Thank you.
When I met and married Sean, I wasn't a Canadian citizen. I moved to Canada and worked hard, like most immigrants, in order to become a valuable Canadian, receiving my professional accounting designation.
I was amazed by Sean's hard work in advocating for veterans and families, but since free speech hasn't always been possible in my country of origin, I was at the same time terrified for him. Sean reassured me that he and generations before him had sacrificed much so that any Canadian could exercise free speech without fear of reprisals, especially from government.
This inspired me, and then I started to believe that any Canadian could exercise his or her rights of free speech to bring about change. When Veterans Affairs first began their reprisals against Sean, I couldn't and didn't want to believe that such behaviour by Canada's government was possible. When we saw the reality of the intent and actions of the bureaucrats in successfully destroying Sean's commendable reputation to many politicians, including the Prime Minister's Office, I was shocked.
When I took my oath of citizenship, I wasn't as proud of the behaviour of my new country's government as I wanted to be. My husband and I suffered much personal loss during and after the reprisals carried out by certain Veterans Affairs employees. We lived in uncertainty and helplessness. If federal government employees can get away with such attacks, are we really safe in Canada?
Sean is a very good husband, and his dedication and sacrifice to help veterans is often beyond description, especially in light of the reprisals from Veterans Affairs that he has suffered. He hasn't received a single penny, commendation, or appointment for his advocacy work over the past 11 years, and yet he continues to help those who need help the most. He has done all this while suffering his disabilities and under negative actions from Veterans Affairs officials.
I plead with you and the rest of Parliament to investigate what happened to my husband, to shine a light on the public service officials responsible.
I came to this country believing it is a just society that doesn't permit autocratic and unethical behaviour by its government employees. Please prove to me that Canada is this just society.
Thank you.