St. John’s, Canada, May 17, 2022 (AFP) – Prince Charles and his wife, Camila, began a visit to Canada on Tuesday (17), on a three-day trip to the North American country, in which they were invited by the Governor General, the official representative of Queen Elizabeth II in the country, speaking with the indigenous peoples.

The royal couple made their first stop in Saint John of Newfoundland (east), where they were welcomed by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Governor General Mary Simon, of Indian origin.

“I invite you to speak with native people to hear their stories, their accomplishments and their solutions and to learn the truth about our history, the good and the bad,” Simon said.

The couple arrive in Canada nearly a year after the discovery of unmarked graves of children in former Catholic boarding schools for natives, which caused a scandal and revealed the country’s colonial history.

Upon arrival, Charles and Camila waved to the audience as they approached the entrance to the Canadian Confederation Building.

“Our visit here this week comes at an important time for Indigenous people in Canada who are openly reflecting on the past to build a new future,” the prince said.

The welcoming ceremony included a prayer in Inuktitut, the traditional language spoken in an Inuit village, as well as a musical performance by an Inuk soprano and a traditional Mi’kmaq song.

– The residential school scandal – The couple plan to visit the capital Ottawa and Thursday in the Northwest Territories, a region of northern Canada on the edge of the Arctic, which is warming three times faster than the rest of the planet.

“(Prince Charles) wants to talk about the environment and the natives want to talk about religious boarding schools,” historian and expert on the British monarchy, James Jackson, told AFP.

“The three provinces most affected by the scandal of these religious residential schools were British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Alberta, not included in the trip. By visiting the Northwest Territories, he will be able to talk about the environment without going into too much scandal. boarding schools,” he said.

The royal visit comes at a time of delicate transition for the British monarchy, rocked by two recent royal trips to the Caribbean, during which first Prince William and then Prince Edward were called upon to apologize for the Britain’s slave past.

Elizabeth II, the 96-year-old British Queen, has also canceled almost all of her public appearances in the past seven months due to health concerns. However, this Tuesday, the monarch, who is celebrating her 70th birthday on the throne, came by surprise to the inauguration of a metro line that bears her name in London.

Despite the affection that two-thirds of Canadians express for the Queen, 51% want the end of the constitutional monarchy for future generations, according to a recent poll by the Canadian Angus Reid Institute.

As Canada critically reviews its colonial past, 65% reject the idea of ​​Charles, 73, as Canada’s king and head of state, and 76% refuse to recognize Camilla, 74, as their queen .

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