The federal Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations has redacted nearly all details from internal reports describing how a B.C. First Nation spent millions in taxpayer funding intended to locate alleged graves of children at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.Blacklock's Reporter says documents released under the Access to Information Act show the department labelled the reports “confidential,” concealing details about work undertaken by the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation after Ottawa provided $12.1 million to support searches tied to claims that 215 children were buried on the site.The reports, filed in 2023, were requested to determine what activities were completed as part of the federally funded effort to identify burial sites. However, all substantive material was blacked out by the department.The funding was originally provided to “coordinate engagement, investigation and commemoration activities related to the 215 missing children and burial sites.” By the time the reports were filed, the First Nation had already received $8,394,166 of the total grant.Federal officials cited multiple sections of the Access to Information Act to justify withholding the details, including provisions covering personal information, confidential technical data and material supplied in confidence by third parties. The department also said disclosure could interfere with contractual or other negotiations..The redacted reports come weeks after the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation acknowledged in a Feb. 18 statement that it had not attempted to exhume any remains from the site where ground-penetrating radar had identified soil disturbances.“Signatures that resemble burials were found in some areas,” the First Nation said. “Some areas were ruled out as burials, while others cannot confidently be ruled out. While we want facts and answers as quickly as possible, we face significant challenges.”Ottawa had previously confirmed millions in federal spending were directed toward work at the Kamloops site. A spokesperson for Crown-Indigenous Relations said in 2024 the community received funding to conduct field research related to the investigation.Internal government briefing notes from 2022 stressed the importance of uncovering facts surrounding unmarked burials at former residential school sites..“Our thoughts are with survivors, their families and communities as the heartbreaking truth about Residential Schools’ unmarked burials continues to be unveiled,” the briefing note said. It added that funding was available to help communities research, locate and memorialize children who died while attending residential schools.The original 2021 announcement that ground-penetrating radar had identified what were believed to be 215 graves at the Kamloops site triggered international headlines and widespread reaction across Canada.Former prime minister Justin Trudeau ordered the Peace Tower flag on Parliament Hill lowered for 161 days following the announcement.“I think Canadians have seen with horror those unmarked graves,” Trudeau said at the time.
