鈥淲ithout a full review of the existing historical documentation from our order鱿鱼视频app involvement, the truth of residential schools will not be fully known,鈥� provincial superiors Fr. Ken Thorson of the Oblates鈥� Lacombe province and Fr. Luc Tardif of the Notre-Dame-du-Cap province said in a 鈥淛oint Statement of Commitment鈥� issued the day of the Cowessess discovery.
The new documents to be made available to researchers and First Nations are the Codex Historicus, a kind of journal of daily activities, along with photographs, human resources records and teacher profiles.
The new Oblate commitment to openness and transparency hasn鈥檛 quite won over former Cowessess Chief Terrance Pelletier.
鈥淭hey lawyered-up,鈥� Pelletier told The Catholic Register. 鈥淚鈥檓 old enough, I鈥檝e been to school long enough, I鈥檝e dealt with people long enough that I know what that鱿鱼视频app all about.鈥�
Pelletier鱿鱼视频app suspicions are fuelled by Oblate explanations about how the release of documents has been 鈥渃omplicated by issues of provincial and national privacy laws.鈥�
But Thorson insists the order is not dodging anything or holding anything back.
鈥淚t鱿鱼视频app always been a question to me why we wouldn鈥檛 make them (school records) available. I never really understood it and I don鈥檛 understand it now. But we鈥檙e making them available,鈥� Thorson said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not being driven by the lawyers on this.鈥�
The Oblates are being pulled in two directions by their legal obligations and their desire for transparency.
鈥淭he issue is around personnel files, of course,鈥� Thorson said. 鈥淲e have privacy issues we can鈥檛 ignore. And yet, the history is there鈥�. Part of their history is potentially located in those files. How do we determine what is appropriate to share. Or how do we determine an appropriate mechanism or a process to determine how we balance those two needs.鈥�
Pelletier intends to put whatever mechanism or process the Oblates come up with to the test.
鈥淚鈥檝e drafted a letter where I鈥檓 asking for certain documents. And I鈥檓 giving the reasons why I鈥檓 asking for certain documents. I want to see if those documents will come,鈥� Pelletier said.
Pelletier sees a strong parallel between what the Cowessess First Nation endured at Marieval Indian Residential School and the history of abuse in Catholic institutions in Ireland. Pelletier has been to Ireland and spoken with Irish abuse survivors.
鈥淲hat law prevents an institution from providing historical documents that would establish criminal actions? What documents exist that would show what would possibly provide evidence of serial abusers within the Catholic order?鈥� Pelletier asked. 鈥淚鈥檝e asked for specific documents. We鈥檒l see if they鈥檙e coming.鈥�
Thorson understands that people are not going to simply trust the Oblates to produce records.
鈥淭hat question would go to an agreed-upon third party,鈥� he said.
The Oblates are committed to rebuilding trust with Indigenous people in all their ministries, parishes and missions, said Thorson.
鈥淚 feel mostly for our men who are working in First Nations communities,鈥� Thorson said. 鈥淭hey are on the ground with people that they love and who are really angry right now. They are committed to their people and to the ministry, as are the Oblates.鈥�
Thorson isn鈥檛 asking Pelletier and other residential school survivors to trust or forgive the Oblates right now. But he insists the Oblates will not abandon their mission or the people.
鈥淭his is where we鈥檙e called to be, and not just the Oblates of Lacombe province or the Oblates of Canada, but the (global) Oblate congregation,鈥� Thorson said. 鈥淭his is a relationship with the Indigenous peoples of Canada that we鈥檙e all called to work on, towards healing.鈥�
The Oblates stand by their 1991 apology given at the Lac Ste. Anne pilgrimage site in northern Alberta. Thorson is hopeful Indigenous Canadians will see the Pope apologize on Indigenous land.
鈥淚t鱿鱼视频app clear that this is not something that is simply a photo-op,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鱿鱼视频app something that would have deep meaning for the Indigenous people of Canada and would truly assist many in the work of healing. It鱿鱼视频app something I would like to see happen.鈥�