In 2003, when two Canadian troops were killed in Kabul, Afghanistan, Prime Minister Jean Chretien flew to CFB Trenton (the Canadian equivalent to Dover, DE) to greet the plane carrying the bodies. The somber ceremonies were broadcast nation-wide, allowing Canadians who were not used to losses of life in military actions to mourn together.
Stephen Harper apparently feels that Canadians shouldn't be allowed to get used to Canadian troops losing their lives. No, he's not pulling the troops out of harm's way. Instead, he's taking a page from the Bush playbook and having the troops' bodies return in secrecy.
Link
The Conservative government is refusing to allow media to cover tonight's return of four Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan, a surprise decision that has critics accusing Prime Minister Stephen Harper of adopting American-style tactics to limit public exposure to Canada's casualties.
From the start of the Afghan mission four years ago, media have been permitted to cover the solemn ceremony that surrounds the unloading of the caskets of soldiers killed overseas.
But tonight, reporters and television crews attempting to cover the return of the bodies of the soldiers killed by a roadside bomb north of Kandahar on Saturday will find themselves barred from the base on orders of Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor.
This is the second display in the past week which could easily be seen as a Harper attempt at making Canadians forget the contribution our troops our making. Last week, Harper announced that flags would no longer be flown at half-mast at government buildings to honour troops killed in Afghanistan.
The Liberals are calling these moves as they see'em:
"I can't imagine any other Canadian prime minister trying to manipulate public opinion by hiding the caskets of fallen soldiers," said Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh (Vancouver South), the party's defence critic.
"He has borrowed a page from Bush's book," Dosanjh said, accusing the government of following practices of the George W. Bush administration, which has sought to limit media coverage when American casualties are brought home from Iraq.
"I find it absolutely un-Canadian," Dosanjh said. "He hopes that out of sight is out of mind. Canadians are not going to accept that."
Canadians losses in the war in Afghanistan have been a small fraction of those suffered by the US. In fact, the first losses there were Canada's first combat losses since the Korean War (though Canadian peacekeepers were killed in Cyprus in 1974). We, as a nation, are not numb to the consequences of war. Each death becomes personal. Canada's most famous conservative, Don Cherry, recognizes the contribution of these men and women make.
But not Steven Harper.
If you would like to see the names and faces of the Canadians who have given their lives in Afghanistan, they are here.
This page has profiles on the majority of the casualties, but has not yet been updated for the latest.