(Ottawa) More and more voices are being raised to demand that the National War Memorial be better protected against those who would like to make it a political playground.
Posted at 11:58 a.m.
Last week, at a ceremony honoring Canadians who fought in the Korean War, someone placed American and Canadian flags on the cenotaph. A video and photos of the event were published on social networks before the various accounts, apparently linked to the “Freedom Convoy” movement, were closed.
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier sits in front of the monument near Parliament Hill. The place serves as a place of meditation and official ceremonies to honor Canadian soldiers who participated in conflicts such as the world wars or that of Afghanistan.
“I am troubled by the events at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The right to protest is something those honored by the Tomb sacrificed their lives for, but the desecration of this memorial is unacceptable and shameful,” Defense Minister Anita Anand said on Monday.
But in 2022, the Monument was also the gathering place for opponents of the federal government of Justin Trudeau and measures aimed at combating COVID-19. It was also vandalized. This has fueled concern among those who do not want the site to turn into a political forum.
Other demonstrations of a political nature have recently taken place on the site.
On June 30, James Topp, an Army reservist, gave a speech to several hundred protesters gathered at the Cenotaph. He compared those who denounce compulsory vaccination to the unknown soldier killed in the First World War whose remains rest there. The man is to be court-martialed for criticizing vaccination while wearing the uniform.
PHOTO PATRICK DOYLE, REUTERS ARCHIVES
James Topp
In April, a group called Veterans 4 Freedom also held a rally in April. Speakers had condemned vaccination and the restrictions put in place during the pandemic.
“Canadians have sacrificed themselves to keep our freedom,” said one of them. They went to France, they fought in the Battle of Britain. They sacrificed their lives. Today we have to sacrifice ourselves, but in a different way. »
The band declined to comment. Mr Topp told The Canadian Press to refer to his June 30 speech.
David Hofmann is an associate professor at the University of New Brunswick and co-director of a research network on hateful behavior and the extreme right in the Canadian Armed Forces.
According to him, political movements need symbols to succeed. He believes it is not surprising to see groups trying to turn the National War Memorial and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier into a political playground.
“These are powerful symbols,” he explains. We have the Unknown Soldier, the ultimate martyr, the one whose name we don’t even remember. And we have these individuals who try to assimilate their cause to a form of martyrdom. »
Retired Brigadier-General Duane Daly and former president of the Royal Canadian Legion, who was instrumental in installing the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier 20 years ago, denounces those who would use places like “the central piece of their political dissent”.
It’s a grave. If they want to mark their position, let them go to Parliament. He is there for that, not the grave.
Duane Daly, retired brigadier-general
Other observers go so far as to say that using this place of memory to act against the government goes against the values of sacrifice it promotes.
“The Unknown Soldier died for his country. His death was disinterested, underlines Youri Cormier, the director general of the Institute of the conference of defense associations. If you honk your horn, if you cry out for a notion of individual freedoms that excludes your own duty to the nation, obedience to the laws and the respect due to the freedom of others, you are putting your interests ahead of those of the nation. »
Mr. Cormier and the Royal Legion recall that the Tomb of the Unknown American Soldier in Arlington is guarded day and night by armed sentries. They called for increased security measures at the War Memorial.
“No one has the right to usurp or appropriate these sacred places for a media stunt or a political campaign,” said Mr. Cormier. This sacred space belongs to no one. »
The Department of Public Services and Supply says the site is monitored 24 hours a day, but declines to comment on requests for increased security. While the Canadian Armed Forces post a ceremonial guard there, security is the responsibility of the Ottawa Police.
A majority of experts agree that authorities should not limit public access to the National War Memorial, as the majority of visitors are respectful. Moreover, restricting access would play into the hands of certain groups.
“In some respects, it would be more dangerous because such a measure would fuel the victim mentality of some people wanting them to be oppressed, to be silenced,” says Barbara Perry, director of a center for studies on Hatred, Biases and Extremism, at Ontario Tech University.