Petition calls on Ottawa to establish review board to reassess veterans’ acts of valour

A petition is calling on Canada’s federal government establishment an independent military honours review board to reassess acts of heroism and valour by the nation’s veterans.

Petition E-6661 will be presented in Parliament later this month. The petition says a review board would have to the power to reconsider veterans’ actions and upgrade awards for bravery when appropriate.

Read more:

• Petition revives campaign to award Victoria Cross to Afghan war veterans
• Former top general says reviewing medals for Afghan vets a ‘no-brainer’ for Carney
• Sask. man’s Victoria Cross finds permanent home in Ottawa

Ed Staniowski, a former member of the Canadian Armed Forces and former NHL goaltender, joined guest host Brent Loucks on the Evan Bray Show on Monday morning to discuss what this initiative means for veterans like him, and why he thinks the movement could help bring Canada together.

Listen to the full interview, or read the transcript below.

The following transcript has been edited for length and clarity.

LOUCKS: What’s this petition all about?

STANIOWSKI: I would offer that this is a very significant initiative which is of importance to the federal (and) provincial governments, or all parties – our Canadian Armed Forces members, veterans and indeed all citizens of Canada. There have been some amazing acts of valour in the presence of the enemy, particularly in Afghanistan, and no less than 25 Star of Military Valour medals, the second-highest awards for valour, have been awarded. However, there has not been a Victoria Cross given to a Canadian since 1945. That’s a wrong that needs to be corrected and righted. The valour in the presence of the of the enemy, headed up by none other than our former chief of defense staff, Rick Hillier, have put forward this initiative. It’s a petition that will be tabled in Parliament… it asks for the prime minister to set up an independent board or commission to look at some 25 files where the Star of Military Valour was awarded to Canadian members overseas and in the presence of the enemy. So this is very important. It’s something that all Canadians can get behind. Certainly it crosses all the party lines in a time when things can be fractured between provinces. I’m very pleased to say that the Government of Saskatchewan and Premier (Scott) Moe has put his weight behind getting this in front of the prime minister so that this report is set up and these files are reviewed.

Lieutenant-Colonel David Vivian Currie’s Victoria Cross medal set sits on display after its unveiling at a press conference at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa on Tuesday, May 1, 2018. No Canadian has been awarded the Victoria Cross since 1945. THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Kawai

If we’re looking for the creation of this independent military honours review board, what would it do differently compared to what it does right now?

STANIOWSKI: All of the reviews of the acts of valour were done pretty much within the military itself — within the chain of command of the military – and things were very, very busy during the Afghan war. A lot of the files did go up. There was General (Walter) Natynczyk during the war, and General Hillier asked for military reviews of this. They did their job, they looked at it, but things were very, very busy, and there were some political considerations with regard to awarding the Victoria Cross again, which has got a very high criteria standard that has to be met. But there’s no question that the acts of these 25 files need to be reviewed by an independent board with representatives, one might suggest, from all the three federal parties, and some other folks that would take a look at these files. When the case of Corporal Jess Larochelle, and one of our own here in the province, (Warrant Officer) William MacDonald, their actions on the battlefield were were absolutely above and beyond, and certainly worthy of a close, secondhand look.

Why do Canadians need to think about this and get behind this effort?

STANIOWSKI: This is something that can bring Canada together. We haven’t had a Victoria Cross awarded since 1945, and yet there have been acts of valour in Korea, during peacekeeping missions (in) far-flung places around the world, and certainly in Afghanistan. Again, what was done in the two cases I just mentioned was selfless sacrifice that saved many Canadian lives. There’s no question that they need to be reviewed and looked at, and especially at this time when we’re right here at Remembrance Day. I would offer that if the folks go online and look up Petition-E 6661 in the House of Commons, they will be able to sign in support of the petition, which is going to be tabled later this month.

It seems like somebody’s been remiss in not making these awards in those cases.

STANIOWSKI: It’s been something that’s been overlooked. One might even go as far to say it’s a wrong that now we have an opportunity to make right. It was really important to the folks that served alongside some of the some of the people in Afghanistan, to see what was accomplished, to sacrifice under extreme cases of danger, and the valour that was put forward on the battlefield. In some of the instances there was loss of Canadian lives, but many lives were saved because of the actions of Corporal Larochelle and people like Master Warrant Officer MacDonald. Again, I could list others, but their actions did so much and we need, as a nation, to step up and take a look at this. All of our allies who served in the conflict in Afghanistan have all awarded their highest medals. The French did. The Americans had 10 Medals of Honor, New Zealand, Australia, the British all awarded their highest medal, including Victoria Crosses. It’s time for Canada to be proud of what we did, and to take a look at the actions of these individuals.

Will these all be steps that will help improve the morale and the feeling of members of the Canadian Armed Forces about their role in this country?

STANIOWSKI: As a veteran and former serving member, I would say yes. In the Canadian Armed Forces, there is a great deal of pride. We need to run it up the flagpole that there’s brave young men and women who are doing a job right now. I was at the Regina Pats game yesterday, and there were 15 veterans that I was sitting with, and another dozen or so serving members. They all take great pride in what they’ve done and what they’re doing. The serving members, most of them had just returned from Latvia. They all had tours in Afghanistan and the Balkans. It was great to see their them recognized at that game yesterday. In this whole week of remembrance, there’s a lot of things that are going on, and this is just one more thing that I think will highlight and build the pride that we should have – and, for the most part, do have – in our Canadian Armed Forces. But we can’t be shy about the about saying and acknowledging the valour that that was on the battlefields of Afghanistan, and many of us saw it firsthand.

Are you confident that this is going to become a reality?

STANIOWSKI: Speaking with Premier Moe last week, and hearing how he stepped up and said ‘This is a no-brainer, and we’ve got to push this forward,’ hopefully some of the other premiers will do the same thing and bring it to the attention of the prime minister, and it will become something of significant importance to him. I think it’s something that’s going to bring Canada together. We’ve got an opportunity to do something that we could all be proud of.