A panel of judges from the Permanent Peoples' Tribunal has issued an interim ruling concluding that current Government of Canada policies amount to an ongoing genocide against Indigenous Peoples.

The decision follows a week of hearings held in Montreal focusing on the legacy and continuing impacts of the residential school system, including missing Indigenous children, unmarked graves, and intergenerational trauma.

The tribunal, an international body that examines alleged human rights violations, heard extensive testimony from survivors, experts, and legal advocates.

According to the judges, evidence presented during the hearings demonstrated a systemic pattern of harm linked to forced family separation, cultural destruction, and enduring psychological and physical abuse experienced by Indigenous children in residential schools.Witnesses described severe abuse by staff and clergy, as well as long-term effects affecting families and communities across generations.The panel stated that these conditions reflect an ongoing failure by Canadian authorities to address accountability.

Legal experts, including human rights scholar Fannie Lafontaine, emphasized that genocide under international law is not limited to mass killings, but also includes acts such as causing serious bodily or mental harm, imposing destructive living conditions, and forcibly transferring children from one group to another.

Tribunal judges Valmaine Toki and Seánna Howard pointed to what they described as systemic disregard for Indigenous sovereignty and rights, arguing this pattern supports the genocide finding.

The Government of Canada did not participate in the proceedings, and federal officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the interim ruling.Christa Big Canoe, lead prosecutor for the tribunal, welcomed the decision and urged continued resistance to denial of residential school harms.A final ruling from the tribunal is expected on September 30, coinciding with the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.