The Korean War Veteran

Internet Journal for the World’s

Veterans of the Korean War

October 9, 2013

What we should know about Julian Fantino,

Canada’s Minister of Veterans Affairs

By Vince Courtenay

Publisher

The Korean War Veteran

Newly appointed Minister of Veterans Affairs Julian

Fantino did not pose for this photograph that was taken by a

young Korean photographer in Korea in July, 2013. It

certainly gives insight into his character and dedication to

veterans. The photographer ambushed him as he was

escorting a Canadian Korean War Veteran into the

conference room that extends across the international divide

at Panmunjom. Outside the conference room North Korean

security officers were leering and photographing those who

were there as guests of the United Nations Command. The

veteran had been selected to participate with the official

Canadian delegation of nine others, which was headed by

Minister Fantino. He guided the veteran inside and to the

window glass, where North Korean officers were peering

through from the other side. Minister Fantino said the North

Koreans were “only acting that way because somebody in

their organization has instructed them to.”

Veterans Affairs Minister Julian Fantino was appointed to his

post in July and a few days later I was with him in Korea.

We were both members of Canada’s official delegation, invited

by the Prime Minister of Korea. We had time to discuss his new

post and responsibilities and some of the things he intended to

do.

The Minister was and is genuinely enthusiastic about his job,

actually delighted to be able to take good, positive action for

veterans.

I know that he feels personally honored to be able to serve

Canada’s veterans of the armed forces. I know that he has the

greatest respect for them.

This was not only my assessment but that of Liberal Party

appointed Senator Joe Day, long a key Senate champion of

veterans. Senator Day is a graduate of the Royal Military

College of Canada, a former Royal Canadian Air Force pilot and

a lawyer.

Senator Day commented that Minister Fantino brings experience

not only from working with previous portfolios that include

national defence, senior citizens and international cooperation,

but that his nearly 40 years of service in a paramilitary

organization (particularly Toronto Police and the Ontario

Provincial Police, in which services he held the top executive

positions) give him affinity and compassion for military veterans

and an understanding of the framework within which they have

served.

I spent time alone in informal discussion with the Minister and

here are some of the things that he said he was going to do – not

planning to do, but going to do:

Look into the special problems being faced by “current day” veterans, including those who have served in Afghanistan and other postings, not excluding service in Canada, and make a concerted effort to identify where changes can be made to their benefit, and to make the changes quickly wherever it is possible.

He also said there were cases of veterans who were in urgent need and he would pursue them immediately and focus VAC’s resources to get them served. Not all veterans are in such straits, but those who are would be taken care of urgently, while he moves VAC ahead to provide improved service for all others.

Improve all functions of the Ministry, not necessarily by asking for more money, but by doing a better job with the resources available; make adjustments with the stroke of a pen where possible so that delivery of service to veterans would be enhanced.

Take a hard look at the legislation that empowers Veterans Affairs to do its work and see if changes need to be made. We did not name the New

Veterans Charter, but we both knew this was the legislation that he meant.

The Minister also told me that VAC was identifying Korean

War Veterans groups all across Canada that were planning

meetings or ceremonies to commemorate the 60th anniversary of

the end of the Korean War. VAC was ensuring that a Member of

Parliament or other suitable government official would be in

attendance at each one of them. He was planning to do similar

things for all veteran groups.

He left Korea to fly in long, tiring legs to Sicily to take part in

commemoration services there, then returned to Canada and

visited with veterans groups in several spread out locations – not

just Korean War Veterans, but World War Two Veterans as well;

the Hong Kong veterans in Winnipeg, Veterans of Bomber

Command in Ottawa.

He stayed in motion doing that and he stayed in motion within

the Cabinet, too.

He recommended and received approval to open a review of the

New Veterans Charter that has become so controversial. That

review will begin later this month when Parliament reconvenes.

He doesn’t want “a study.” He wants to fix things on an

immediate basis wherever it’s possible and take action to find

and fix all of the gaps or flaws as quickly as possible. It is not a

political feint. He is an executive who takes action and he is

doing this month exactly what he told me he would do last July.

Once again, at a meeting of Veteran stakeholders in Ottawa last

week, he said any provisions in the New Veterans Charter that

could be “changed at the stroke of a pen” to achieve

improvement would be handled at once. He was hoping to make

many pen strokes, while doing whatever is required to

permanently fill in perceived “gaps” in service coverage.

Here is what the president of the Canadian Veterans

Association in United Nations Peacekeeping has just reported,

following his return from that meeting. He makes a comment in

his report about negative things being said about Minister

Fantino based upon an interview with a Vancouver radio

personality, but he does it fairly and objectively. His message

stays with the Ottawa meeting and its importance to Canada’s

veterans.

Good afternoon all:

On Wednesday, October 2nd, 2013 I had occasion to attend a Veterans Affairs Canada Stakeholders meeting in Ottawa representing our Organization.

I have previously sent out a copy of the proposed agenda.

The meeting was chaired by Minister of Veterans Affairs J. Fantino, with Lt General W. Semianiw as moderator.

The Minister stayed for the complete meeting.

The thrust of the meeting by those attending was NO MORE STUDIES, get on with the modernization of the New Veterans Charter.

These arguments/suggestions were well presented and supported by several organizations, including ourselves.

We have all heard the same comments over and over again pertaining to the shortfalls of the New Veterans Charter.

Studies from the New Veterans Charter Advisory Committee, Special Needs Advisory Group and the Gerontological Advisory Committee as well as several letters forwarded to the Minister from the Consultation group of 17 Veterans Associations that meets twice yearly at the Royal Canadian Legion Head Office (Legion House) in Kanata.

The Minister spoke on several subjects on behalf of Veterans Affairs Canada.

If I may use a few statements from the Minister:

I trust I have them correct.

“Even though there are reviews ongoing we will try to do as much as we can under the present legislation with the stroke of a pen”

“We will “Cherry Pick” and do the changes we can do now”

“We will try to move the yardstick”.

I appreciate the Minister’s comments and only hope he will carry out the various positive things he said.

During the meeting the Minister announced that the Government would appeal the decision handed down by the Court in British Columbia.

After this announcement, several Associations made comment as to the decision and stated that even though this was, in our opinion, a mistake, let us not lose sight of our purpose and do our best for our most severely injured Veterans and their families.

I fully appreciate what has taken place since the meeting on Oct 2nd, and only hope the Minister misspoke.

I have received so many messages on what took place (on this radio show) since the meeting that it would be inappropriate of me to comment on them, as I did not hear them myself.

We can only hope that the review of the New Veterans Charter, slated to begin this fall, will move as quickly as possible through the Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs.

I have previously (this A.M.) sent out a combination of documents pertaining to the Commemoration Services of Veterans Affairs Canada and hope I will

receive suggestions from our colleagues. This is a good opportunity to be heard.

As I receive more information I will continue to share this information with our members, friends and colleagues.

Please be so kind as to share this email. Thank you.

Respectfully submitted for your information.

Kindest regards,

Ron Griffis

National President

CAVUNP

With respect to the referenced radio interview, let me say that I

listened to a recording of the full interview and this is what I

heard:

It started out with the questioner presenting a short tape of a

complaint by a caller about the New Veterans Charter.

Minister Fantino responded to the effect that there are gaps in

the New Veterans Charter and that it was his/VAC’s intent to

get them fixed rapidly, particularly with respect to the most

seriously impacted veterans. He advised that care must be taken

not to take several situations where veterans have fallen into

those gaps and translate them into a broad brush to condemn all

of the New Veterans Charter.

The questioner then said that lawyers working on behalf of the

Canadian Government had previously said in a filing that

disabled veterans were no different than any other group that the

Canadian Government supports financially. The questioner

alleged they meant that veterans were no different in the view of

the Canadian Government than welfare recipients.

The reference was to pave the way for a possible discussion

about Canada’s Office of the Attorney General filing an appeal

against a judge’s decision to let a group of veterans file a class

action suit against the Government. The class action suit is an

effort to have the New Veterans Charter replaced.

Minister Fantino adroitly said that he was not going to comment

on a legal proceeding and acknowledged that there was due

process in Canada and the process was there to serve the People.

He did not comment about veterans who are trying to sue the

federal government. He said not one word about them or their

lawsuit.

The Minister then went on to say that he was sympathetic to the

problems of veterans and respectful of their service to the People

of Canada. He identified himself as having spent four decades as

part of the nation's police and fire fighting community whose

members also place their lives on the line in performing their

service.

Minister Fantino was not saying, Hey veterans, who do you think

you are, I’ve served, too.

He was saying, I have served, too, on the front lines of Canada's

police services, and I understand, I want to help.

The above are not quotes, they're interpretative comments.

He made absolutely no comment about veterans or their levels

of service at that time. Several times in the interview he said that

he wanted to serve the veterans and address the gaps and the

problems and do it with the respect that is their due.

He means that. He has impressed VAC rank and file that he

means it; that all veterans must always be treated with respect

and that VAC employees hold their jobs for only one reason – to

serve Canada’s veterans at the highest possible level.

And what if he had, as some are trying to say, implied

that police service was in some ways comparable or allied to

army, air force or naval service?

He didn't, but most knowledgeable veterans know that it

would not be derogatory or by any stretch of the imagination a

slur on their own service.

Canadian civilian police have served in many of Canada's UN

peacekeeping missions, as well as in NATO active duty

operations in Afghanistan.

Through the International Police Operations Program of the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police, police from not only the

federal level, but from the Provincial police forces and the

municipal police services are deployed on many missions.

The civilian police deployments in Afghanistan began as early

as 2003 and lasted throughout the Canadian participation. Those

police officers served on 12-month deployments. All of them

were awarded the same Operational Service Medal as the

Canadian Forces service personnel who were deployed there.

Other civilian policemen have served on United Nations

Missions and have been awarded the same Canadian

Peacekeeping Service Medal that the Canadian Forces veterans

receive.

Canadian civilian police officers have served alongside

Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan, Ivory Coast, Congo, Haiti,

Sudan, Palestine, other postings abroad.

So why should somebody who has the qualification not mention

his background of forty years of police service as a useful basis

for understanding and sympathizing with Canadian Forces

veterans and their challenges?

I will digress and insert that I travel abroad quite a bit. I meet

veterans from other nations, military people from other nations,

sometimes government people who are involved in their

country’s veterans programs.

Canada’s veterans programs are viewed as a model for the rest

of the world, certainly among the Commonwealth nations. The

support services are very high. The financial benefits paid to

disabled veterans in Canada is higher than that provided in the

United States, which is arguably still the richest nation in the

world.

Back to the radio interview.

Only later, toward the end of the interview did Minister Fantino

comment on “levels of service.” This was part of his repeated

assertion that it is his intent to deal urgently with the veterans

whose situations are the most serious, most pressing, and in that

respect he used the “levels of service” phrase.

What he meant was, and what is exactly in line with what he

told veteran stakeholders on October 2 in their meeting with him

at the National War Museum, that he will move as quickly as

possible to take care of veterans whose situations are most

critical and whose problems are addressable and need to be

resolved most expediently.

As Mister Griffis said in his report (above), “do our best for

our most severely injured Veterans and their families” – and

Mister Griffis presented that statement as a consensus view of

the stakeholders who were present at the meeting in Ottawa.

The Minister’s realistic, practicable approach is that not all of

the gaps can be filled quickly, not all of the veterans’ problems

can be resolved in the same timeframe, but he will move with

flank speed on those that are deemed most urgent and that can

be tackled.

Cherry picking? Yes!”

In the radio interview he not once said anything demeaning of

veterans, or that belittled their service.

He did not say that police service is equivalent to military

service. He referenced that he had been on the front lines of

police service and from that perspective can appreciate the high

and often dangerous service that military veterans have provided

to the Canadian People.

Can anyone not acknowledge that Canada’s police and

firefighters have a dangerous job and put their lives on the line,

like the Minister said?

Not just a few of Canada’s veterans went into security or police

work after their service, including myself, and it is no bed of

roses.

Of course, in assessing the service contributions of policemen

and firemen, there are many different levels of public safety

service, some more demanding, some more dangerous than

others.

One might note that Ron Griffis, president of the Canadian

Veterans Association in United Nations Peacekeeping, himself

served as a civilian police officer following his Canadian Forces

service.

Veterans Affairs Canada serves in some degree or other, often

vitally, nearly a quarter of a million veteran clients who have

been issued the VAC Health Identification Card or who in some

other way are receiving VAC supportive services.

That’s roughly one quarter of all of Canada’s veterans, including

those who served in World War Two and the Korean War and in

the Canadian Forces thereafter and in the Royal Canadian

Mounted Police.

The vast majority, probably to an extremely high percentile,

receive outstanding service and support from VAC.

Some who know him have said that Minister Julian Fantino

probably is one of the most capable and caring people to ever

hold the VAC portfolio.

It should be noted that he was appointed to the Cabinet as

Minister of State for senior citizen affairs just three months after

winning his first election to Parliament as the Member from

Vaughan, Ontario.

He was brand new to politics yet given a ministerial post almost

as soon as his feet hit the ground. He was never a backbencher

in Parliament.

He also has served as Associate Minister of National Defence

and as Minister of International Development.

Most Veterans do not care what political party he may belong to.

They will and should judge him on perceived sincerity, and his

efforts to get the job done.

He told me in Korea last July that when he would later give up

the reins to a successor, that VAC would be a better Ministry.

He speaks his mind, he does not get intimidated, and he takes

action directly. He is doing a job that he loves to do and he is

doing it well.

Even the Veterans Ombudsman, whose job is to oversee and

criticize the operations of VAC on behalf of all of Canada's

veterans, has joined with him in a spirit of cooperation to tackle

the gaps existing in the New Veterans Charter.

So have many other Veterans and their organizations.