Nearly 1,000 people gathered in a downtown Winnipeg hotel to hear the historic apology. (CBC)

Manitoba's top First Nations leader approves of the federal government's historic apology Wednesday to former students of the residential school program, but he adds that Ottawa must now take action to back up the words.

Nearly 1,000 people attended a gathering at the Radisson Hotel in Winnipeg to watch Prime Minister Stephen Harper's televised statement from the House of Commons — the first formal apology ever offered by a Canadian prime minister to those subjected to the Indian residential school program.

Many more people came to the hotel event than organizers expected; two overflow rooms had to be set up to accommodate everyone who wanted to attend.

While the prime minister was speaking, at first there was some applause, especially when he said he would allow aboriginal leaders to speak. But when the apology began in earnest, many began to wipe away tears; some broke out in quiet sobs.

After the formal speeches were over, Ron Evans, head of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, said Harper was clearly sincere when he acknowledged the damage residential schools had done to aboriginal people.

"It was important that they acknowledged, they apologized to the survivors, but also it was important that they acknowledged the impacts, because the children today have to deal with that," he said.

Harper's government must now provide more funding to deal with those impacts, which include high suicide rates among young people, high rates of incarceration among native people, and a large number of aboriginal children in the care of the child-welfare system, Evans said.

Hopes for compensation

Manitoba Metis Federation president David Chartrand also believes Wednesday's apology was sincere — but while it may provide closure for some First Nations people, the struggle goes on for the Métis, he said.

Few Métis have been compensated for their time in residential schools, Chartrand said. He hopes that will change in the wake of the apology.

"It's something that we're very happy about," he said. "We got a call from Canada, and they want to talk. They want to continue maybe a new chapter now, because they know a vast amount of people have been left out."

Chartrand believes some kind of agreement will eventually be reached between the federal government and the Métis.