Former, current ministers refuse to disclose documents in residential school case against Catholic Church

In the fall of 2015, someone in the federal government decided to drop amultimillion-dollar residential school compensation case against Catholic Church groups.

CBC News recentlyreached out tomore than a dozen current or formerministers and senior bureaucrats. Several admit they likely have relevantdocuments but refused to share them.

That includes bothcurrent Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller and Bernard Valcourt, who served as minister of aboriginal affairs and northern development in the Conservative government from February 2013 until his defeat in the October 2015 federal election, won by the Liberals.

Miller's director of communications, Renelle Arsenault, wrotein an email Thursday that a document requested by CBCNews would not be provided because "it's secret." When asked to elaborate, she did not respond.

Valcourt, reached this week by phone at his home in New Brunswick, was asked toprovide his notes or emails from that period, but he declined.

"It's filed far, far away," he said.

Sunday, after the initial CBC News story was published, Miller issueda statement on Twitter. He said it was Valcourt who signed a document to "release the Catholic entities" in September, 2015. But Miller's office again declined to provide the document.

Miller has turned downrepeated interview requests. Staff now say he willbe available Monday.

Reachedagain Sunday evening, Valcourtwas asked about Miller's Sunday statement. Valcourtsaid:"I have done so many things up there, I don't know. I don't knowanything about this particular case. If (Miller)feels good saying that, good for him. I could care less."

Advocates say survivors, their families and the public have a right to these documentsimmediately. They say it's the latest slap in the face to survivors by the federal government, the courts and the Catholic Church.

"Everybody is covering their butts. You have a conspiracy of silence from mostly white males. It's so disappointing," said Tom McMahon, the former general counsel for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Angela White, executive director of the Indian Residential SchoolSurvivors Society, agreed.

"Survivors have a right to know what happened and exactly why it happened and why their voices are not being heard," she said.

Government abandons appeal

Catholic entities made three promises totalling $79 million under the landmark Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement of2005.A recent CBC News investigation has ledmany survivors, lawyers and First Nations leaders tosaythe church reneged on all three.

The first pledge was to provide $29 million in cash, but this was not met after millions of dollars were spent on lawyers, administration and other unapproved expenses.

The second was to give "best efforts" to fundraise $25 million nationally. Less than $4 million was raisedduring a period when Catholic officials spentmore than $300 million onchurch and cathedral building projects.

WATCH | Demands for Catholic Church to pay settlement before papal visit:

Demands for Catholic Church to pay residential school settlement before any papal visit

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Residential school survivors and advocates say they want the Catholic Church to pay the remaining amount of how much it owes to survivors under a 2005 settlement deal. Its estimated at about $60 million, which is also how much a possible visit by the Pope could cost Canada.

The third was to provide $25 million worth of "in-kind services"to survivors. CBC News obtained the list of services, and survivors say most of the money providedwas forinappropriatecolonial religious services such as Bible study coursesor sending priests and nuns to preach in Indigenous communities.

In July2015, the Catholic Church asked for a buyout. The federal government refused, and the matter went to court. Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench Justice Neil Gabrielson approved the Catholicbuyout proposal of less than $2 million.

The federal government appealed the decision, claiming Gabrielson had made "palpable and overriding errors in his assessment of the facts." Ottawathen asked that the July decision be quashed.

But for some unknown reason, someone in thefederal government decided to abandonthe appeal. The case was then closed.

Ex-deputy minister denies making decision

In October, CBC News asked officials in the Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations for an explanation. In an email, they said the decision to dropthe appeal was made bythe deputy minister when it wasknown as the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.

But speaking publicly for the first time to CBC News, that former deputy minister, Colleen Swords,deniedmaking the decision.

In an interview, Swords said it appears the decision to abandon the appeal was made during the "caretaker period" after the2015 federal election.Stephen Harper's Conservative government had just lost the election to Justin Trudeau's Liberals.

Valcourt and other ministers remained responsible until the new cabinet was installed. But during this transition period, bureaucrats and ministers "generally practised restraint whenever possible" in deference to the incoming regime, Swords said.

That's why sheisn't sure why the appeal was dropped at that time.

"I would assume this was considered significant.... This would have been major," she said. "They wouldn't do that. Not if they could wait."

Lori Turnbull, director of the Dalhousie University's school of public administration, agreed. She said no major decisions should be made during the caretaker period.

"If there was nothing urgent here, nothing pressing. You could have waited another month," Turnbull said.

Swords suggested contacting Andrew Saranchuk, theassistant deputy minister at the time who wasin charge of the residential schools file. Saranchukis now a senior official in the Department of Justice, but an official said he would not be available for an interview.

Church says it fulfilled obligations

After CBCNews informed Crown-Indigenous Relationsthat Swords denied involvement, theyissuedan amended statement. The statement pointedin general to"the Harper government."

CBCNews alsorequested an interview withPeter MacKay, who was Harper's justice minister at the time.

"Just got this. What can I do for you ?" MacKayreplied by email.

A detailed explanation and questions werethen sent to MacKay, but he did not reply. David Lametti, the current justice minister,also declined an interview request.

As for Valcourt, he said he respects Swords.

"You can trust her. She's a very straight person," he said.

But while Valcourt said he likely has emails and documents relevant to the appeal, he'snot interested in reliving those events.

"I'm afraid I cannot help you on that. I have resolved to never mingle or comment on the past," he said.

Jonathan Lesarge, government and public relations adviser with the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, said its officials dealt with the minister, deputy minister and assistant deputy minister on the compensationfile during the relevant period, but it's unclear who made the specific decision to abandon the appeal.

Lesarge added that the bishops are "confident" theyfulfilled allobligations under the compensation agreement.

In Miller's Twitter statement Sunday, healsopoints to the former deputy minister ofAboriginal Affairs and Northern Development. Miller tweeted that Valcourt gave instructions to release the Catholic groups, and it was negotiated and signed in October, 2015 by the deputy minister.Swords held that position at that time.

Sunday, CBC News again asked Miller and hisstaff to disclose that document.They declined.

Meanwhile, McMahon and White say these refusals, changing stories and conflicting accounts arenot acceptable. They say Canada's 150,000 residential school survivors and their descendantsare again being traumatized by ongoing secrecy and that someone needs to be held accountable.

"Have we not promised to stop treating survivors this way?" McMahon said.