Coalition wants to reopen residential schools settlement

A coalition of groups for Indian Residential School Survivors want to re-open the $ 5 billion compensation settlement agreement, their spokesmen said in Winnipeg Thursday.

"The settlement agreement is an out of court settlement that has to be monitored by the courts. . .yet each day we have survivors complaining about the treatment by (their) lawyers, the role of Canada, lost records, information that is not provided and adjudicators not respecting our culture and languages," said Ray Mason, chairman of the National Residential Schools Survivors Society.

Mechanisms set up within the agreement to handle survivors complaints and include their representatives in administrative issues are failing survivors, media were told.

The settlement was signed by representatives of the federal government, churches and First Nations in 2007and it will take their agreement to put the deal back under a microscope, the groups spokesmen said.

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Survivors groups claim the settlement had been plagued with problems since the beginning when $1.9 billion was set initially aside and later boosted to $3.2 billion to cover claims.

The latest federal estimate puts the cost of compensating for abuse at residential schools as set to exceed $5 billion. The number of claims exceeded initial projections by 10s of thousands.

Complaints number in the hundreds and centre on the process itself.

"Following an extensive consultation in 2007, the National Residential School Survivors Society completed a report that described approximately 460 concerns related to the settlement agreement. That report was provided to all signatories to the agreement and it’s al

A coalition of groups for Indian Residential School Survivors want to re-open the $ 5 billion compensation settlement agreement, their spokesmen said in Winnipeg Thursday.

"The settlement agreement is an out of court settlement that has to be monitored by the courts. . .yet each day we have survivors complaining about the treatment by (their) lawyers, the role of Canada, lost records, information that is not provided and adjudicators not respecting our culture and languages," said Ray Mason, chairman of the National Residential Schools Survivors Society.

Mechanisms set up within the agreement to handle survivors complaints and include their representatives in administrative issues are failing survivors, media were told.

The settlement was signed by representatives of the federal government, churches and First Nations in 2007and it will take their agreement to put the deal back under a microscope, the groups spokesmen said.

.

Survivors groups claim the settlement had been plagued with problems since the beginning when $1.9 billion was set initially aside and later boosted to $3.2 billion to cover claims.

The latest federal estimate puts the cost of compensating for abuse at residential schools as set to exceed $5 billion. The number of claims exceeded initial projections by 10s of thousands.

Complaints number in the hundreds and centre on the process itself.

"Following an extensive consultation in 2007, the National Residential School Survivors Society completed a report that described approximately 460 concerns related to the settlement agreement. That report was provided to all signatories to the agreement and it’s almost five years later and the problems continue, media were told.

It’s asking for an independent review to accomplish that aim.

Groups calling for the review include the National Indian Residential School Survivor Society, the B.C. Indian Residential School Survivor Society and Spirit Wind Manitoba. Together they represent 32,000 survivors of residential schools that operated in Canada for more than a century.

most five years later and the problems continue, media were told.

It’s asking for an independent review to accomplish that aim.

Groups calling for the review  include the National Indian Residential School Survivor Society, the B.C. Indian Residential School Survivor Society and Spirit Wind Manitoba. Together they represent 32,000 survivors of residential schools that operated in Canada for more than a century.

History

Updated on Thursday, February 2, 2012 at 2:40 PM CST: Corrects that settlement was signed in 2005