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. * Milton Canadian Champion g 2-5046 Mainway 8 Milton Canadian Champion | Thursday, April 12, 2018 | ® OPINION Beng * EDITORIAL - Pope Francis should apologize to' Indigenous Canadians It's disappointing and more than a little puzzling to learn Pope Francis will not apologize for the Roman Cath- olic Church's role in Canada's residential school tragedy: It's disappointing because so many of the First Nations, Métis and Inuit survivors of those misguided, destructive Institutions sinceyely want to hear an official statement of regret from the leader of the world's 1.2 billion Gatholics. . It's also disappointing because one of the 94 recom- mendations from the Truth and Reconciliation Commis- sion, after it spent five years examining the residential school disaster, specifically called for a papal apology delivered on Canadian soil. Indeed, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau personally asked the Pope to consider this gesture when they met in the Vatican last year. But two weeks ago, the unwelcome answer was no. The residential schools are a black mark on the history of the Canadian government but also some of Canada's most prominent churches. For more than a century, the federal government's church-operated residential schools worked tirelessly to assimilate Indigenous children by forcing them to attend schools where they were forbidden to speak their languag- es or practise their cultures. _ More than 150,000 Indigenous yolil attended the schools, beginning irr the 1880s, and many suffered phys- ical, sexual and psychological abuse at the hands of priests, nuns or other teachers. Irreparable harm was done - to individuals, families and Indigenous communities across the land. The Canadian government as well as the United, Angli- can and Presbyterian churches all apologized long ago for their part in this outrage. While Roman Catholic organizations have, over the years, issued apologies for their role in the residential schools, it isn't the authoritative and definitive statement from the Pope that Indigenous Canadians seek. The argu- ment from bishops has always been that 16 out of 70 Catho- 'lic dioceses, along with three dozen religious communi- ties, were associated with the residential schools. Because each diocese and religious community is legal- ly responsible for its actions, the bishops insist the Catho- lic Church as a whole is not responsible and should not apologize: Such stubbornness is also puzzling. In 2010, a papal ~ apology was issued to those in Ireland who had been sexu- ally abused by priests. Two years ago, Pope Francis visited Bolivia where he issued an apology for the "grave sins" of the Church against Indigenous Peoples in the colonization "of the Americas. We hope these precedents will allow this popular Pope, who is famed for his thoughtful compassion, to reconsider his decision, come to Canada and say what needs to be said. ' "Forgive us our debts," is part of Christianity's greatest prayer. The Catholic Church has a debt owing to Canada's Indigegous Peoples and should seek their forgiveness. CONTACT US Letters to the editor All letters, must be fewer than 200 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Burlington, ON L7L 521 § Phone: 289- 293- ons, » improving our / CHAMPION TRACKS Meisner family photo Stephen and Lonni Meisner and their children Alexander, David and Jenay have some fun in the sun in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic with a copy of their favourite community newspaper. Going away? Pack a copy of the Champion in | your suitcase, snap a creative photo and email your Champion Tracks submission to cohara@metroland.com. Please include everyone's name and destination information. ABOUT US - JON *etatand Champion. I ses.) The-Milton Canadian Champion, pub lished every Thursday, is a division of the "Metroland Media Group Ltd. a wholly owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporatio The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 80 community publications across Ontario 5 " metroland: Connected to your community® EE 5 SE WO The Milton Canadian Champion 1s a member of the National NewsMeédia Council. Com- plaindnts are urged to bring their concems to the.attention of.the newspaper and, #not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Sutte 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON MAW 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www megljacouncil.ca sideHalton.com pr hall cditor@miltoncanadianchampion.com 4 Fi MiltonCanadianChampion @Milton Champion « Changes to Halton recycling now in effect Plastic bags, packaging can be recycled: Carr Over the years we have made significant invest- ments in waste manage- ment including waste re- duction technology and curbside collection services such as the blue box and green cart programs. We have also seen areal commitnfent from resi- dents to reduce household and community waste through increasing par- ticipation rates and the useful feedback provided on our programs and ser- vices. A commgn theme Delivery ~ For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631¢6095. FOSA FOSA GARY CARR Column among residents is the amount of recyclables that become windblown litter on windy days and unacceptable plastic ma- terials. I am pleased to share that all Halton residents, businesses and facilities can now include plastic bags and plastic overwrap in their recycling. This means everything from plastic shopping bags to packaging around bath- . VP, Reglonal Publisher Kelly Montague kmontague@metroland,com | 289-293-0614 Director Advertising Daniel Baird dbaird@metroland.com | 289-293-0624 Reglonal Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara cohara@metroland.com | 289-293-0615 room tissue and newspa- per bags can be placed in 'the recycling and diverted from the Halton Waste Management Site (HWMS) landfill. In addition, to reduce litter on windy days, resi- dents in single family households have the option to place recyclables in clear plastic bags for curb- side collection. Residents ¢an continue to use the blué box only, or use a com- bination of both - whatever works best for your house- hold. We are always looking for ways to improve our waste diversion rates and ensuring that we are pro- viding the 'best possible customer, service. And, thanks to resident commit- ment to waste reduction, Halton Region has: one of WHO WE ARE -participation in the highest blue box partic- ipation rates across the province and 90 per cent of blue box material collected in Halton is sold and recy- cled into new products. To- gether, we have also ex- tended the lifespan of the HWMS from 2012 to 2044 - more than 30 years longer than expected! Enhancements and ser- vice improvements like these and your continued waste management services keep Halton a great place to live, work, raise a family and re- tire. To find more informa- tion, recycling tips and a list of acceptable materials please visit halton.ca/ bluebox, download the OneHalton app or call 311. - Gary Carr is regional ~ chair of Halton Region. Reglonal Manager Digital Content Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman kmossman@metroland.com | 905-631-6095 Director of Production Mark Dills Reglonal Production Manager Manny Garcia'