MOTHER CANADA STATUE DOESN’T BELONG IN A NATIONAL PARK
OTTAWA – Today NDP National
Parks Critic Wayne Stetski (Kootenay – Columbia) sent a letter to the
Environment Minister, calling on the government to reject the controversial
proposal for the Never Forgotten National Memorial, also known as “Mother
Canada”.
The proposal, which was
backed by the former Conservative government, would see a giant statue erected
at the headlands of Green Cove in Cape Breton Highlands National Park, along
with a parking lot and visitor’s centre.
“The government’s process for
public feedback was limited to only two weeks, and the project has since
received criticism from a variety of stakeholders” said Stetski in his letter.
“A national park is no place for a seven-storey
statue, particularly one that lacks broad-based support and poses a threat to
the ecological integrity of the park.”
In addition to a number of
civil society groups, the Mother Canada proposal has received opposition from a
group of 28 former senior Parks Canada managers, including a former Parks
Canada CEO, who sent an open letter to the former Environment Minister that
raised concerns about the proposal’s negative impact on Cape Breton Highlands
National Park.
“I have great respect for the
terrible price many of our soldiers have paid,” said Stetski in his letter. “A
memorial to honour them is welcome. The question before us is where such a
memorial should be located.”
New Democrats are calling on
the government to scrap the current proposal and open thorough public
consultation on possible locations for the memorial.
For more information please contact the office of MP Wayne Stetski at 250-919-9104
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