Canada reaches $31.5 billion agreement to compensate Indigenous children
Toronto, Canada – On Tuesday, Canadian officials announced two agreements totaling roughly $31.5 billion to monetarily compensate First Nations children who were taken from their homes, and to reform the on reserve child welfare system.
The agreement, which was announced by Indigenous Services Canada, is a result of the largest class action lawsuit in Canadian history.
"The Government of Canada is pleased to announce that Agreements-in-Principle have been reached on a global resolution related to compensation for those harmed by discriminatory underfunding of First Nations child and family services," Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) said in the agreement.
The ISC continued to say it hopes, "to achieve long-term reform of the First Nations Child and Family Services program and Jordan's Principle, to ensure that no child faces discrimination again."
The two-part agreement vows to provide roughly $15.6 billion to First Nations children, parents, and caregivers who were forcefully removed from their homes between April 1991 and March 2022, according to CTV News.
In addition, the Canadian government agreed to pay another $15.6 billion to reform the on reserve welfare system over the next five years. Additionally, a portion of these funds will go to support First Nations young adults as they transition out of said welfare system.
"No compensation amount can make up for the trauma people have experienced, but these Agreements-in-Principle acknowledge to survivors and their families the harm and pain caused by the discrimination in funding and services," said the Minister of Indigenous Services, Patty Hajdu, in an announcement.
According to Reuters, the agreement comes 15 years after the first human rights complaint was filed by the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society.
Over the last three decades, Reuters reported the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal found that child and family services had continuously discriminated against First Nations children by underfunding programs and services on reserves.
This in turn led to children being removed from their homes.
The preliminary agreement now awaits the approval of the Federal Court and the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.
Cover photo: Collage: IMAGO/NurPhoto