Premier Brian Pallister said in a statement that the events of the past two months should inspire us to make real progress on reconciliation.
Pallister says that progress can only be made by working collaboratively and in partnership with Indigenous leaders and communities as we chart a path forward, together.
The Premier says he has been reflecting and wishes his words had been spoken differently so they could have been understood better.
He adds that he never justified the existence of residential schools in Canada and the lasting harm they inflicted on Indigenous persons.
Last month, Pallister said "the people who came to this country didn't come here to destroy anything, they came here to build."
In the health order conference today, Pallister spoke about the appointment of Alan Lagimodiere as Minister of Indigenous Reconciliation and Northern Relations of Manitoba.
“Alan’s a fine man. He’s an accomplished person who’s risen from not much to achieve great things in his life. He’s a caring person who understands the challenges in front of him and has faced up to them. He apologized immediately for his comments and misrepresentation around residential schools.”
Pallister says we would not be a province without the foundational contributions that First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples have made and continue to make to Manitoba.
