A/HRC/54/31/Add.2 numerous accounts of Indigenous children who entered residential schools, hospitals and mental health facilities and went missing, often with no information provided to their families. Children were subjected to physical and sexual abuse. Many survivors now live with posttraumatic stress, substance abuse, depression and other mental health issues. Access to information is critical for affected families looking for closure and healing. 27. Since the discovery of the unmarked graves at the Kamloops residential school, there has been an alarming rise in denialism among those who reject, misrepresent or downplay the reality of the residential school system. This misinformation must be countered by creating awareness about the true history of residential schools. Providing this education requires preserving the large body of evidence collected by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission documenting the grave and systemic violations of the human rights of the Indigenous children who were forced to attend these institutions. The Supreme Court of Canada has affirmed that the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement allows for the destruction of testimonies and other records in 2027. This action frustrates education efforts and may obstruct future attempts to collect evidence of physical, sexual and emotional abuse and other criminal wrongdoing, including potential information about the location of unmarked burial sites. 28. The Federal Government provided dedicated funding for Indigenous Peoples to undertake research to identify missing children and unmarked burials. However, concerns have been expressed by Indigenous representatives that the funding agreements do not allow sufficient time to conduct investigations; do not cover all burial sites; and technically do not permit funds to be used for legal assistance, exhumation and DNA matching. 29. The negative legacies of colonialism and history of abuse and discrimination have left survivors and their families with a deep mistrust of Canadian institutions. First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples want to lead the repatriation of the remains of their children in a culturally relevant way with adequate financial support from Canada to cover the costs of forensic investigation, exhumation and/or commemoration, healing and wellness. Additionally, numerous concerns were presented about the 2023 technical arrangement with the International Commission on Missing Persons that Canada reportedly concluded without consulting Indigenous Peoples. 30. Canada has taken important steps towards recognition and redress of the abuse and trauma caused by Indian residential schools and day schools. In July 2022, the Federal Government established the National Advisory Committee on Residential School Missing Children and Unmarked Burials and appointed an Independent Special Interlocutor for Missing Children and Unmarked Graves and Burial Sites. The Government has settled and is continuing to resolve class action claims of survivors and their families. However, full resolution of residential school claims is necessary to achieve true reconciliation, including with regard to Catholic and other church-run institutions and residential schools established by provinces, and the claims of Métis survivors and their families. Some survivors who suffered severe trauma were not emotionally prepared to present claims by the Government’s deadline but may wish to do so in the future. In accordance with the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and general principles of international law, statutes of limitations should not apply to grave crimes such as those committed in residential schools. B. Child welfare system 31. The forced removal of Indigenous children from their families continues, as children are placed in foster care or adopted, often off-reserve, reproducing the negative impacts of residential schools.9 Despite comprising 7.7 per cent of the Canadian population, 53.8 per cent of children in foster care are Indigenous;10 the figure is as high as 90 per cent in some provinces. Entering the child welfare system increases the risk of incarceration and of becoming murdered or missing. Indigenous youth, who make up 8 per cent of the population 9 10 6 A/HRC/27/52/Add.2, para. 31; and A/HRC/41/42/Add.1, para. 79. See https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220921/dq220921a-eng.htm. GE.23-13374