moved that Bill C-334, an act to amend the criminal code (wearing of war decorations), be read the second time and referred to a committee.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to begin second reading debate on my private members' bill, Bill C-334, an act to amend the criminal code (wearing of war decorations).
This bill would allow relatives of a deceased veteran to wear any decoration awarded to such veterans without facing criminal sanction. The decoration must be worn on the right side of the relative's chest and would be limited to Remembrance Day.
My bill would amend section 419 of the criminal code. It would renumber this section as section 419(1) and would add the following:
(2) No person who is a relative of a deceased veteran commits an offence under paragraph (1)(b) where the person wears, on the right side of the person's chest, a distinctive mark relating to wounds received or service performed in war by that veteran or wears, on the right side of the person's chest, a military medal, ribbon, badge, chevron or any decoration or order that is awarded to that veteran for war services and the person does so on Remembrance Day.
As well, my amendment makes it acceptable for a person who has been legally adopted by a relative of a deceased veteran or by that veteran to wear these decorations as prescribed in the first part of my amendment.
At the outset allow me to say that my initiative is not meant to diminish or dishonour the service, sacrifice or valour of our veterans and those who have been awarded decorations. On the contrary, it is meant to celebrate and recognize the sacrifice and this achievement. Additionally it is meant to recognize and acknowledge bravery, gallantry and commitment to our nation. My initiative is meant to enhance and reinforce the honour bestowed on these very brave individuals.
My initiative comes from the relatives of veterans who fear that decorations awarded to their family members are being forgotten and put away in dusty boxes and drawers. They, like me, believe the time has come to move with the times and not let these precious decorations collect dust somewhere.
I further believe the time has come to follow the lead of Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand, our Commonwealth partners which amended their respective laws to reflect the times and the need to unveil these decorations and re-commemorate the valour of those who were awarded these with such distinction.
The law I seek to amend was written in 1920. It certainly served the purpose it was intended to do back then but it is not reflective of the hard facts of today. Our veterans are passing on and their decorations are hidden in dusty trunks, forgotten, never to be seen again, all because of a 1920 law. If they are not in trunks, they appear in flea markets where they are at the mercy of hucksters out to make a buck. Is this dignified or an honour to the veteran to whom it was awarded? I certainly think not. In fact it is offensive, undignified and a dishonour to the veteran. There is not a dollar figure that can be put on these decorations. They are priceless and should be viewed that way.
Furthermore, the section of the criminal code I seek to amend, section 419, is derived from a time when legitimate veterans did not want those who did not serve to buy these decorations and wear them. That had great merit and cause and was right for the times. Who would want someone who had not served in the great wars insulting the valour and bravery of those who sacrificed their lives? But this is year 2000 and I consider locked up medals a diminishment of the honour and respect they should garner. They should be exhibited by rightful relatives.
I mentioned that times have changed. So has membership in the Royal Canadian Legion. Sadly our veterans are passing on. The last remaining vestige of the bravery of our war veterans is in many cases the decorations awarded to their family members. Why should it be a crime for a relative to want to display the decoration and thus honour their deceased relative?
The hard facts concerning declining legion membership should give pause to reconsider the archaic law I seek to change. In December 1998 legion membership stood at 494,107. By December 1999 it had fallen to 478,494. In Pacific command in my specific area membership has dropped to 90,394 from 93,612 from 1998 to 1999. In Ontario command the trend is the same. It has fallen to about 181,007 from 186,562.
The trend is the same in every province in Canada. As our veterans keep aging, the trend will not only continue but will speed up. Where will it be in 10 years? In my own riding of West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast membership of Branch 60 in West Vancouver has fallen from 788 to 731.
As I said, our veterans are aging and their relatives and family members wish to hold on to some vestige of the bravery these great Canadians exhibited. Allowing them to wear the decorations on Remembrance Day is not asking too much.
Given the trend in membership, I should point out that of the 731 of Branch 60 in West Vancouver, there are 368 ordinary members and some 244 associate members. There are not a lot of veterans left.
Allow me to give a more demonstrated breakdown of the age of legion members. I believe the trend will be even more startling regarding the mortality of war veterans. Of legion members, 44% are over the age of 65. Another 18% are age 55 to 64. That accounts for 298,840 of the 478,000 total membership. When we factor in membership by age and gender, we find out that 25.17% or 120,577 are 75 or older; 9.98% or 47,836 are age 70 to 74; and another 9.10% or 43,663 are age 65 to 69.
Our veterans are indeed aging, as we all are. Would it not be a positive gesture to remember them by allowing their families to proudly display their decorations as their veteran family members pass on?
My motivation to move the bill comes from individuals whose family members were awarded medals and have passed on. They wish to honour their deceased war veterans and heroes.
One individual in particular, Christine Ballantine of West Vancouver, a legion member herself, has mounted a campaign to see this initiative realized. She recognizes that our veterans are passing on and she wants to honour her father, a decorated veteran, by wearing his medals on Remembrance Day.
She has, as I said, mounted a campaign and gathered support from many legion branches. Besides her West Vancouver branch, Christine has gathered written support of the Howe Sound zone of the Royal Canadian Legion comprising approximately 3,800 members in six legions. She has also received support from the Sooke branch of Vancouver Island and the Whitehorse, Yukon branch.
My bill has also received support from the Billy Bishop branch in Vancouver and I believe in B.C. some 5,339 are on board. I understand it is growing as recognition of the genesis, motivation and honourable and historical intentions of my bill become evident.
Allow me to read some of the comments I have received from some of the legion branches supporting my bill. The Sooke branch of the Royal Canadian Legion writes, “We consider it would strengthen reverence of Remembrance Day”. The Whitehorse, Yukon branch writes, “It would enhance Remembrance Day services by allowing family members to bring medals out on Remembrance Day and thus perpetuate the act of remembrance”.
This is my motivation: to recognize this important day and the significant and selfless contributions of our veterans who need to be honoured in a dignified and demonstrable fashion for many, many years to come.
I would like to see the interest and support of the Royal Canadian Legion and the work it does to continue. Individuals make the legion what it has become. Members are the institution. The institution is not larger than the membership.
Allowing remaining family members who may be members of the legion or inclined to become new members to wear their family decorations would help sustain and invigorate this important institution.
To honour the past is laudatory, but let not the past disallow an act of remembrance by family members of veterans.
I have received a letter from a very distinguished gentleman, Dr. John Blatherwick, who is a British Columbia doctor and has served that province well. He is regarded as an authority on the issue of war decorations. In fact, he has devoted a great amount of his time to the study and promotion of the issue of war decorations. Lest we forget. I would like to quote from his letter of support for my bill. He writes:
The question you have to ask is—What harm would removing the law create? It would not take away from any legion members' medals in any way. It would not debase the value of the person who was awarded the medal in any way. So it would not harm anybody. What good would it do—It would keep that connection with the past and help some people to remember. Bill C-334 is a good bill and it makes common sense.
As Dr. Blatherwick also says, the problem with common sense is that it ain't so common. He is, of course, quoting Will Rogers. Naturally, I hope common sense will prevail.
Dr. Blatherwick asked why we in Canada still cling to an old law regarding the wearing of medals. The answer he says is again, a lack of common sense. He is quite emphatic and states that some keep their heads firmly in the past and are out of step with today. He says, as I mentioned earlier, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand see no problem with moving on. They do not want to put people in jail for remembering. Surely Canadians do not want to see the family members of veterans put in jail either. We should be trying to keep alive the memory of those who served rather than hide their sacrifices.
Dr. Blatherwick points out that it has been a long time since Canada has been involved in a declared shooting war. The peacekeeping forces in the former Yugoslavia have been shot at but they get the same peacekeeping medal that has been issued to multitudes of non-shooting missions. One could not tell a shooting United Nations medal from a non-shooting United Nations medal.
According to this expert, as he further points out, we were at war in the gulf but did not suffer any casualties. As he says, the last real shooting war was Korea and before that, World War II. Therefore, there is not much danger in young men or women wearing medals they are not entitled to.
He feels the entire exercise surrounding this issue boils down to one of common sense. As he says, if the legion wants November 11 and the Battle of the Atlantic Sunday and the Battle of Britain day and other military celebrations to remain important, one way is to encourage those medals to come out of the drawers and boxes and be displayed by the veterans' loved ones on Remembrance Day.
I ask members to read this speech again if they are concerned about this over the next few months while this is being debated because Dr. Blatherwick, as I mentioned, is well respected in my province and is an expert on war medals.
I believe these decorations are a birthright for the family members of those who were awarded them and sadly can no longer display them. Allowing family members to wear these decorations is a dignified way to honour their family member for the sacrifice they made. I firmly believe that those family members would treat and display these decorations with the respect that they deserve. I do not believe they would take this honour lightly or be frivolous in the manner they display the decoration. Those individuals who are moved to recognize their deceased veteran take this issue seriously and with the dignity and respect that it warrants.
Let us not forget, but let us not make criminals of those who want to remember their veterans.