Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will exonerate Chief Poundmaker on May 23 during a visit to Poundmaker Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, according to a senior government source.
The exoneration comes 134 years after the Battle of Cut Knife, after which Poundmaker was convicted of treason.
Poundmaker stopped his warriors from chasing the retreating Canadian forces down, which prevented the deaths of hundreds of Canadian troops.
Instead of being celebrated as a hero, Poundmaker was accused of provoking the fight.
Poundmaker was jailed for six months. He died shortly after his release from a fatal respiratory disease.
The federal government took away the community’s guns and horses after the battle, which left its people with little to live on. Many of them starved.
Trudeau’s statement of exoneration is being co-developed with Poundmaker Cree Nation, which has long called for an acquittal of their leader.
More to come.
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