The absence of Canadian authorities at the opening of the 24th International AIDS Conference, which is taking place in Montreal, Canada, was the subject of the bulletin recorded by activist Marta McBritton, in her column at the Agency AIDS. According to Marta, the absence was justified by the visit of Pope Francis to Canada.

“A journey of penance. This is how Pope Francis defined his five-day visit to Canada, which began last Sunday, the 24th, when he landed in Edmonton, in the province of Alberta. The pontiff visited an old school and met with natives on Monday. He was also in Quebec and Iqaluit, capital of the territory of Nunavut.

The first day of the Canadian tour was devoted to Indigenous peoples and apologies, with a mass celebrated at the Community Stadium in Edmonton. Between 1881 and 1996, more than 150,000 indigenous children were separated from their families and taken to boarding schools. Many have been starved, beaten and sexually abused in a system that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada has called “cultural genocide”. Although Canadian leaders are aware of the high number of children dying in schools since 1907, the issue was brought to the fore last year with the discovery of suspicious unmarked graves in former boarding schools or on land neighbours.

Responding to pressure stemming from the findings, the pope apologized for the Catholic Church’s role in schools earlier this year during a visit by indigenous delegates to the Vatican. He went to apologize on Canadian soil.

Check out the videos recorded by activist Marta McBritton:

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