Money only first step in addressing wrongs done to those in government care

January 12, 2016

On Friday, the government will start accepting applications from people who suffered abuse as permanent or temporary wards of the province prior to 2008.

Nelson Mayer, executive director with the Alberta Native Friendship Centres Association, doesn’t have definite numbers as to how many of those applying will be Aboriginal, but he does know the number will be substantial.

“Given that the rates in some areas of the province can be as high as 70 per cent of our children were placed in care over the last years, I imagine it could be a significant number,” he said.

Through the Alberta Child Welfare Class Action Settlement, those who were subject to a permanent wardship order or permanent guardianship order by Alberta Child Welfare between July 1, 1966, and Feb. 19, 2008, or a temporary guardianship order between July 1, 1985 and Feb. 19, 2008, are eligible for compensation either through the Victims of Crime financial benefits program or, having missed the time parameters set out by VOC, through a special fund created by the class action. The fund will have $6.5 million fund accessible to those who were under permanent wardship $1 million as compensation for those under temporary guardianship. Average benefit payments, which will be delivered in the areas of injury, witness (those who witnessed a crime that resulted in the death of a loved one), and death (reimburses funeral costs), are expected to run between $15,000 to $30,000.

“(Financial compensation) is just one part of it,” said Mayer. “For me, the more important stuff is healing. Is any resource set in the settlement that they’re going to get going to be enough to really address some of the outstanding issues that have arisen as a result of the abuse they were subjected to?”

Mental health supports, which will be required, he says, come at a substantial cost. 

The settlement agreement was approved Nov. 13, 2015, in the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench and was the result of a class action lawsuit, which began in 2004. The lawsuit alleged that the Alberta Child Welfare Agency and public trustee failed to inform certain wards of the province that they had the right to apply for compensation under the VOC program or bring lawsuits against their victimizers.

In approving the settlement agreement, Court of Queen’s bench Justice Denny Thomas said, “I am satisfied this is fair, reasonable and in the best interests of all class members.”

Human Services Minister Irfan Sabir echoed Thomas’ sentiments in a written statement, adding, “I am pleased the settlement will be moving forward, and I hope it provides a sense of closure for people who were victims of crime before coming into or while in the government’s guardianship. Government has a legal and moral obligation to provide for the safety and well-being of children in its guardianship.”

Mayer isn’t satisfied.

“It’s almost like a gesture, because of a class action suit, (the government) was forced in to this. For me, it would have been beneficial if people would have come forward before and said, ‘We want to do something to address some of the issues that have arisen as children in care and we need to address those,’” he said. “When you’re pushed into something versus when you come marching in and say, ‘We’re going to take a system that failed Indigenous people and do our best to fix it.’”

Mayer sees the settlement as only the first step in addressing the historic wrongs that have been done to Aboriginal people.

Mayer says his office has sent information about the class settlement to the various friendship centres across the provincevso they can inform their communities of the financial compensation members may be eligible to access. Deadline for application is Jan. 15, 2017.