginal issues. In total it held 178 days of hearings, during which 2067 people appeared. More than 76,000 pages of testimony was recorded and over 350 research projects were commissioned. Interim reports were published in October 1992, October 1993, November 1993 and November 1994.

In recognition of the difficulties some Aboriginal groups would have in participating in this Inquiry, an Intervenor Participation Program was developed to assist organisations in researching and articulating their positions on issues during the final two rounds of hearings. This program funded 241 projects, resulting in 228 research reports. Subjects raised at public hearings requiring further investigation became the focus of special consultations. This included the residential school system for Aboriginal children. Following the public hearings phase, 14 policy groups were formed to develop the final report and its resulting recommendations.

Governing Legislation
The Inquiry was established by the Canadian Government as a Royal Commission under Paragraph 10 of Order in Council P.C. 1991-1597.

Governing Authority
The Federal Government of Canada.

Inquiry Locations
Hearings were held across Canada.

Public Hearings
The Inquiry held four rounds of public hearings across the country. The first round was described as a 'listening phase', with Canadians invited to speak their experiences and opinions. Gradually the public hearings became more focussed, with the final round focussing on reconciliation.

Private Sessions
The Commission did not hold private sessions.

Case Studies
The Inquiry did not use a case study approach.

Written Submissions
Almost 1000 written submissions were received.

Research
The research program was developed in consultation with 150 of Canada's most well-regarded scholars. More than 350 studies were commissioned, focussing on four major themes: governance, lands and economy, social and cultural matters and the North. This included research into the residential school system.

Roundtable Discussions
In 1992 and 1993 the Inquiry held round table discussions on a variety of issues including health, economic development, education and the justice system. Each roundtable was designed to encourage expert discussion and develop solutions to problems affecting Aboriginal people.

Witnesses
2067 witnesses appeared before the commission. They were drawn from across non-Aboriginal and Aboriginal communities.

Gender
Gender was not a key factor in this Inquiry.

Institutions
There were more than 135 Indian residential schools.

Findings
The report produced a five-volume final report with wide-ranging findings and 440 recommendations intended to reframe the relationship between non-Aboriginal and Aboriginal Canadians and improve the lives of Aboriginal peoples. Some of those findings related to the residential school system that operated from the 1870s through until the 1990s, which took Aboriginal children away from their families. It found that the school system, far from benefiting the children involved, had devastating effects on their lives. Essentially a tool of assimilation, the school system isolated children from their support networks and subjected them to horrific physical and psychological abuse. Sexual abuse was described as "pervasive". The report highlighted the need for a public inquiry into the residential school system's purpose and its impact on Aboriginal communities.

Recommendations
The Commission made 440 recommendations. A number of those related directed to the residential school system, including recommendations that:

• A public inquiry be established to investigate the residential school system and to recommend remedial actions, including apologies and compensation
• A national repository be created for storing records relating to the residential school system
• " Appropriate methods of healing" be made available to Aboriginal peoples who had experienced abuse

Cost
CBC News reported the budget at around $80 million.

Further Action
The Federal Government did not make a formal response to the report until 7 January 1998 when it focussed on non-constitutional approaches to issues raised. Instead of a formal apology it expressed regret for past errors in a Statement of Reconciliation and committed $350 million toward community-based healing, especially for abuse survivors from the residential school system. Provincial governments saw the report as a federal issue and took little action.

Indian residential school system survivors had demanded compensation from the 1980s and in 2003 an Alternative Dispute Resolution process was established to determine compensation and provide counselling.

An Indian Residential School System Agreement, the result of a major class action, formalised the process of compensation and increased the amounts available from 2007. It also required an apology from the then Prime Minister Stephen Harper, which was made in 2008.

The Agreement also provided for a five-year Truth and Reconciliation Commission into the residential school system. The Commission ended its work in 2015, the same year a National Truth and Reconciliation Centre was established to house records relating to the Commission and the school system.

John S. Milloy's research carried out as part of the Royal Commission led to his landmark 1999 publication, A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System, 1879-1986.

Related Inquiries
This inquiry led to the Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Commission which examined the Indian Residential School system.

Inquiry Panel

• Chartrand, Paul
• Meekison, J. Peter
• Robinson, Viola
• Sillett, Mary
• Wilson, Bertha