Filipiniana News 14 June 2008 Prime Minister Harper recently issued an official apology to the former students of native residential schools and admitted that “ this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country .” Much like the previous official government apologies for the internment of the Japanese and the Chinese head tax, this symbolic act is an important step towards healing old wounds and in paving the way for achieving meaningful reforms and social justice. While it is a welcome symbolic act, it should not end up as another lip service to the ideals of fairness and justice that Canada has always claimed to uphold. Pardon me for sounding cynical, but I cannot help doubting the government’s sincerity as it continues to perpetuate immigration laws and policies which are clearly against the very same ideals of fairness and justice that it claims to promote. For instance, this recent apology...