Richard Beauvais and Eddy Ambrose lived out each other’s lives, the third known such mistake in Manitoba. Now the premier is reversing a decision to deny responsibility

For nearly seven decades, two Canadian men lived lives – full of pain, joy and love – meant for the other.

Richard Beauvais, 68, believed he was Indigenous. Eddy Ambrose, who shares the same birthday, always understood that he was of Ukrainian descent.

But that reality shattered four years ago when, after a series of DNA tests, they learned they had been mistakenly switched at birth.

On Thursday, Wab Kinew, the recently elected premier of Manitoba, will apologize to Beauvais and Ambrose in the province’s legislature, reversing a decision by the previous government to deny responsibility for the mix-up. The painful saga, which embodies the damaging effects of Canada’s colonial policies, also highlights the fragile nature of identity and the complex meaning of family.