Human rights panel accuses Canada of genocide against Indigenous population

Laura Arndt, centre, an intergenerational survivor, gives support to Mohawk Institute residential school survivors Sherlene Bomberry, left, and Diane Hill, right, as they listen to the preliminary declaration at the Permanent Peoples' Tribunal on Missing Children and Unmarked Graves in Canada in Montreal on Friday, May 29, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

MONTREAL — An international panel of human rights experts has accused Canada of committing genocide against its Indigenous population.

The Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal reached the preliminary conclusion following a week of hearings in Montreal.

The panel says Canada had historically adopted a series of policies that it deemed were crimes against humanity with genocidal intent.

The panel says these included the introduction of Canada’s system of residential schools and policies that forced the sterilization of Indigenous women.

Survivors at the hearings held onto each other and wiped away tears as three tribunal members read out the decision.

The international opinion court was created in 1979 to investigate crimes against humanity and human rights violations.

The judgment also says Canada has failed to meet its responsibilities laid out by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015.

The tribunal is set to hand down its full judgment on Sept. 30 for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.


This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 29, 2026.

Erika Morris, The Canadian Press