Evidence of meeting #5 for Canadian Heritage in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was event.
A recording is available from Parliament.
3:35 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Gary Schellenberger
I call to order the fifth meeting of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), for a study of the activities marking the 250th anniversary of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham.
This afternoon our witnesses is André Juneau, from the National Battlefields Commission.
Mr. Juneau, would you like to give your report?
3:35 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Gary Schellenberger
Excuse me, but there's just one thing I have to say first.
I would like to explain to everyone around the table that I will be holding everyone to five-minute questions; your microphone will be shut off at the end of the five minutes. It's five minutes for the question and answer. We'll hold that order. We are here for one hour, so the meeting will be over in one hour.
As we go forward, again, I ask that you make your presentation, sir. You have ten minutes.
3:35 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
Mr. Chair, ladies and gentlemen, members of the committee, I find it important to begin by setting out the National Battlefield Commission's mandate, which is to acquire, preserve and develop the great historic battlefields in Quebec City.
The Commission was established under the Act respecting the National Battlefields in Quebec, 1908, Edward VII, Chapter 37 and amendments.
The Commission is headed by a board of directors made up of nine members, including seven who are appointed by the governor in council, one representative of the Government of Quebec and another of the Government of Ontario. This last seat is currently vacant.
This structure is due to the fact that the park was constituted financially in large part through a national and international fundraising campaign sponsored by the Governor General of Canada, Lord Grey, and the Mayor of Quebec City and first president of the commission, Sir George Garneau. Its act of incorporation stated that any donor who contributed in excess of $100,000 was given a seat on the commission's board of directors.
The lands of the commission make up one of Canada's most important historic sites. Its 108 hectares lie on one of the most beautiful sites of the city of Quebec, next to the historic sector, with the cliff overlooking the St. Lawrence on its south side.
The park was designed 100 years ago, following the creation of sprawling urban parks in other major cities, and is one of the most prestigious.
The commission must therefore reconcile the park's historic significance with its urban character, and welcome the some four million visitors who come every year.
One of the fundamental elements of the commission's mission is to promote Canada's history as it relates to the park. Recalling the historical facts is therefore not a one-off activity, but an ongoing concern of the commission.
Since 1992, the commission has offered various pedagogical activities to its school clientele. Some 60,000 students visit each year, and the comments we receive are simply glowing. In fact, we have a satisfaction rate of over 99%. In recent years, following the tabling of the report on the commission's communications strategy, which recommended that we showcase historic events other than those involving Wolfe and Montcalm, the commission has worked to raise awareness of the land's use from the arrival of the first French settlers until today. It is in that sense that the commission inaugurated in 2008 the Louis-Hébert orchard, a living memorial devoted to the first French settlers who accompanied Champlain.
It is entirely appropriate, therefore, that the commission plan as part of its mandate to commemorate what is considered the most important historic event in America, and which led to the creation of National Battlefields Park.
I would like to point out that all members of the commission's board of directors and the vast majority of its employees are of French descent, members of the Quebec nation. These are true Quebeckers who chose to organize, on the site of the battles themselves, a commemoration that is respectful of a nation's collective memory.
I would now like to address the reasons behind the most hostile comments made against the commission, i.e., the historic re-enactments, particularly because they were deemed to be "festive" occasions.
However, the ultimate goal was to bring together as many people as possible around the principal event of the Seven Years' War in America.
The manoeuvres on the ground would have scrupulously respected what took place during those historic battles. The many re-enactments that are done around the world are undoubtedly spectacular, but not festive.
Furthermore, the "re-enactors" were well aware of the sensitivities surrounding the battle of 1759, as opposed to the 11 re-enactments that have been done since 2005 as part of the commemorations of the Seven Years' War in America. At the end of the two demonstrations, they had planned to pay tribute to the fallen soldiers as well as the civilian victims of the siege of Quebec City and the devastation of surrounding areas. Moreover, the presence of encampments and uniformed militia in Quebec was intended to recreate the conditions of a city under siege.
The debate was essentially on the form of the event, since everyone agreed that the battles of the Plains of Abraham and Sainte-Foy should be commemorated.
Although we have a duty to recall and teach historic events, the historical re-enactment of the battles also imposed on us a duty to protect people's safety and security. Given the abusive language heard of late and the threats made in the media, we, as responsible managers, could not: risk compromising the security of the families and children attending the event—including those of the "re-enactors"; and accept that such a popular, pedagogical and historical event for the whole family turn into a clash between law enforcement authorities and demonstrators.
To those who blamed us for reacting too late to the publication of the first newspaper articles in January, I would like to say that we had not completed our consultations with our partners and wished to do so before announcing the complete program of the commemoration.
The debate then became political, and we considered that it was not for a public institution like ours to engage at that level. We were totally convinced that the commission's programming was respectful and completely justified on the historical level. At that point, we thought it appropriate that the commission's response would be to present a revised, detailed program, all other aspects being beyond our responsibility. That is what we did on February 17.
I want to make it clear that it was never the commission's intention to create a festive event out of the commemoration of the battles of 1759 and 1760.
In fact, all activities that were planned as part of our programming were based on historical events that occurred in the colony at the end of the 18th century.
However, the highly emotional nature of the debate allowed us to better understand people's sensitivities regarding such historical commemorations, a sort of unexpected public survey.
In light of the consultations we held and the various opinions that we received, we decided to: cancel the re-enactment of 1759 and 1760; remove the visual aspect and substitute a more educational activity for the masked ball.
In summary, here are the main elements of the commission's revised programming to commemorate the 250th anniversaries of the battles of the Plains of Abraham and the Battle of Sainte-Foy, according to the spirit of the commission's mandate as set out earlier:
—the book launch by the Éditions du Septentrion of the book entitled Québec ville assiégée, 1759-1760 par les acteurs et les témoins;
—the exhibition The taking of Québec, 1759-1760 by the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec and the publication of the exhibition's catalogue by the National Battlefields Commission;
—the exhibition at the Discovery Pavilion of the Plains of Abraham on the Seven Years' War in North America;
—a historical activity dealing with the various aspects of the battles of Quebec City;
—the State of Siege: a portrait of the life of Quebec citizens during the siege of the summer of 1759;
—a rally with the patronymic descendants of the combatants;
—an on-line database of the British soldiers during the battles of 1759 and 1760;
—a seminar at the Chapel of the Musée de l'Amérique française: The Seven Years' War in America, in cooperation with the Société généalogique canadienne-française.
We will unveil memorials: a memorial to the combatants, a memorial to the aboriginal alliances, and busts of Lévis and Murray.
Several other partnerships are planned as part of the 250th anniversaries of the battles of 1759 and 1760. The commission has offered to produce a brochure containing the activities of other organizations that had planned to commemorate the events. A number of organizations have accepted our invitation, including Parks Canada, la Grande Ferme de Saint-Joachim and the Société d'art et d'histoire de Beauport.
I would like to say that the budget of the revised program amounts to approximately $320,000. The sum total of those funds was allocated from the commission's regular budget. No special budget to commemorate the events was allocated by the Government of Canada. A budget transfer was made between fiscal years, thanks to savings made in a number of expenditure items and an increase in own-source revenue. This budget decision was made by the commission in accordance with its mandate.
A number of individuals and groups are expected to visit Battlefields Park during the summer of 2009. Among other things, they are attracted by the fact that the Battle of the Plains of Abraham was part of the Seven Years' War, and the interest in that conflict both in Europe and America has already been revived, especially since 2005 by the “re-enactors”.
It is understandable therefore that those who are interested in this world conflict would want to learn more about the site of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, which has taken on mythical proportions. The commission will welcome them and facilitate their contact with other institutions, as need be.
The intentions of the commission should have been assessed based on adequate and established information.
That way people would have understood the context in which the re-enactments were planned. We find it was senseless and slanderous to say that the commission intended to celebrate a military defeat that, after 1763, has been considered a landmark event in our history.
In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that the commission's programming is, in historical terms, fully justified, well-balanced and respectful.
The National Battle fields Commission remains open and willing to cooperate. It has and will continue to listen to people's concerns.
Thank you.
3:45 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Gary Schellenberger
Thank you very much for that.
Our first question comes from Mr. Rodriguez.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Pablo Rodriguez Liberal Honoré-Mercier, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Good afternoon, Mr. Juneau. By reading your comments in various articles, I get the impression that you were surprised by the scope of the reactions. Obviously, people knew that it would inflame passions. Personally, I did not think that it was a good idea or the idea of the century. That said, I did not think that it would cause such an outpouring of emotions, threats and aggression directed toward the commission.
Correct me if I am wrong, but those threats could target the participants or visitors.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Pablo Rodriguez Liberal Honoré-Mercier, QC
Could you give us a little more detail about those threats?
3:45 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
Very well.
I would first like to clarify the context. You say that we had not thought that such things would occur. We knew that the re-enactments of the battles of the Plains of Abraham and Sainte-Foy were different from those that were held in 1994, 1998, 1999 and 2004. Those were battles that pitted the Americans against the British. Our innermost feelings as francophones were not stirred by those events. We were aware of that.
The battles must be replaced within the context of the Seven Years' war. Given that this was a world conflict, an increasing number of historians around the world became interested in the battles of the Seven Years' war, as of 2002, 2003 or 2004. This led us to examine the considerations of historians, especially since the Americans decided to re-enact all the battles in the U.S. in 2005.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Pablo Rodriguez Liberal Honoré-Mercier, QC
In a free and democratic society, we cannot accept such threats. Since you have first-hand knowledge, I would like to know more precisely what kind of threats you faced. I have only five minutes.
3:45 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
We received threats through the media, stating that people would prevent us from holding the event using any means at their disposal, whether by hurling golf balls or sandbags, or burning the encampment. We also received emails. These are the kinds of threats we receive when organizing events, but the threats in this case were far greater and more specific.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Pablo Rodriguez Liberal Honoré-Mercier, QC
We heard Mr. Falardeau say that he was willing to throw excrement, manure or rocks. Did you receive threats directly or through the media?
3:45 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
We received email threats from other people, but not Mr. Falardeau.
3:45 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
Mr. Bourgeois did send us his comments, but there were no such threats.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Pablo Rodriguez Liberal Honoré-Mercier, QC
Whose physical security were you concerned about exactly? The participants, the visitors, families, children or other people who would have been on site?
3:45 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
The commission has vast experience in welcoming crowds to the park. We have a security team and are always cooperating with the city of Quebec.
We therefore must analyze the type of event we are organizing. When we organize a formal event, with a few invited guests, it is easy to ensure their safety and protect them against threats.
But in this case, we expect to receive 2,000 people, including families, who will camp out in the park for three days and walk about freely throughout the city, and because they are representing the battle of the Plains of Abraham... You must understand that, at the time, the British had not yet arrived. It would therefore be hard to ensure control.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Pablo Rodriguez Liberal Honoré-Mercier, QC
So you were concerned about the physical safety and security of participants and families.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Pablo Rodriguez Liberal Honoré-Mercier, QC
Would you have wanted the political parties of which those people are members, namely the Bloc Québécois and Parti Québécois, to have tried to calm things down, instead of pouring fuel on the fire? Could that have helped?
3:45 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
Certainly, that could have helped, but I respect people's opinions. They decided to do what they did and I cannot comment on that.
3:50 p.m.
Liberal
3:50 p.m.
Chair, National Battlefields Commission
Things were a bit distorted in the media. We heard talk about a "festive" event, but that had never been our intention. As we were dealing with historians, we focused on historical elements.