National Gathering on Unmarked Burials

The National Gathering on Unmarked Burials was held on January 16 – 18 in Vancouver. Two members of the Working Group, Martha Sutherland and Shirley Koosees as well as community coordinator, Leona Spence attended as representatives of Nee Kee Wa Nan. This gathering was hosted by the office of the Independent Special Interlocutor for Missing Children and Unmarked Graves and Burial Sites associated with Indian Residential Schools. At this event, First Nations from across Canada came together to discuss and share information on:

• The importance of Indigenous sovereignty and community control over data
• Principles of (OCAP) Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession of information related to the search and recovery of missing children
• Barriers and solutions to accessing records
• Indigenous Law on information and knowledge
• Language and translation of records

To find out more please visit: osi-bis.ca/past-events/