2 | Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
erally. The process will work to renew relationships on a basis of inclusion, mutual understanding, and respect.
To guide its work, the Commission has developed a strategic plan with the following mission and vision statements.
Mission Statement
- The Truth and Reconciliation Commission will reveal the complete story of Canada's residential school system, and lead the way to respect through reconciliation … for the child taken, for the parent left behind.
Vision Statement
- We will reveal the truth about residential schools, and establish a renewed sense of Canada that is inclusive and respectful, and that enables reconciliation.
Setting Up the Commission: Governance and Operational Framework
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) was established by Order-in-Council in June 2008. The initial Commission consisted of Justice Harry LaForme as chair, Claudette Dumont-Smith, and Jane Brewin Morley. Justice LaForme resigned in October 2008, stating that the Commission's independence had been compromised by political interference, and that conflict with the other two Commissioners regarding his authority made the Commission unworkable. Commissioners Dumont-Smith and Brewin Morley resigned in January 2009, stating that the best way forward for a successful Truth and Reconciliation Commission process would be with a new slate of Commissioners.
The parties to the Settlement Agreement then selected three new Commissioners: Justice Murray Sinclair as chair, Chief Wilton Littlechild, and Marie Wilson. Their appointments took effect on July 1, 2009. A ten-member Indian Residential School Survivor Committee, made up of former residential school students, also was appointed to serve as an advisory body to the Commissioners. The resignation of the initial Commissioners led to a loss of time and momentum. By the time the new Commissioners took office, a full year of the Commission's original five-year mandate had passed. From the moment they took office, the new Commissioners faced the challenge of restarting the Commission and restoring its credibility with survivors and the Canadian public.
The decision by the parties to the Settlement Agreement to establish the Commission as a federal government department—as opposed to a commission under the Inquiries Act—was made prior to the appointment of the current Commissioners, and is not one with which they would have concurred. That decision has created additional challenges for the Commission. The rules and regulations that govern large, well-established, permanent federal government departments have proven onerous and highly problematic for a small, newly created organization with a time-limited mandate.
Departmental staffing and other processes normally do not apply to federal commissions or special investigations. The requirement that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission comply with provisions that apply to the operations of a federal department has led to significant delays that will have an impact on the Commission's ability to meet its deadlines. The Commission is required to create an entirely new federal department, subject to, and accountable for, the complete range of federal government statutes, regulations, policies, directives, and guidelines. It has to do this with a comparatively small staff and budget. Meeting these requirements has hampered the Commission's ability to carry out its mandate to implement a statement-gathering process, hold National Events and community hearings, and establish processes for document collection and research activities.
One of the consequences of the resignation of the original Commissioners and the designation of the Commission as a department of government is the discrepancy between the original federal Treasury Board approval of the Commission budget in 2008 and the orders-in-council appointing the current Commissioners in 2009. The Commission expects its final public event to be held close to July 1, 2014. However, its current budget authority will have expired before then, and it is clear there will be a period of time after July 1, 2014, required to transfer records to the National Research Centre and to make final decisions concerning the Commission's financial records, personnel resources, and physical assets. A period of time after July 1, 2014 also may be required for translation and production of the Commission's final report. The Commission will require orders-in-council and funding authorities to be modified to expire at the end of the 2014–15 fiscal year.
Recommendations
- The Commission recommends that the Government of Canada issue the necessary orders-in-council and funding authorities to ensure that the end date of the Commission and Commissioners' appointments coincide, including the necessary wind-down period after the Commission's last public event.
