Offer to Woodlands' residents 'disgusting,' says mother

Families of victims of abuse at the Woodlands Schoola now-closed B.C. institution for people with mental disabilitiessay the provincial government's proposed compensation package is disgraceful.

The package was offered to 3,000 former Woodlands residents in response to a class-action lawsuit.

The victims and their familiesallege there was sexual abuse, physical abuse, isolation and confinement at the New Westminster facility over many years.

Arleen Schouten, whose daughter went to Woodlands, says the government package would re-victimize the former residents by forcing them to relive their ordeals.

Schouten says victims would be required to describe what happened to them to a tribunal that would then determine the amount of compensation based on a point system.

"The majority of folks that were abused at Woodlands are unable to speak, they are unable to represent themselves. And to go through this, this is appalling. And to ask vulnerable people to go through this is just disgusting, completely disgusting."

After Woodlands closed its doors in 1996, there were numerous complaints from former residents.

In 2001, the governmentappointed a former B.C.ombudsman to review those complaints. That review confirmed the complaints, chronicling systemic abuse of patients over a 50-year period.

In 2005, the former residents launched a class-action lawsuit against the government. In an attempt to settle out of court, the government came up with the plan for a tribunal.