Mr. Chair, Ms. Wagantall, and members of this committee, I would like to thank you for the invitation to appear before you today as part of your study on commemoration.
Today I'd like to discuss existing Government of Canada policy that segregates active service veterans into categories and how that applies to commemoration.
To begin with, section 33 of the National Defence Act, which applies to service, and section 31, which applies to active service, segregate veterans into two categories legally. On any given day, roughly 90% to 95% of the military is performing service under normal day-to-day working conditions, while 5% to 10% of the military performs active service for the United Nations, NATO or other arrangements abroad, in hazardous working conditions that usually negate a soldier's charter rights and freedoms. Active service personnel are taking legal direction to perform dangerous tasks from an officer of Canada, and failing to adhere results in charges under the National Defence Act.
Mr. Chair, I would now like to refer you to Veterans Affairs Canada's core policy document 1447, pertaining to wartime and special duty service categories, which further segregates Canadians into two distinct classes for commemoration, and intrinsically, insurance. From my perspective, VAC document 1447 is quite possibly one of the most repulsive policy documents in Canada. Here's why.
The wartime service classification is top tier and has exclusive membership belonging to World War I, World War II and Korean veterans. Wartime service or elite veterans have received the majority of commemorative funding, and along with the RCMP, wartime service veterans receive the Pension Act for their active service injuries, Canada's premier insurance plan. The wartime classification also has all of Canada's Victoria Crosses.
The second category within this repulsive document, document 1447, is special duty, veterans consisting of every United Nations, NATO or other active service mission since 1953. Once again, if veterans had a rewards card, special duty service would be the discount class receiving little to no funding for commemoration over the past 50 years. There are no Victoria Crosses resulting from special duty service. Our injured active service veterans in the discount class receive 40% of the injury insurance that wartime service veterans and the RCMP receive for their active service.
Monsieur Samson, last week you asked a question regarding the Afghanistan war and the challenges faced by one of your constituents. VAC policy document 1447 clearly indicates that Canada does not think Afghanistan was a war or that injured veterans are worthy of equality when it comes to commemoration and injury benefits, but we know that's not true.
Members of Parliament, I ask you to refer to Library of Parliament document BP 303 and Library of Parliament document PRB 00-06 to understand why Afghanistan is not a war in Canadian policy and to learn a great deal about your responsibilities as members of Parliament, under section 32 of the National Defence Act, when government places Canadians on active service.
To be clear, I would like to provide an example. If a Korean War veteran, a member of the RCMP and a Rwanda veteran make a successful claim to Veterans Affairs Canada for PTSD, the Rwanda veteran will receive 40% of the injury benefits that the other active service veterans do. Numbers do not lie. Successive parliaments have not respected or cared for Canada's active service veterans equally. This is in spite of PBO reports and the concern being raised by today's generation of veterans.
As a retired warrant officer, an active service veteran of seven different missions, it's difficult for me to commemorate missions with my head held high when I know that privates and corporals are incapable of making ends meet, and it's simply because of document 1447 from Veterans Affairs.
Bullets, disease, explosions and trauma do not discriminate, but Canada does, and it discriminates against today's special duty service veterans when it comes to commemoration and, intrinsically, injury benefits.
I would recommend that document 1447 be decommissioned and that active service veterans be treated equally as it pertains to commemoration and insurance under the Pension Act. Missions should be named and classified appropriately, resulting in a more effective level of commemoration, care, transparency and accountability for Canadians, veterans and government.
Members of Parliament, I appreciate your work. You do fantastic work, but until Canada starts to look after its injured active service veterans to obtain equality, it's going to be challenging to encourage veterans like me to commemorate missions openly.
Thank you very much for your time today.