'We are truly sorry': Trudeau exonerates Tsilhqot'in chiefs hanged in 1864
Six chiefs were convicted of murdering white colonists more than 150 years ago in B.C.
More than 150 years after six B.C. First Nations chiefs were hanged by colonial authorities, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has apologized and absolvedthe Tsilhqot'in leaders of any wrongdoing.
"Today, we come together in the presence of the Tsilhqot'in chiefs, to fully acknowledge the actions of past governments, committed against the Tsilhqot'in people, and to express the government of Canada's profound regret for those actions," Trudeau said.
"We honour and recognize six Tsilhqot'in chiefs men who were treated and tried as criminals in an era where both the colonial government and the legal process did not respect the inherent rights of the Tsilhqot'in people."
In 1864, five Tsilhqot'in chiefs were called to what they thought were peace talks to end what became known as the Chilcotin War.
Instead, they were accused of murdering 14 members of a road-building party. They were then tried, convicted and hanged.
Five of the chiefs were executed, under Crown authority, near the settlement of Quesnel, B.C., in the province's interior. A sixth chief was later hanged near New Westminster, B.C., after trying to offer reparations.
The chiefs opposed the construction of roads to gold-rich lands and sought to stop the incursion into their traditional territory.
"As settlers came to the land in the rush for gold, no consideration was given to the needs of the Tsilhqot'in people who were there first. No agreement was made to access their land. No consent was sought," Trudeau said.
TheChilcotinWar was also fought in the midst of a disastrous smallpoxepidemic which ravaged B.C.,wiping out nearly half of all Indigenous peoples in the province in a matter of months. At least 14,000 died in the outbreak andhundreds of others were disfigured,leaving the landscape peppered with mass graves andabandonedsettlements.
"Some reliable historical accounts indicate that the Tsilhqot'in had been threatened with the spread of the disease by one of the road workers. And so, faced with these threats, the Tsilhqot'in people took action to defend their territory," Trudeau said.
There are also allegations that the road-building crew violently took some Tsilhqot'in women hostage and subjected them to sexual abuse.
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TheTsilhqot'inhave long objected to the chiefs being tried as criminals, saying the killingof the colonistswas carried out when a state ofwar existedbetween the First Nations and the colonial authority in B.C.
Trudeau agreed Monday, saying these six chiefs were "leaders and warriors" of theTsilhqot'innation, peoples who maintained their land rights had never been ceded.
"Even though the colonial government did not recognize these rights, the chiefs acted in accordance with their own laws to defend their territory, their peopleand their way of life," he said. "They acted as leaders of a proud and independent nation facing a threat from another nation.
"We confirm without reservation that Chief Lhats'as?in, Chief Biyil, Chief Tilaghed, Chief Taqed, Chief Chayses and Chief Ahanare fully exonerated of any crime or wrongdoing."
Six modern-dayTsilhqot'inchiefs were present in the House of Commons for the prime minister's apology Monday. They wore black vests. When Trudeau finished speaking, they stood and turned their vests inside out to reveal their bright red lining forthe Tsilhqot'in Nation, a colour symbolizing rebirth and renewal.
TheTsilhqot'inchiefs then received special permission from MPs to perform a drum ceremony on the floor of the House of Commons.
Trudeau to visitTsilhqot'interritory
Trudeau said that while apologies alone can't make right the wrongs of the past, they are an important part of reconciliation and renewing Canada's relationship with Indigenous people.
He said he looks forward to visiting Tsilhqot'in territory this summer at the invitation of the nation's leadership to deliver a statement of exoneration directly to the Tsilhqot'in people.
Joe Alphonse, chief of theTsilhqot'in National Government, welcomed what he called an apology for the colonial government's "deceitful" actions in arresting and hanging the chiefs.
"154 years have passed where our truth has gone unrecognized. Under a flag of truce our chiefs were wrongfully shackled, tried and hanged. We have always been proud of the sacrifices made by our chiefs, who are heroes to our people, and continue to inspire and guide the work of the future," Alphonse said.
"Today, Canada has finally acknowledged that our warriors did no wrong."
Cathy McLeod, the Conservative Indigenous affairs critic, echoed Trudeau's assessment of the chiefs.
"Neither criminals nor aggressors, they did what many of us would consider normal. They defended their homes and their families."
She said the resulting arrest, after the chiefs had made a peace offering, was a "clear act of betrayal."
Guy Caron offered the New Democrats' support for the exoneration and called the apology long overdue. He also called for the creation of a national Indigenous peoples day as a statutory holiday.
"Thank you for your patience with our young country as we strive to do better," he said to the Tsilhqot'in leaders.
Landmark Supreme Court ruling
The full exoneration comes after a landmark 2014 Supreme Court of Canada ruling foundthat the Tsilhqot'in peoples had Aboriginal title to a large swath oftheir traditional territory over 1,700 square kilometres and not just to old village sites, as theprovincial and federal governments had argued.
It was the first time in Canada that Aboriginal title had been confirmed outside of an Indianreserve.
Unlike the case in other areas of the country, few treaties were signed between Indigenous inhabitants and settlers in B.C.
First Nations leaders insist much of the province's territory is "stolen land," which has resulted in prolonged court battles to assert Aboriginal title rights and extinguish outstanding land claims.
TheTsilhqot'instyle their tribal authority as the Tsilhqot'inNational Government a community with some 5,000 membersand insist it holds a status equal to both the federal and provincial governments.
With files from the Canadian Press
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