chimoku Posted June 9, 2008 Group: Advanced Member Followers: 0 Topic Count: 24 Topics Per Day: 0.00 Content Count: 270 Content Per Day: 0.04 Reputation: 1 Days Won: 0 Joined: 03/31/2005 Status: Offline Share Posted June 9, 2008 Two-thirds of Canadians support apologies for historical mistakes Juliet O'Neill, Canwest News Service Published: Sunday, June 08, 2008 OTTAWA - Three days before Prime Minister Stephen Harper issues a solemn apology to the survivors of Canada's Indian residential school system, a new poll says most Canadians agree with the practice of current apologies for historic wrongdoings. The Ipsos-Reid poll of 1,000 adults for Canwest News Service and Global Television says two in three Canadians agree that "it's about time that the government and Canadians come to terms with its past actions, and so issuing apologies for past transgressions and mistakes is appropriate." One in three disagree with the practice, endorsing the view that today's government and society "shouldn't be held accountable" for yesterday's wrongdoing, so no apologies are necessary. Harper is scheduled on Wednesday to issue a formal apology in the House of Commons to thousands of men and women who suffered mistreatment as young residents of a state-funded Christian school system aimed at stripping them of their aboriginal culture and connections. The apology comes soon after the establishment of a five-year Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission, part of a $2-billion settlement reached in 2006 among the government, churches and about 90,000 former students. John Wright, Ipsos Reid senior vice president, public affairs, said while the poll shows a high level of support for recognizing injustice through apology, it does not mean that apologies, in and of themselves, are enough. "If it helps heal a wound or heal an injustice or a past circumstance then it's appropriate," he said in an interview. "But an apology in and of itself in some circumstances, like the residential school system issue, is simply not enough for the group or the offended party, nor is it, I think, for the nation. It was a horrific chapter." Wright said an apology can "kick start" a process that, in the case of the residential school abuses, will involve the work of the truth and reconciliation commission. "The reconciliation council is one more piece of that and gives a chance for the communities of Canada to empathize," he said. "If you're sorry for something but you don't empathize, then you're really not feeling it as a nation. And I think that's what we really have to do in these circumstances - we must learn the history and the implications of it." The survey question cited apologies for past transgressions, ranging from the internment of Japanese-Canadians during the Second World War to the former head tax on Chinese Canadians and the abuses of students in the residential school system. The highest level of support for apologies is 70 per cent in British Columbia and the lowest is 58 per cent in Atlantic Canada. Sixty-seven per cent of Canadians aged 35-64 endorse apologies. That is more than 62 per cent of younger people and 59 per cent of older people. Sixty-four per cent of women endorse apologies, just slightly more than men at 61 per cent. Support for a specific apology was lower than for the general concept when the pollsters asked about a promised federal apology for the Komagata Maru incident of 1914. The incident involved all but a few of 376 mostly Sikh passengers from the Punjab aboard a Japanese ocean liner, the Komagata Maru, being turned away from the shores of B.C. in keeping with immigration law of the day. A slight majority of those polled, 52 per cent, agree with the plan to issue a formal apology, while four in 10 disagree. That apology is expected this summer. The results of the poll taken June 3-5 are considered accurate to within plus or minus 3.1 percentage points 19 times out of 20. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimoku Posted June 9, 2008 Group: Advanced Member Followers: 0 Topic Count: 24 Topics Per Day: 0.00 Content Count: 270 Content Per Day: 0.04 Reputation: 1 Days Won: 0 Joined: 03/31/2005 Status: Offline Author Share Posted June 9, 2008 . This is long overdue , but thank God that our leadership is willing to acknowledge that mistakes were made. The large support behind Prime Minister Harper's decision to apologize for the abuses First Nations people, particularly children, experienced in the boarding schools, is an encouraging indication of the degree of the sense of social responsibility, compassion, and spirit of reconciliation there is among Canadians. Moreover it is congruent with the Lord's message to us on forgiveness. It moves my heart to say God Bless Canada ! , Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nebula Posted June 9, 2008 Group: Royal Member Followers: 10 Topic Count: 5,823 Topics Per Day: 0.75 Content Count: 45,870 Content Per Day: 5.94 Reputation: 1,897 Days Won: 83 Joined: 03/22/2003 Status: Offline Birthday: 11/19/1970 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Amen! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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