An aboriginal judge with Ontario's Court of Appeal has been appointed to head the Truth and Reconciliation Commission examining the legacy of decades of abuse at Indian residential schools.

Justice Harry LaForme is currently on the bench of Ontario's Court of Appeal. (CBC)Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl announced Monday in Ottawa that Justice Harry LaForme, a member of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation in southern Ontario, will chair the commission that the federal government promised as part of an out-of-court settlement with former students of residential schools.

The commission, which will formally be established on June 1 following the appointment of two panel members to work with LaForme, will move all Canadians closer to the "shared goal of healing and reconciliation," Strahl said.

"Ultimately, we all want to make sure we achieve a fair and lasting resolution to the sad legacy of residential schools," he said.

LaForme, who was escorted to the podium by four aboriginal women, paid homage to the 90,000 remaining survivors for bringing the day to light.

"Your pain, your courage, your perseverance, and your profound commitment to truth made this commission a reality," LaForme said.

'Unfettered access' to records

He added he appreciated the desire of individuals from churches, government and former staff to participate "with honesty and humility in this commission," while also taking advantage of "unfettered access" to church and government records.

"The commission prepares to hear and to understand the multiple voices of the past with eyes, ears, minds and hearts that are open and compassionate, that will not ignore or mask the truth of that past," he said.

LaForme, 61, is a former Ontario Indian commissioner and former chair of a federal commission on aboriginal land claims.

The first aboriginal person appointed to any Canadian appellate court, LaForme graduated from York University's Osgoode Hall Law School in 1977 and was called to the bar in 1979. He was an associate at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt before leaving for private practice, specializing in aboriginal law.

Assembly of First Nations Chief Phil Fontaine, himself a residential school survivor, praised LaForme as a "kind and generous person" who "would leave no stone unturned" in determining what happened at the schools.

"We couldn't think of anyone better for this," Fontaine said. "He is just an outstanding individual."

History 'largely hidden': Fontaine

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has been developed to provide a nationwide forum for former aboriginal students and participants, including church representatives and educators, to tell their stories. The $60-million, five-year panel is also aimed at educating Canadians on the history and impact of the residential school system, which was funded by Ottawa and administered by churches.

Some 150,000 aboriginal, Inuit and Métis children were removed from their communities at the age of six and forced to attend the schools, where physical and sexual abuse was rampant for much of the last century. The schools aimed to assimilate the children by making them Christians, as well as to bury their language and culture.

Fontaine noted the history of the school system has been "largely hidden or misunderstood until now," and said he had hoped such a commission would have already begun its work.

"This is about Canada's history," he said. "It would have been better that this happened before this date, but we are here today, and we have a real opportunity to set the record straight and write the missing chapter."

Unlike South Africa's own lengthy hearings that examined crimes and abuses committed under the apartheid regime, Canada's first Truth and Reconciliation Commission will not offer immunity to those who appear before the panel to admit wrongdoing.

"We're not there to protect people from prosecution; that's not what this commission is about," LaForme said.

But he says the goal of the commission was not to find "people to blame, but about understanding that missing piece of history so that we understand how that occurred, why it occurred, and where our people can go from there."

'Pent-up' demand for survivors to speak

Both Strahl and Fontaine said they were encouraged by a meeting between the AFN chief and Prime Minister Stephen Harper in which Harper indicated an official apology to survivors of residential schools could be delivered as soon as this spring, before the House of Commons rises.

In a symbolic gesture last May, members of all parties stood united to pass a motion calling on the House of Commons to apologize to survivors.

Despite concerns that some experiences may be too painful to revisit publicly, there is a "pent-up" demand for survivors to tell their stories, said Mike DeGagné, executive director of the Aboriginal Healing Foundation.

"A great many of them will be interested in this process," DeGagné told CBC News on Monday.

He noted that in just a short time, some 600 people have come forward to have their individual experiences recorded on video as part of the Legacy of Hope Foundation, which documents the stories of former students to build awareness and educate Canadians.

"What you see when you view those videos is a tremendous outpouring of grief but also of hope, a notion that they've taken a step toward their healing," he said.