Two more Catholic churches have been destroyed by fire in western Canada's British Columbia province, an area where most of the indigenous people live. A few weeks ago, the remains of 215 Native American children were found nearby on a plot of land where a Catholic boarding school for indigenous children had operated decades earlier.
The fires occurred about 300 kilometers east of Vancouver, in Upper and Lower Similkameen. According to the police, the church named after St. Anne and the Chopaka church were also set on fire early Saturday. For now, they are investigating whether there is a connection between the current two cases and a similar crime a week ago, when two other churches were set on fire 50 kilometers from here.
A few weeks ago, the remains of 215 Native American children were found nearby on a plot of land where a Catholic boarding school for indigenous children had operated decades earlier. Another similar case came to light this week, at least six hundred, and according to some sources approximately 750, unmarked graves were found on the territory of a boarding school located 140 kilometers east of the city of Regina, the capital of the Saskatchewan province.
Both cases caused a huge shock in the country.
The Catholic Church operated boarding schools in Canada from 1831 until recently, 1996. During this time, a total of roughly 150,000 indigenous children were separated from their families. Many of them lived in miserable conditions, were abused, sexually exploited, and many were malnourished. According to current knowledge, at least 3,200 children lost their lives in church residential institutions, most of them from tuberculosis.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized for the violent assimilation policy of his predecessors, which he called harmful. The prime minister personally asked Pope Francis to travel to Canada and apologize to the Catholic Church for its role in the case. He emphasized to her that it was not only important to apologize, but also that it should happen in Canada, directly in front of Canadian aboriginal people. The Pope recently expressed his pain at the crimes committed against aboriginal people in Canadian Catholic schools, but has not yet issued an apology on behalf of the Church.
Source: MTI
Photo: Screenshot
