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	Head of Commission Examining Canadian Church-Run Schools Resigns, Says Authority Questioned Associated Press, carried in Star Tribune (United States) October 20, 2008 http://www.startribune.com/world/31353019.html?elr=KArks:DCiUBcy7hUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU TORONTO - The head of a Canadian commission examining the consequences of a decades-long government policy that required Canadian Indians to attend Christian schools resigned Monday, saying the panel did not accept his authority. In his resignation letter, Justice Harry LaForme, of the Ontario Court of Appeal, said the panel was on the "verge of paralysis." LaForme was appointed in April as chairman of the truth and reconciliation commission, which is documenting the experiences of former students, many of whom were abused while attending the schools where the goal was to assimilate them into Canadian society. In a letter sent Monday to Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl, LaForme wrote, "The two commissioners are unprepared to accept that the structure of the commission requires that the (commission's) course is to be charted and its objectives are to be shaped ultimately through the authority and leadership of its chair." The commission's five-year mandate began in June. Members will eventually travel across Canada to hear stories from former students, teachers and others. From the 19th century until the 1970s, more than 150,000 aboriginal children were required to attend state-funded Christian schools in a painful attempt to rid them of their native cultures and languages and integrate them into Canadian society. The federal government admitted 10 years ago that physical and sexual abuse in the schools was rampant. Many students recall being beaten for speaking their native languages and losing touch with their parents and customs. Ted Yeomans, a spokesman for Strahl, said they were disappointed by LaForme's decision. LaForme declined comment through a spokesman.
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