Advertisement

Prince Charles urged to speak to the Queen about deaths of indigenous children at Canada schools

Prince Charles - Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press/AP
Prince Charles - Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press/AP

The Prince of Wales has spoken of the urgent need to come to terms with the “darker and more difficult aspects of the past”, as he landed in Canada amid calls for the Royal family to apologise for the country’s residential school scandal.

The Prince praised an “ongoing commitment to healing, respect and understanding” in the country, where the Queen is head of state and indigenous communities are seeking apologies and reparations.

Within hours of landing in the Commonwealth country, the Prince and Duchess of Cornwall took part in a “solemn moment of reflection and prayer” in a garden dedicated to indigenous victims of the school system, in which thousands suffered abuse and death.

Prince Charles - Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press/AP
Prince Charles - Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press/AP

Shortly before their arrival, Cassidy Caron - president of the Métis National Council, representing indigenous people from three Canadian prairie provinces and parts of Ontario, British Columbia and the Northwest Territories - called for the Queen to issue an apology as the country's head of state and leader of the Anglican Church.

She is also seeking reparations for survivors, according to CBC News.

"There's so much healing that is needed," Ms Caron, who is planning to raise the matter with the royal couple, told Canada's public broadcaster.

"We need basic human necessities in our communities and it stems from colonisation. It stems from assimilation and some financial reparations are absolutely helpful in helping us move forward."

Prince Charles - Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Prince Charles - Chris Jackson/Getty Images

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall have become the first members of the British Royal family to acknowledge the scandal, in which more than 150,000 children were forced to attend state-funded Christian boarding schools where thousands died.

Last year, human remains of hundreds of children were discovered in unmarked graves at former schools to which indigenous children were forcibly relocated from the 19th century until the 1970s.

Pope Francis has apologised for the conduct of some Catholics at the institutions, while the Archbishop of Canterbury said in May: "I am more sorry than I could ever, ever begin to express."

Piita Irniq, a former commissioner of Nunavut who attended a residential school, said he wants the Prince and the Duchess to learn about the indigenous cultures residential schools tried to "destroy", as well as share what they learn with the Queen.

In his first words of the three-day trip, delivered at a welcome ceremony to an audience including Justin Trudeau, the Canadian prime minister, indigenous leaders and the governor general, the Prince promised to approach the tour with the “greatest respect” and a pledge to listen to all Canadians.

Prince Charles - Reuters/Carlos Osorio
Prince Charles - Reuters/Carlos Osorio
Prince Charles - Reuters/Carlos Osorio
Prince Charles - Reuters/Carlos Osorio

“As we look to our collective future, as one people sharing one planet, we must find new ways to come to terms with the darker and more difficult aspects of the past - acknowledging, reconciling and striving to do better,” he said.

“It is a process that starts with listening.

“I have greatly appreciated the opportunity to discuss with the governor general the vital process of reconciliation in this country – not a one-off act, of course, but an ongoing commitment to healing, respect and understanding.

“I know that our visit here this week comes at an important moment – with indigenous and non-indigenous peoples across Canada committing to reflecting honestly and openly on the past and to forge a new relationship for the future.”

In a speech delivered in part French and English, he added: “As so often in the history of this country and her people, Canadians have embarked on a journey that demands commitment and courage.”

The visit will see the royal couple meet with indigenous communities to celebrate the preservation of their culture, and hear of their work to protect the natural world.

The Prince, speaking in St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, also conveyed his admiration for the Canadian people and the Queen’s long relationship with the country in her Platinum Jubilee year.

“As I get older, it is particularly heart-warming to see my children coming to know and to love this great country, just as the Queen and my late father have, and I in turn,” he said.

Later on Tuesday, the Prince and Duchess took part in a solemn ceremony of prayer and remembrance for the children sent to residential schools.

In the garden of Government House, they joined indigenous leaders for a traditional smudging ceremony, in which sacred medicines including sweetgrass, cedar, sage, and tobacco were burned and wafted with a feather, and heard prayer from the President of NunatuKavut Community Council.

Charles and Camilla in the Heart Garden at Government House - Chris Jackson/PA
Charles and Camilla in the Heart Garden at Government House - Chris Jackson/PA
Charles and Camilla with residential school survivors and elders - Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press
Charles and Camilla with residential school survivors and elders - Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press

One of the key moments of their tour, the ceremony took place in the Heart Garden - where schoolchildren had planted coloured cardboard hearts to show their respect. Shortly afterwards, having watched performances from indigenous musicians, the Prince moved inside Government House.

There, in a change of pace, he was invited to admire a life-size replica of his own head made of wool, as he joined grandmothers for a knitting circle.

Prince Charles tries on gloves - Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Prince Charles tries on gloves - Chris Jackson/Getty Images

The Prince laughed incredulously as he was shown the intricate detail of the needle-felted sculpture, along with one of the Queen created in honour of her Platinum Jubilee.

He was told how each section of their skin, hair and features were created from the wool of different sheep.

The two heads, which show the Queen beaming and Charles smiling enigmatically, were made by Rosemarie Péloquin, a Franco-Manitoban artist, and put on display during the first day of the royal tour.

The Prince had been introduced to representatives of the Campaign for Wool in Canada, a cause close to his heart, and around a dozen expert knitters who make an array of baby and adult clothing for the Newfoundland Outport Nursing and Industrial Association (Nonia).

Tim Rooke - Shutterstock
Tim Rooke - Shutterstock

Among the star pieces was a replica of a light blue knitted cardigan given by Nonia to the Queen after the birth of the Charles in 1948.

"I bet I wore it," the Prince said after examining it. "Have you seen photographs?"

Meeting a group of women hard at work on their latest knits, he joked: "You're knitting, not nattering?"

Told they had been doing plenty of both before he arrived, the Prince disclosed he had learned to knit at the age of "eight or nine" but has now "forgotten".

Admiring the skills of one woman, he noted: "I'm sure you can do it watching television at the same time."

Particularly keen to find out whether any of the group had introduced the next generation to the skill, he said: "The thing is getting the young people doing it.

"Maybe it's something you do as you get older. People learn from their grandmothers, don't they?"

The Prince was presented with a pair of patterned grey and white mittens as a gift, as well as some Canadian wool and instructions to design his own carpet.

Both the Duke of Cambridge and Duke of Sussex have spent time in Canada.

The Duke of Cambridge last enjoyed a warmly received visit in 2016, with the Duchess of Cambridge and their two older children Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

The Duke of Sussex spent time privately in Toronto while he was dating Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and chose the city to host his Invictus Games.

The Commonwealth tour follows two visits to the Caribbean by the Cambridges and Earl and Countess of Wessex respectively, which were dominated by demands for slavery reparations and calls for the islands to become republics.