As of January 30, 2003 18 dioceses had ratified the agreement. Describes the efforts of Archbishop Peers and Archdeacon Boyles to explain the agreement and the materials available. Page 3 has a chart of each diocese's situation.
Bishop Steven Charleston will lead discussions at the Winnipeg meeting, 7-10 October 2003, being held to look at the relationship between the Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples (ACIP) and the church. The Keewatin diocesan council had hoped for a larger gathering such as a Sacred Circle and asked that the October meeting be cancelled. The meeting will deal with the dispute between ACIP and church leaders following the March 2003 agreement with the federal government about residential schools.
"The Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples' (ACIP) rejection of the native residential schools agreement and its rebuke of the primate, Archbishop Michael Peers, is stirring up both support and criticism in the Canadian Church". The major point of concern for ACIP is that "natives who enter into the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process must sign a release form promising never to sue the government claiming loss of language and culture in the national boarding school system." A letter from the diocesan council of Keewatin conveyed the diocese's deep distress at the press release and stand taken by the Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples. Bishop Don Harvey of the diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador also expressed dismay at the ACIP position.
The officers of General Synod deferred a decision on a thorny problem concerning an alternate dispute resolution process available to native people who allege abuse at the residential schools.
Lay Canon Bud Smith has sharply criticized the settlement with the government because he believes it limits the church's ability to press for redress over cultural abuse.
Article reports on the synods of a number of the dioceses as they ratify the agreement. Chart on page 2 lists each diocese and the amount they are responsible for.