Prime Minister Mark Carney has stated that a formal apology is necessary for a surveillance operation that targeted numerous Indigenous individuals with government backing. Carney expressed his views during a press briefing in Halifax, emphasizing that such actions were inexcusable and should never have occurred.
The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) is urging Carney, the federal public safety minister, and the RCMP commissioner to issue the apology. AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak emphasized that Indigenous peoples are not adversaries but are integral partners in Canada.
In response to a recent CBC Indigenous investigation uncovering extensive RCMP surveillance spanning back to the late 1960s, the AFN is demanding an immediate inquiry into these activities against First Nations, Inuit, and Métis leaders and groups.
Thousands of declassified documents obtained by CBC Indigenous reveal that the RCMP engaged in covert surveillance and disruption tactics against legitimate Indigenous organizations involved in legal advocacy, including wiretapping the phones of the National Indian Brotherhood during the mid-1970s.
Following the public outcry, RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme issued a written statement expressing regret and committing to meet with Indigenous leaders and elders to address the ongoing impact of these actions. Despite calls for a public apology from Indigenous leaders and Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree, Duheme has not publicly addressed the surveillance program.
The CBC Indigenous investigation exposed the RCMP Security Service’s clandestine surveillance operations and counter-subversion efforts against Indigenous rights movements. The program, which was scaled back in 1978 and later resumed by CSIS in 1988, has been deemed disturbing by Natan Obed, president of the national Inuit organization in Canada.
Obed stressed the importance of acknowledging and learning from this history to prevent its recurrence and promote mutual respect among all Canadians.
