:
I would like to begin by sincerely thanking the committee for inviting me to testify this morning on issues relating to the treatment of francophone recruits and students at Canadian Forces Base Borden, a large military training establishment north of Toronto, Ontario. As you already mentioned, Mr. Chairman, this morning I am accompanied by Ms. Margaret Brandon, the Director General of Operations in the Office of the Ombudsman.
Over the next few minutes, I will highlight some of the experiences that we have had with respect to the treatment of francophone recruits and students at Borden. In doing so, I will point to what I believe are very serious problems that go to the heart of fairness and the welfare of our Canadian Forces members—in this case, potentially hundreds of francophone members of our military.
I will also discuss the challenges that we have experienced in trying to get the senior military leadership to address, in a timely and tangible manner, the problems that we found in Borden. I can tell you that this has probably been the most frustrating case that I have experienced in my more than two years as military ombudsman.
When I travelled to Borden late last year as part of a routine outreach visit, I met with more than 40 francophone students who informed me of very serious difficulties they were experiencing in getting access to services and training in their first official language.
I will give you a few examples. Among other things, francophone students said to me they often received commands and instructions in English only, a language many did not understand. Also, I was told, it was not uncommon for francophone students to receive course assignments in English only, which they often did not understand and could not satisfactorily complete.
I was also told that francophone students being trained in vehicle maintenance were informed that a manual, which was available only in English, would not be translated. And the day before my visit, a career manager from Ottawa spoke only in English to a group of anglophone and francophone students, except for concluding his remarks by saying, and I quote: “Pour les francophones, c'est la même chose.”
As these examples show, there were very serious issues related to fundamental fairness, respect and the welfare of our newest Canadian Forces members.
[English]
Shortly after I returned to Ottawa, I wrote to the Chief of the Defence Staff to inform him of the problems I had encountered at Borden and to request immediate and longer-term action to ensure that francophone students were treated with respect and given every opportunity to succeed in their new careers.
In his response to our office, General Hillier committed to producing an official languages strategic plan with a number of medium- and long-term corrective measures to address the serious linguistic problems at Borden. In addition, we were told that a short-term action plan would be developed and that it would include additional funding and the immediate implementation of awareness education, the immediate introduction of a rapid feedback mechanism that would allow students to voice language concerns separate from the chain of command, and the immediate appointment of an official language champion from within the senior officer corps of CFB Borden.
It took some time for us to obtain a copy of this action plan. We finally received it in May. However, once we got it, we were generally satisfied with the proposed measures it contained. On the surface they appeared to be a good step in the right direction. After receiving a copy of the plan, I directed two of our investigators to conduct a follow-up examination at Borden to track anticipated progress and assess the results achieved for francophone students. They visited Borden in June.
Following surveys and town hall sessions with nearly 200 francophone students, our investigators found that the plan was in fact not being implemented as described to us, and that the situation was worse and more widespread than I had previously understood.
I was deeply disappointed to learn that, contrary to what I had been told, the vast majority of the short-term corrective actions that had been promised and that had been described as immediate and ongoing had not, indeed, been implemented at CFB Borden. By and large, francophone students remained unaware of their linguistic rights. Most of them did not know how or to whom to report problems and how to get effective help. Base services, including things such as medical care, were often provided in English to francophone students incapable of expressing their concerns in English.
In short, francophone recruits and students were experiencing unacceptable language barriers and felt isolated and alienated. It was also clear that their morale was suffering and that there was a serious risk that the professional development of these students was being hindered.
As this made it clear that no tangible action had been taken to address the very real problems at Borden, I formally requested the intervention of the previous Minister of National Defence, the Honourable Gordon O'Connor. I am pleased that following a meeting with him in July and thanks to the clear instructions given by the previous minister, it now appears that action is being taken to address the problems at Borden. Although I am encouraged by this, I remain disappointed in the length of time it took to begin addressing these fundamental fairness and welfare issues.
[Translation]
I should note that I have discussed this issue with Mr. Graham Fraser, the Commissioner of Official Languages, and we'll continue to keep him apprised of any developments in this matter. I also believe that Mr. Fraser may be undertaking a new initiative related to the issue of official languages in military schools and training establishments.
As far as next steps go, I remain committed to tracking the progress that is made at Borden to ensure that all Canadian Forces students are respected. I will review with great interest the report I have asked for from the chief of military personnel by early December. This will describe the results achieved on the ground at Borden. My investigators will again be travelling to Borden in early 2008 to assess the results that have been achieved.
And I intend to monitor very closely any linguistic challenges faced by other Canadian Forces members, English-speaking as well as French-speaking, during my future visits to our military bases, wings and schools across the country.
[English]
At this time, Mr. Chairman, we're ready to provide any assistance that we can to this committee.
:
Mr. Chairman, as the ombudsman for the Canadian Forces, part of my work is to make periodic visits to armed forces bases and wings across the country, as well as in Afghanistan, which I had the pleasure of visiting about a year ago.
During my visits, I tried to meet with forces members of all ranks and all backgrounds. When I spoke in that context to a group of French-speaking recruits at Borden, some of them told me that they were having problems. I met with three groups of between 12 and 15 people, for a total of about 40 people, and I asked them to explain what their daily life was like at Borden.
I was very struck by the comments made by a man, who was about 34 years old, originally from Chicoutimi, in the Saguenay—Lac-St-Jean region, where I come from. He told me that he was stationed at Borden and that he did not understand a word of English. When he was on the parade ground or in his company and people spoke to him for 25 or 30 minutes in English, it was as if he was hearing Chinese, since he did not understand anything. He told me that he tried to make them understand that he was having problems, and that he would like to be spoken to in a language that he understood, but they looked at him as if it was up to him to adapt. People even told him to learn English and to come back and see them later.
That is how I first learned about the problem at Borden. Then in June, we took a much more systematic and in-depth approach. We sent two investigators who met with 185 recruits.
:
Mr. Chairman, we have not gone back to the base to assess the situation since June 23 or 24. In fact, after our meeting with Minister O'Connor, where a senior military officer was present, very clear instructions were given to the effect that the situation had to change.
We had been told that two very high-ranking officers went to Borden in connection with those instructions. We were given the speaking notes that they used, apparently, in speaking to the students, instructors and military leaders. Those notes indicate that the message was sent very clearly that things needed to change.
On the other hand, last week—I think it was Friday—an article was published in a newspaper called The Barrie Examiner relating an interview between the local journalists and the commander of the Canadian Defence Academy. The general was quoted as saying that the problem was not as serious as what I had described. He also felt, apparently, that I had been wrong in accusing the chain of command of reacting with little enthusiasm and dragging their feet a little bit. So he was to some extent questioning some of the things that I had done.
So when I see that kind of thing, which happened last week, on Friday as I said, I think it is a bit unfortunate. So, on the one hand, what we see in the official communications, etc., seems quite appropriate, but when I see someone like this general, who holds that kind of position and rank, I feel that it is somewhat regrettable and perhaps a bit worrisome to have this kind of thing reported in a newspaper article.
We have a photocopy of the article, which was written in English only. We could table it with the clerk, if you are interested.
:
Mr. Chairman, the problem is first and foremost one of culture and attitude, which leads me to believe that it is essentially a leadership problem. Once the military leadership will have not only issued very clear messages, directives or even appropriate orders, but also decided to ensure close, disciplined and strict follow-up, I think things will change rather quickly.
What I find especially deplorable and regrettable about this situation is that francophones tell us that when they are at Borden and are told that they must learn English to integrate, to become normal, if you will; they get the impression they are being sent a cultural message, and it is a matter of openness.
It seems to me that all Canadian citizens, whether they be unilingual anglophones, francophones or whether they be bilingual, are entitled to be treated and welcomed in exactly the same way, regardless of where they are serving in the Canadian armed forces. Unfortunately, what we have seen, noted and especially heard from the recruits and students at Borden leads us to believe that the current situation isn't quite what it should be.
:
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I also thank Mr. Côté and Ms. Brandon for having come today. I want to congratulate you for the work that you have done up to now and for having made it public.
This is nothing new. The Standing Committee for Official Languages has determined through its studies that the Department of National Defence is the one that has violated the Official Languages Act more than any other department has. They have set new records in this field. I think that you are right in saying that this is a cultural issue and that it is not easy to change things. They must be wondering who these people are who dare to come and try to change the system at Borden. This might be coming from the upper ranks. When the government appoints people, it is responsible for making sure that those people are respectful of Canadian law.
Let me give you an example which I mentioned earlier, I think. It has to do with attitude problems. Last year, or two years ago, we went to Romania. We flew home in a plane belonging to the Canadian forces. This is just one small example, but it shows a great lack of respect. As we were boarding, we were not supposed to talk and we could only look at the picture, because there was nothing else to see. While I flew on that plane, they showed a movie. Usually, there is a first movie in English and a second one in French. I had no problem with the French movie being shown in the second place because both movies cannot be projected at the same time. To my great surprise, the second movie was also in English. With all the technology that is available today, they are not even able to show a movie in French to our francophone soldiers who are leaving Canada for Afghanistan. We are not asking that the big general learn French, we only want some technology. This example shows a problem with attitude.
Regarding what you have discovered, I do not want to be pessimistic, but I do feel that way after hearing what you said. A culture cannot be changed overnight. Do you not think that after all we should recommend that our francophone soldiers be trained in their own institutions? I do not understand how we can do it in any other way.
In New Brunswick, we finally decided that there would be francophone schools and anglophone schools. We cannot put both language groups in the same institution. One group will get the upper hand and put pressure on the other group. This is especially the case in National Defence, where all we hear is "yes sir" and "don't question what I say". If you want to stay, you must not become subject to disciplinary measures and you must not end up being put in a hole where you will get rough treatment. You must follow the rules.
You can continue your studies with an eye on the future, but I think that you must keep in mind that this is an impossible mission that cannot succeed. We will never be able to put both groups together while making sure that the francophones are treated with respect. This will never succeed.
I would like to hear what you think of this, because I feel pessimistic.
:
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Côté and Ms. Brandon, thank you for appearing before us this morning.
I am very worried about the issue that you raised during your presentation. I would like to look at it from a very specific point of view. Let me give you some background. A few months ago, the former Minister of National Defence appeared before the committee to discuss certain files. It had to do with not requiring that high-ranking officers become bilingual. In other words, they would be allowed to remain as unilingual anglophones, and the francophones would agree to it.
During that meeting, I put a question to the minister, who, I imagine, was using interpretation. I asked him to answer me in French, but he was not able to do that. I then pointed out to him that if I were a francophone soldier who does not understand English and that if this person gave me orders in English on the battlefield, I would be in bad shape. My quality of life, my health and my safety could be in jeopardy. It would be a serious problem.
Mr. Ombudsman, if these students cannot understand English—and they are not obliged to do so—do you think that this situation is bad for their training, their safety, and, if they need medical care, for their health? They may not even be in a position to receive the services that they are entitled to. The federal government of this country is boasting that it is bilingual, but those are just empty words. In fact, when it comes down to the crunch, it does the opposite of what it says it is doing. Do you think that this is fair to francophone soldiers or would-be soldiers?
:
Clearly, the people who spoke to us had been affected in a number of ways. The member mentioned some examples having to do with training. As I said earlier, they're asked to do their homework in a language they do not understand. So they do what they can. One individual told me that he did what he could, but it happened regularly that he had not really understood and only realized that later. The work submitted was not what was expected, and the teachers wondered why he had not understood.
Another very important point is that classes in French are offered much less regularly at Borden. It often happens that francophone recruits have to wait a number of months to have access to a course they need in order to advance. Anglophones are offered these courses much more often. As a result, they can advance much more quickly.
The member raised the issue of health care, and I did talk about the hospital. The situation is the same as regards dentists. One of the recruits also told us that when she wanted to sell her house, the services were provided by anglophones only. And the recruit in question did not speak English.
The same sort of problem happens in the case of reception services. I spoke to the people who work there—the first person you see, in other words. Some individuals told us that when they came to Borden for the first time, the person they dealt with did not speak French at all. Imagine how "welcomed" people feel in that case.
:
I'm originally from Saint-Jean, Mr. Chairman. I want to take this opportunity to assure my colleagues that at the Saint-Jean military base, there is no problem. In fact the opposite occurs, since there are starting to be complaints that English is spoke too widely at the Saint-Jean military base. Imagine the day where there's too much French spoken at the Borden base, and we will have solved the essential problem.
With regard to the military college, we also have to consider how the French fact is viewed in the army. Initially, there was a closure. Now, everyone is bragging about the reopening, but I want to remind my colleagues that this reopening is only partial. Previously, Saint-Jean had university status; now it has college-level status. Its university status must be restored. The prestigious past of this military college must be acknowledged. That will be a signal in favour of the French fact.
I also want to remind you that there's a language school in Saint-Jean, precisely for new recruits. Before the new bilingualism policy, once the recruits had completed their 13 weeks, as you said earlier, they spent about 20 weeks learning the basics of their second language before they went on to their area of specialization. That has ended since the new bilingualism policy came into effect. The department decided to create anglophone units, francophone units and bilingual units. As a matter of fact, I recently asked the minister's office if it could give us a list of these units. That hasn't even been done yet. So there are problems.
Mr. Côté, I've always admired the way you handle your file, but I would like you to indicate to us the legal scope of the ombudsman's intervention compared to the legal scope of the possible intervention by the Commissioner of Official Languages. In your opinion, do you both have a mandate to intervene in the consideration of this issue?
:
Given the ministerial directives which are at the origin of the creation of the office and which indicate what we should do and how we should do it, up to a point, it's absolutely clear in my mind that we have a mandate to examine these issues. The ministerial directives specifically mention that we must address issues regarding the fair and equitable treatment of members of the Canadian armed forces. So when we see how these people, like those we met in Borden, are treated, it's very clear to me that justice and equity are called into question in a very fundamental way. For my part, I have no doubt whatsoever that we have an important role to play.
Before I talk about the Commissioner of Official Languages, I would add that I am only an ombudsman. An ombudsman—and this is true of all ombudsmen I'm aware of, including the Protecteur du citoyen in Quebec—has no executive power. We can issue recommendations, which I did in my correspondence, and as I do regularly, we can ensure follow-up and if need be, make files and issues public if it's necessary for people on the outside to exert pressure so that things get moving. This has to be stated. That's our mandate, and that's how we fulfil it.
Now with regard to the Commissioner of Official Languages, it goes without saying that he is responsible for enforcing the Official Languages Act and conducting studies and appropriate audits to see what progress has been made by various institutions, including National Defence and the Canadian armed forces, and then for issuing the type of report and taking the type of measures allowed under the Official Languages Act.
:
I'd like to make two comments here. First of all a point of clarification, Mr. Chairman. Technically, I don't report to the Department of National Defence, but rather to the minister. I was appointed by the governor in council. Yes, I report to the minister, and I mentioned that. Perhaps it's worthwhile to point it out again. When I raised the question in the presence of the former minister, Mr. O'Connor, in late July, I saw his reaction. I was there when he issued directives, orders and instructions to the military. It was quite clear that he wanted things to change, and they did change.
Now with respect to Mr. MacKay, Ms. Brandon and I met with him in late September and we discussed a number of files, including this one. I mentioned to him how important this one was. I can tell you that the minister stated that he's extremely interested in this situation. I promised him that I'd keep him informed of developments as things progressed.
The last point I'd like to underscore, Mr. Chairman, is the fact that we did start at the lowest level, in one sense. When I left the Borden base in November, I went to see the commander in his office, in the presence of his chief warrant officer, who is the highest ranking non-commissioned officer, and I told him that they had a serious problem and that I was certainly going to follow up on this issue, because according to what I'd heard, the way francophones were treated left a great deal to be desired. They were seized with this question immediately and that's why I wrote to the Chief of the Defence Staff about a month later. Given the importance and the seriousness of the issue, I felt it was appropriate to inform him.
:
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Côté, I want to thank you for your testimony, and I am pleased to meet you.
[English]
I have a point to make and then maybe you could provide comments to it.
I think one of the big backdrops, one of the big things that need to be acknowledged, is that the Canadian Forces are very stretched right now. We have a mission in Afghanistan that is taking up a lot of the operational strength of the forces. I was reading through the binder that was provided. Specifically I was reading through comments that Major-General Daniel Gosselin, who is chief of military personnel, had made to the Canadian Forces Base Borden in August of this year.
With respect to the issues around the forces being stretched because of our mission in Afghanistan, he says:
You will also appreciate that due to the operational tempo, there is a significant demand for bilingual military personnel to work in headquarters and support services overseas. This limits the number of service members who can be assigned to the schools and CFB Borden.
I would also point out that the other broad background to this problem at Canadian Forces Base Borden you've rightly pointed out is the fact that in the 1990s the military went through significant cutbacks, which is the real foundational reason as to why they are struggling to provide services in both official languages. I once again quote the Major-General who says:
You should be aware that delays in the delivery of training are not primarily a language issue. ... This overall backlog is a result of greatly expanded recruiting for the Canadian Forces, as a result of force expansion, without a comparable increase in training capacity. We have suffered significant downsizing in the mid 1990s and never recovered in terms of school staff.
So I think there are two contextual facts that we have to acknowledge. One is that the military went through significant downsizing in the 1990s, which it is yet to recover from. It's in the midst of a massive expansion right now. There will be some problems that come along with that expansion, as we rebuild the forces.
I think the second contextual fact is that we are engaged in one of the most significant combat operations overseas since the Korean War. This too has stretched the ability of the forces to quickly address some of the problems at Canadian Forces Base Borden. I think those two pieces of information--the fact that we had these significant cutbacks and that we are engaged in a major theatre of action overseas--need to be acknowledged as part of this debate.
That being said, I think you've done some very good work here in championing the rights of linguistic minorities in places like Borden. Maybe you could provide comment on the challenges that the forces have with respect to trying to rebuild some of that capacity as we undertake an era of expansion.
:
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Let us try to get down to brass tacks, Mr. Côté.
I want to start with a comment. I agree with my colleague, Mr. Godin, about the complaint system. When there is a complaint system, I feel like a second-class citizen, since francophones in this country all too often have to complain in order to have their rights respected. I do understand that these things are happening in a certain context, but the Official Languages Act was passed in 1969. Do we need to go back to 1969 to find excuses for National Defence? Do we need to go back to 1969 to explain the lack of respect that the Canadian Forces have shown francophones in Canada? It is unfortunately true, and I have had personal experience with this, having had responsibility for this file when I was associate minister. We talked about this issue at that time, Mr. Côté.
As you know, this attitude is reflected even in the expression "vandooze." I think it shows a lack of respect when people say "vandooze," knowing full well that they are talking about the Royal 22nd Regiment. It is like saying "Big Joe Mufferaw" instead of Joe Montferrand. There is also a question of culture and respect, which seems not to stick very well in the minds of officers and chiefs of defence staff, either present or past. That was my comment.
Who has primary responsibility for this issue? Is it the base commander who really has the power to decide to do things better? Do we need to go further up the chain of command? Is it the responsibility of the Chief of Defence Staff?
:
I have a comment on that. Since they are a minority, francophones do not complain often, because they are somewhat embarrassed not to speak English. It is seen as somewhat shameful not to speak the language of the majority. We see this even in Quebec. We are a minority within Canada.
I studied in Rome, Italy, where the Canadian college is located. Francophones were in the majority there. There were only a few anglophones. When there was a group of six francophone priests and an anglophone arrived, the language of the conversation switched to English. We asked why that was, and the answer was that the francophones were practising their English, because as a minority, they thought they absolutely had to speak English in this country, that it was failing on their part not to speak English. That is why the anglophone minority is very well treated in Quebec. Earlier, my colleague said that so much English was spoken in Saint-Jean that there were complaints on this. The opposite is not true.
Being a francophone is seen as a defect, and anglophones know that quite well. That is why we have to act proactively. In the case we are discussing, if we wait for complaints in order to change things, we will be waiting a long time.
We have to be aware of this situation in order to take some action. If we do nothing, these people will just fade into the woodwork and not speak out.
:
I would like to make a few comments on that, Mr. Chairman.
First of all, as I mentioned, students or recruits in the Canadian armed forces are new and are at the bottom of the ladder. Filing a complaint with a person in authority or with an office such as ours is not necessarily an easy thing to do. Second, some people are not aware that we exist, and that may be why they did not come to see us.
We did a few surveys in June 2007. Of the 185 francophones who completed our questionnaires, 85% said they did not know where to go to get assistance, and 81% said that they did not think the assistance they needed would be available. This certainly confirms the impression that people do not know what to do or where to turn, and that even if they did, they were not sure they would manage to get results.
As my investigators and I make our visits to the bases and the wings, we will definitely be paying more attention to the language issue. Once again, I am not ruling out the possibility that some unilingual anglophones may find themselves in a similar situation. Obviously, our office must be impartial and objective: we must keep our eyes and ears open as regards this issue within the Canadian armed forces.
:
Thank you for your presentation.
You have spoken about certain problems, challenges and the culture that exists.
[English]
It's a problem of leadership, of attitude, but I think there's a very practical side to finding solutions to these problems.
I don't believe there's a quick-fix solution, it's not something that money will solve, that you just throw money at. We need trained and capable instructors.
[Translation]
They must be bilingual and able to offer education and training in French, in this particular case.
I was a member of the Canadian armed forces for 20 years. As Mr. Chong said, we must remember that there has been a huge reduction in the number of members of the forces in the last 20 years, and I am not thinking just of equipment here. We know about the equipment situation, but there is also the staff issue. When I joined the forces, there were 85,000 members, and when I retired in 2000, there were 63,000. That is a reduction of 20,000, or 25 to 30%.
The Canadian armed forces have genuine operational commitments to National Defence Headquarters, and with the United Nations, as regards training. The forces have a great many obligations.
[English]
The Canadian Forces are spread very thin. They have many commitments, not enough trained personnel.
I think the first challenge to finding a solution lies with its resources. When I say “resources”, I mean trained, qualified personnel who are capable of instructing but who are also bilingual.
The second challenge is bilingual formation.
[Translation]
The Canadian armed forces had a policy on bilingualism, which proved to be a failure. Our commissioner described it as a failure. They are in the process of establishing a new policy, but it just started, in April, I think. We are now living with the consequences of the former policy. We cannot deal with the bilingualism problem in one easy step. The past failure had consequences. We are now living with the consequences of that policy. I would like to be clear—the situation in Borden must be improved.
[English]
We owe this to our francophone soldiers, and particularly to their training as technicians, etc.
I think you're a little bit like me.
[Translation]
You would like to have some practical solutions, some genuine solutions.
[English]
But I think it's necessary to look at the practicalities of what's involved.
For example, the Canadian Forces would have to find bilingual instructors, but they have all of these commitments. Not everybody can instruct, they have to be qualified in their trade, they have to take instructional courses to be able to instruct, etc.
Borden is a huge base. A lot of training goes on in Borden. So when you think about the logistics of finding these trained instructors who are bilingual, and if you go to a unit and you say, we're taking 15 of your people, what if that unit's training for Afghanistan? What if that unit has operational commitments? If they're doing something else, who will replace them? When will they move? When will the people replacing them move?
There's a logistical challenge here, so I think we have to take this into consideration.
[Translation]
In one of your letters, you wrote, and I quote:
I believe that these initiatives are a positive step forward, and will go a long way to addressing the significant problems that were brought to my attention by Canadian Forces members when I traveled to CFB Borden late last year.
This leads me to believe that you are satisfied with the proposed solutions, but that things are not happening fast enough.
[English]
There are practicalities that must be overcome to be able to implement the solutions.
I wondered if you could comment on that. You seem to be happy with what's been proposed, you seem to be unhappy with how quickly it's being implemented. Yet given the context I just explained, I can understand why, realistically, it's taking time. It's a huge base, there are lots of courses being run, and finding those people takes time.
Could you comment on taking that into consideration?
:
Most certainly, Mr. Chair.
[Translation]
The member talked about practical considerations, and we can perhaps add to the existing problems of the Canadian Forces the fact that it is becoming very difficult to send francophones to Borden for training. Many people stationed in Bagotville, Saint-Jean or Montreal say they do not want to go to Borden or Barrie in Ontario because their families are afraid of ending up isolated in an anglophone environment, and that it would be very difficult. But that's another problem. Regarding practical considerations, I do agree with you that there are many.
Mr. Chairman, the member said I was an optimist, but I have to shatter his delusions. I did indeed write that positive steps had been taken, but when we returned on a follow-up visit last June, after we were given a summary of the plan of action, we realized that in practical terms nothing seemed to have changed. So my feeling of optimism took a beating.
Furthermore, in a piece which appeared in the Barrie Examiner, which we will table at the end of the meeting, this high-ranking officer said that, as far as he was concerned, the problem was not as serious as I said it was, and that it was an exaggeration to say that the chain of command had not reacted with all due diligence. So when I see people react that way, I lose my sense of optimism.
:
Mr. Chairman, I have just heard the government's reaction.
I find it regrettable to hear Mr. Lemieux say that National Defence has commitments with NATO and the UN, as if these were real commitments, whereas bilingualism was a different matter all together. In the same way, Mr. Chong has just said that in the past, no monies were spent on this issue. But that's not what we're talking about. The fact is that it is not more expensive to hire a mechanics instructor who is bilingual.
As far as I am concerned, I am not willing to put up with excuses. We're not even talking about money. When you hire people to provide services, you have to hire those who speak both languages. What we are dealing with is a lack of respect and an infringement of Canadian law. It does not cost more to hire bilingual receptionists for Borden college than it does to hire unilingual English-speaking receptionists. Are we going to leave it at that? Not as far as I'm concerned. I do not want the government to backtrack. The fact of the matter is that there is a culture at the Department of National Defence and because of it the department simply does not accept that there are two founding nations and two official languages. Services must be provided in both of these languages.
Mr. Côté, you seem to agree with these people that it costs money, that it's hard at National Defence, and that we will have to take our time. I don't agree with the fact that we have to take our time.
:
Thank you, dear colleague.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Côté, when we hear comments to the effect that we have obligations to NATO and Afghanistan, to National Defence Headquarters, and so on, I think those are nothing more than excuses. I think it's cheap to come up with excuses as to why we cannot give francophones the chance to receive services in their own language.
This means that, for the rest of their lives, francophones will have to live with excuses—that is what the government side seems to be saying. They seem to be saying that because people live in a certain place, pursue a certain career or wish to go somewhere else, they will not have access to services in French, unfortunate though it is.
It is very cheap for the government to even dare say such things. It is as if francophones were less than nothing, and, given what will end up happening at National Defence, francophones will stop having access to services in French.
Don't you find that cheap too?
:
Thank you, Mr. Côté. Please tell your mother to vote for me, since she lives in my riding.
Some hon. members: Oh, Oh!
Mr. Daniel Petit: I would like to begin with a rather more delicate subject. I'll start by prefacing my remarks with a short introduction so that I am clearly understood. I am a new member of this Parliament. Half of CFB Valcartier is located in my riding, so I have been well aware of what goes on in the Canadian Forces, even before situations like the one under discussion today arose.
In some newspapers—for example, in Quebec's Le Soleil—we read that when the Liberals were in power—we were not there previously—there was no equipment, no men and no money. Journalists wrote that the submarines the government purchased were rusted, that helicopters were falling out of the sky, that equipment was painted green for use in the desert, that there were not enough weapons, and that there was not enough support in terms of equipment.
You are the ombudsman, and you are responsible for two major portfolios: the issue of language, and people who come back with post-traumatic stress syndrome. You have to take action, and goodness knows it is a delicate issue. We hear about it in our region all the time. We talk about language, but there is also a problem with underfunding and underrepresentation. The army has been treated like garbage for almost 13 years, and now, you are being asked about what you've done about language and what's going on with language.
I come from a French-speaking province. They teach mechanics at Borden, as the students they teach are not necessarily officer cadets. At Borden they teach mechanics, they teach trades. In my riding, in schools that teach mechanics, we talk about something that in French we call the raban de ferlage. Do you know what that is? In English, it's a "crankshaft". If you ask someone in French to repair a pare-brise, the mechanics will not understand. If you ask them in French to repair the "windshield," they will understand. If you use the English word "muffler", they will understand what you mean. But if you call it by its French name, if you call it a tuyau d'échappement,... What's the problem?
We French speakers, have a problem with our language. There is something I would like to know. You have studied the problem at Borden. That is an extremely anglophone environment, and the government has an institution that is supposed to be bilingual. At one point, you wrote the following to General Hillier—is he Chief of Defence Staff? Allow me to quote you:
I was pleased that we were able to reach an agreement on these short-term measures. I was also pleased to learn that there now seems to be some concrete action taking place.
What prompted you to write that? Did you see some measures with your own eyes? I would like you to be somewhat more explicit.
:
Mr. Chairman, here is what happened.
In July, I met with , the then Minister of Defence, as well as with the Chief of Defence Staff, the same gentleman who is in the position today. The minister set out his expectations very clearly, and put into effect the very concrete recommendations I made. Subsequently, things seemed to be happening. As I said, two senior officials—two majors-general—went to Borden to talk about the issue and speak to the troops. Thus, we agreed that a report on the current situation would be submitted on December 1.
As a result of the commitments made at the time, I was rather optimistic, something that you will see reflected in the letter. But I would remind the member once again that last week's interview leads me to believe that, for every step forward, we have perhaps taken a half-step back.
There is something I would like to add. The member said that we work on two issues. For the record, I would simply point out that we do in fact work on a very large number of issues, including post-traumatic stress disorder, assistance to families, and many others.
There is one last point I would like to make to the member: my conversations with my mother are highly confidential.
:
You have yet another instrument. You need not restrict yourselves to dealing with individual complaints, you can go further and launch a systemic investigation. I can tell you—since I have toured all bases myself—that what we are seeing in Borden will also happen in other bases.
I believe that the Official Languages Commissioner has already stated that National Defence had the worst record on official languages and bilingualism. It seems to me quite appropriate for the ombudsman, who has seen the scope of the problem, to initiate a systemic investigation, particularly since you are not short of staff. I know you are very busy, but nonetheless you do have 50 officials under you.
Do you plan to initiate a systemic investigation, so that the issue is not restricted to Borden? I believe that many people could testify about how things are across the system, except in Quebec, I would think, because the bases in Quebec are more respectful and more bilingual than those in other provinces.
:
Mr. Chairman, I know that Mr. Bachand thinks that everything at Saint-Jean is just fine, but I think it would be a good thing to conduct a study for comparison. If everything is indeed fine, it could serve as a model. I don't think it is up to Mr. Bachand to tell us that everything there is fine. It would be your job, Mr. Côté, to report to Canadians and to use Saint-Jean as an example.
I find it is unfortunate that the government thinks the problem began only 13 years ago, in the fall of 1993. I think the problem has been there for a long time.
I will conclude by congratulating you on the work you have done, and on having the courage to continue with it. Your responsibility is to show the authorities and the public what is wrong. It is unfortunate that some people cannot feel fully included within a community, but feel they are second-class members of that community. I am not saying that our work in other countries is not important, I am just saying that it is more important to respect our Canadians here, regardless of their language. It is unfortunate and regrettable, and excuses of the kind we have heard should not be accepted. They might make excuses, but that does not mean Canadians are obliged to accept them. It really shows the kind of respect they have for the other language. I have never heard the government make recommendations to ensure that things improve, but I have heard them saying that there is not enough money. Yet there was a $14-billion surplus this year. If the will were there, the problem might already have been dealt with.
That is all I have to say. Thank you.