The independent special interlocutor for unmarked Indigenous burial sites, Kimberly Murray, is calling on Canada to comply with some of its obligations to Indigenous people and believes it has offered itself its own amnesty by not granting her any powers.
As she prepares to take off her apron after two years of work, the speaker, originally from the Mohawk community of Kanesatake, spoke to Espaces nationaux to return to her mandate and the work that remains to be accomplished to allow communities to shed light on the treatment of missing children in connection with residential schools.
Indigenous spaces: Since becoming a Special Contact, what is your greatest accomplishment?
Kimberly Murray : “My greatest achievement was bringing survivors and communities together through six national meetings that we organized [Montréal, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto et Iqaluit]. »
This created a space for survivors to share their truths, especially regarding missing children and unmarked burials. It also allowed communities to learn from each other. They were able to discuss how to conduct research in the field and the obstacles they face. Ultimately, they created a sort of network and a safe place where people can talk about the difficulties they face in finding the graves. I hope it continues like this.
“It was a lot of work, but it was important work. I think the reports that came out of each of the six meetings were also something different compared to other commissions. »
In my final report, I talk about the importance of this and how supporting survivors and communities is my priority. This should also be the government’s priority.
The role of the special contact
Kimberly Murray was appointed special contact for missing children and unmarked graves and burials related to Indian residential schools in June 2022, by the Department of Justice Canada. She works closely with Indigenous representatives, families and survivors to identify the measures required and recommend the establishment of a new federal legal framework aimed at ensuring treatment and protection in a respectful and appropriate manner. culture of tombs and anonymous burials.
EA: You hope that the government will continue the work. To what extent do you think it can continue to support survivors and their families?
KM: “The government must continue to provide funding so that communities and organizations can bring survivors together. But they must also support them in their request for access to archives, in relation to field research, or even support families who want to carry out exhumations. »
My job is to make recommendations for a new legal framework. Thus, my final report will identify the laws that need to be changed. Canada has no legislation to protect the burial sites of indigenous peoples, no strategy, no law to govern the repatriation of human remains. So there are many things that Canada must do that are consistent with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, to which it is a signatory. I therefore believe that the international community must support the work that survivors are doing to find unmarked graves.
EA: How do you see the future after your departure, especially if a conservative government with Pierre Poilievre takes over from the liberal government?
M: I am very concerned that the recommendations I am about to make are not being implemented. We must ensure that the United Nations pays attention to what is happening in Canada.
“This is not a program [politique]just as the search for missing persons is not a program [politique]. This is an international legal obligation for Canada. We need to make it clear to all governments in power that they have these obligations, because it’s not just about doing things out of the goodness of their hearts. »
EA: How much is still left to do?
KM : « [Les recherches] will still take a lot of time. Many communities have not even started doing field research yet. Many are at the very beginning of the process. Especially since if we go further than the searches near the boarding schools, we will also have to examine hospitals, sanatoriums, etc. A mechanism must be put in place to help communities continue this work, which will take a decade. »
The task is long, because children from several different communities sometimes attended the same boarding school. They must therefore consult each other.
EA: Your mandate ends at the end of the year. Do you think the government should have made your position permanent?
KM: “In my final report, I make recommendations on what is needed to continue the work I started. It is obvious that the first thing is to put in place a system that allows communities to be supported as I have done so far, but with additional powers. I couldn’t get records, I couldn’t enter private property, I didn’t have the power to compel anything. All I had was the power of my words. So we need a stronger mechanism. »
Canada created this mandate, appointed me and didn’t give me these powers, and this is sort of how they protect themselves. This is part of the amnesty he created for himself.
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