Manitoba premier issues apology for centre for people with intellectual disabilities
Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson formally apologized in the legislature Thursday to former residents of the Manitoba Developmental Centre, one of the country's last large institutional facilities for people with intellectual disabilities.
Stefanson's apology, part of a $17-million class-action settlement earlier this year, focused partly on abuse and neglect suffered by former residents. But it also touched on the larger issue of housing people in large institutions instead of in the community with personal supports.
"We are sorry for our province's history of forcing children and adults into an institutional model of care, for the resulting loss of family, culture and the right to be (a) valued member of a community," Stefanson told the chamber.
"Our vulnerable citizens were separated and segregated from their families, devalued and denied of their fundamental human rights to live freely in the community."
The facility opened in Portage la Prairie in 1890. At its peak in the 1970s, it housed some 1,200 people but is now home to fewer than 130. The Manitoba government stopped accepting new residents at the centre in 1996, except for short-term and court-ordered placements.
In 2021, the Progressive Conservative government announced plans to close the centre by 2024 and have people live closer to loved ones, often in their own homes with support. That plan remains on track, Stefanson said.
The lawsuit was launched in 2018 by David Weremy, who lived at the centre in the 1950s, '60s and '70s. In his statement of claim, Weremy alleged he was often hit with a whip or a wooden board, frequently underfed and punished for trying to run away by being placed in solitary confinement or being forced to sleep naked on the floor.
The statement of claim sought $50 million and alleged staff beat residents, deprived them of food and allowed sexual assaults to occur between residents.
Weremy was in the legislature gallery Thursday to hear the apology and later told reporters it felt good.
"Don't put people in an institution. Don't lock them up," he said.
Opposition NDP Leader Wab Kinew said his party wins the provincial election scheduled for Oct. 3, it would follow through on the commitment to close the centre.
"I think the apology is a necessary step and it's clear that the era of institutionalization is over and we're now in an era of inclusion," Kinew said.
The class-action settlement agreement, which received court approval last month, will see much of the $17 million used to compensate former residents. Some of the money is slated to build a monument at the Manitoba Developmental Centre's cemetery and to fund projects that help people with disabilities live in the community.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 1, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
'We hoped for this day, but we were scared that it would not never ever come because it took so long.' That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.