Survivors of forced and coerced sterilization deserve government apology, compensation: Senate committee

July 21, 2022

OTTAWA (July 14, 2022) – The federal government should compensate and apologize to all people who were subjected to forced and coerced sterilization, the Senate Committee on Human Rights said in a report released Thursday, July 14, 2022.

The report, The Scars that We Carry: Forced and Coerced Sterilization of Persons in Canada – Part II, outlines the committee’s findings from the second part of its study into this deeply disturbing practice, which persists today and disproportionately affects vulnerable and marginalized groups in Canada, including Indigenous women, Black, and racialized women, and people with disabilities.

Survivors described how they were stripped of their ability to conceive without their free, prior, and informed consent at moments of extreme vulnerability. Some were as young as 14 and coerced through confinement, manipulation or threats; others were simply not consulted before the procedure. Many survivors attributed their sterilization to racism in Canada’s healthcare system.

The report includes 11 other recommendations aimed at ending forced and coerced sterilization in Canada, including a specific Criminal Code prohibition, increased investments in community-based midwifery in northern and remote communities, and a national plan to collect and publish anonymized data on forced and coerced sterilization.

The committee extends its heartfelt gratitude to the survivors who testified. The absence of data on forced and coerced sterilization placed a heavy burden on them to come forward and share their personal stories and lived experiences; their brave decision to do so was integral to the completion of this report.

Quick Facts

  • Sterilization is a surgical procedure to prevent conception. Forced or coerced sterilization occurs when the procedure is performed without the patient’s free, prior, and informed consent. This often has profound physical and psychological effects on survivors.
  • The practice of forced and coerced sterilization of marginalized and vulnerable groups — including Indigenous women, Black women, people with disabilities and intersex children — has a long history in Canada; cases of forced or coerced sterilization have been reported as recently as 2019.
  • Reproductive rights are considered part of the right to security of the person guaranteed by section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as numerous international law instruments.
  • Class action lawsuits have been brought forward in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Alberta on behalf of Indigenous women who say they were subjected to forced or coerced sterilizations.
  • The Senate Committee on Human Rights conducted a preliminary study of forced and coerced sterilization in Canada between 2019 and 2021. The committee released its first report on the subject in June 2021.

Quotes

“For most Canadians, the idea of being forcibly stripped of your ability to conceive is unthinkable. Survivors of this horrific practice deserve an apology for the harm inflicted upon them. Governments, healthcare practitioners, medical associations, and professional governing and licensing bodies must each do their part to ensure no other person in Canada is pressured or manipulated into being sterilized.” – Senator Salma Ataullahjan, Chair of the committee

“Healing from this dark history will require a whole-of-government approach, including a reparations framework developed in concert with survivors. One concrete step that Parliament can take to prevent further cases of forced and coerced sterilization is to make this inhumane practice a specific criminal offence in Canada. Since we cannot afford to wait, I introduced Bill S-250 in the Senate on June 14, 2022, and I call on all my colleagues in the Senate and the House of Commons to support its swift passage.” – Senator Yvonne Boyer, member of the committee

“Forced and coerced sterilization is unfortunately an inhumane practice rooted in racism and conscious or unconscious biases. It demonstrates, once again, the perception of a superior colonial view according to a preconceived way of life, which continues to devalue the life of Indigenous peoples. I urge the federal government and the medical profession to do everything within their power to increase the number of Indigenous healthcare professionals across the country. Medical and nursing schools must mandate courses dealing with historic and contemporary realities and Indigenous health issues, as recommended in the report.” – Senator Michèle Audette, former member of the committee

Associated Links

For more information:

Ben Silverman
Communications Officer| Senate of Canada
343-574-4950 | ben.silverman@sen.parl.gc.ca