The Forced Sterilisation of Indigenous Women in Canada: A Long History of State Violence

Earlier this year, Canada drew international scrutiny for denouncing inhumane treatment of the Uyghur community. Together with the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union, it imposed a set of sanctions against several Chinese state officials to denounce China’s ongoing genocide. Expressing its bewilderment in the face of “horrific reports of human rights violations,” Justin Trudeau’s government came on particularly strong about the use of forced sterilisation in an attempt to limit the growth of the Muslim population in Xinjiang.

In international law, forced sterilisation is defined as “the involuntary or coerced removal of a person’s ability to reproduce” and this without “free, prior, full and informed consent”. Often part of government-mandated programs, this birth control method aims at preventing a specific group of people from having access to reproductive choices, making it a prime example of state violence and systemic racism. Recent developments in regional and international courts have resulted in the global recognition of forced sterilisation as a grave violation under international human rights law. The Rome Statute, for instance, considers forced sterilisation a war crime and a crime against humanity.

Nonetheless, this legal framework has not prevented non-consensual sterilisation from still occurring today. Quite the contrary, an inter-United Nations (UN) agencies report published in 2014 underlines the ongoing and extensive use of forced sterilisation against people with disabilities, HIV, and also ethnic minorities and aboriginal communities.

By reaffirming women’s universal rights to life, dignity, and autonomy, Canada’s decision regarding the Uyghurs was largely welcomed by the international community. Yet, criticisms have emerged from civil society groups and political figures speaking up to denounce an attitude considered hypocritical. Indeed, despite its global reputation as a human rights defender, Canada’s recent history has been significantly marked by racial discrimination and reproductive violence.

A HISTORY OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AND REPRODUCTIVE VIOLENCE

Historically, forced sterilisation practices originate from the eugenics movement. Particularly active in North America at the end of the 19th century, this ideology advocated for the global improvement of societies through the suppression of any behaviours perceived as deviant. By systematically eliminating unwanted elements, eugenics-based theories believed in their ability to positively influence human evolution. As a privileged population control tool, these practices unsurprisingly constituted an integral part of the colonial system.

The growing enthusiasm for eugenics thinking reached Canadian borders in the first half of the 20th century. Even though forced sterilisation was already common throughout the territory, the Province of Alberta officially enacted the Sexual Sterilization Act (SSA) in 1928, followed in 1933 by British Columbia. Considered the first Canadian eugenics law, this act legalised and regulated the sterilisation of mentally-disabled individuals.

Aggressive assimilation policies quickly extended these measures to Indigenous communities such as the Inuit, Indian, and Métis people. While it is difficult to provide an accurate estimate, researchers agree that Indigenous women were disproportionately targeted. Between 1966 and 1976, over 1,000 women would have undergone forced sterilisation in public hospitals, residential schools, and mental facilities. Over the same period, the birth rate within the communities reportedly fell from 47 to 28 per 1,000 people.

INDIGENOUS WOMEN AND GIRLS IN TODAY’S CANADA: LIMITS OF THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM

In today’s Canada, the worrying impact of colonial practices persists, particularly among Indigenous women and girls. The latest report from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) indicates that this population is 12 times more likely to be victims of acts of violence such as murders, kidnappings, and rapes. At higher risk of social and economic marginalisation, Indigenous women and girls are one of the most vulnerable and unprotected groups of the country.

Access to proper health care remains a major obstacle, and the new challenges posed by the pandemic particularly exposed such vulnerabilities. Indigenous women often fear discrimination and mistreatment in health care, as there are massive health disparities within the country demonstrated in part by restrictive access to family doctors and gynaecologists. Figures show a heightened risk of chronic disease and mental health issues with Indigenous women facing higher chances of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse. The postpartum period is particularly challenging, stressing the deep trauma caused by decades of forced assimilation and reproductive violence.

Despite SSA’s official repeal in 1973, the recent period has witnessed a rise in reproductive abuses. In 2018, a class-action lawsuit representing 60 women was filed against the Saskatchewan government. The suit presented alleged violations of rights as recently as 2017, and testimonies reported forced tubal ligation procedures and hysterectomies realised under the pressure of medical personnel. Since then, over 100 Indigenous women have come forward with similar statements across the country.

A CRY FOR REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE

In a country that prides itself for a universal and public health care system, the continuation of forced sterilisation practices is utterly baffling. The medical sector has always played a major role for colonial rulers in controlling Indigenous communities. As such, the present use of coerced sterilisation against Indigenous women must be seen as the unacceptable legacy of colonial oppression. Along with forced displacements and assimilation policies, forced sterilisation contributes to the dissolution of traditional family links engendering severe intergenerational trauma with social and economic consequences still resonating today.

The compulsory sterilisation issue receives little attention from the government. The wave of formal apologies initiated in 1999 by the province of Alberta did not coincide with the implementation of substantive actions addressing the root causes of the discrimination against Indigenous women and girls in contemporary Canada.

Necessary, substantive actions should include measures to ensure access to protection, proper information, and informed consent within the health care system as well as the creation of a secure environment free from racial, cultural, and gender prejudices. It is in this vein that the UN Committee Against Torture in 2018 called for the implementation of an independent accountability and reporting mechanism in Canada in order to ensure justice for survivors of medical violence and their families.

Furthermore, it is essential to assess such issues in the light of the constant infantilisation of Indigenous communities. First Nations, Inuit, and Metis women and girls continue to be perceived as individuals unable to make their own reproductive choices, proving that the colonial mentality continues to have a grip on women’s bodies. The recent death of Joyce Echaquan, a 37-year-old Indigenous woman verbally and physically abused by health care workers in Quebec is a dramatic illustration. Now that the country is dealing with a dark chapter of its history, it is time for the federal government to take all necessary steps to ensure that victims are heard and that this climate of impunity no longer prevails.

Photo - Mégane Rodriguès - Aqsa Hussain.jpg

Megane obtained a master’s degree in International Relations and a five-year degree in Political Sciences. She is interested in human rights, conflict resolution, humanitarian, and migration issues.

Linkedin