Our Mission The Veterans Association Food Bank is
dedicated to supporting and enriching the lives of Veterans and
their families.
Our Vision As a community of
Veterans helping Veterans, we will be the support base where
together we create healthy and resilient futures.
Who We
Serve The Veterans Association Food Bank recognizes any
person who is currently serving or has honourably served in the
Canadian Armed Forces. The Veterans Association Food Bank also
recognizes and offers support to those currently serving, honourably
discharged or honourably released Commonwealth Allies, members of
the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Peacekeepers, Merchant Marines,
or Ferry Command (Coast Guard). Support will be extended to spouses,
widows, widowers, and any dependent children in need. Proof of
military service or affiliation required.
They never had any brochures
or briefing about the possibility of this at the recruiting office.
Just the part about taking
oath to knowingly avow and be willing to lay one's life on the line
for your country.
Then
terrorism up and reared its ugly head, even here in Canada with FLQ
and other international Terrorism Gangs. Cowards, trying to rule,
dominate and mandate their philosophy by fear.
A whole new way of life for
dealing with enemies of freedom and democracy. A new issue for our
Veterans and Troops that were and still are dealing with life in the
Armed Forces and the effects of the past and future effects it would
bring.
God Bless our
Veterans and our Troops and their families.
Let's support all our
Veterans' for Recognition and Inclusiveness.
We know that everyday,
thousands of Veterans, First Responders and their family members are
working hard to challenge the effects of trauma exposure and, for
many, the symptoms of operational stress injuries such as PTSD.
FRONTLINE - Ethics through the Lens of Military Reform
Posted on Mar 01, 2021
VVi 02 Mar 2021
In an
attempt to set the record straight on some of the misunderstandings,
skewed agenda of some media commentators, and the reluctance to
forthrightly address the key issues, Tony Battista answers questions
related to how the military handles past, current and future
indiscretions...
Our mandate is to try to get a
Canadian Victoria Cross awarded to an Afghanistan veteran. To
achieve this goal we are going to put on a two hour special that
highlights the actions of ten soldiers and then you the viewer
decides who you would award the most prestigious medal to.
We are happy to announce the
2021 Virtual edition of Canada Army Run, Presented by BMO Financial
Group is now live, taking place September 10-19! While we had to
make the difficult decision to not host an in-person event this
year, we have an exciting virtual event experience to bring to you.
Building off of the success of
our 2020 event, we are bringing new ways to train, race and engage
with us.
Early bird pricing in effect
until March 31! Register now at armyrun.ca & check out our new
website!!!! //
Nous sommes heureux d’annoncer que l’édition virtuelle 2021 de la
Course de l’Armée du Canada, présentée par BMO Groupe financier est
maintenant en ligne, et elle aura lieu du 10 au 19 septembre! Même
si nous avons dû prendre la décision difficile de ne pas tenir
d’événement en personne cette année, nous avons une superbe
expérience virtuelle à vous faire vivre.
Tirant parti de la réussite de
notre course de 2020, nous présentons de nouveaux moyens de vous
entraîner, de courir et de communiquer avec nous.
Les distances de course
offertes :
- 5 km
- 10 km - demi-marathon
- Défi 5 km + 10 km - Défi du
commandant 5 km + demi-marathon
Les tarifs réduits de la
préinscription sont en vigueur jusqu’au 31 mars! Inscrivez vous
maintenant au site armyrun.ca et voyez notre nouveau site Web!
Veterans Affairs Canada’s
magazine, Salute! is now an e-newsletter and we are proud to present
this first issue. Please share this e-mail with your friends and
networks, and encourage them to register by visiting
letstalkveterans.ca to keep up on issues that matter to Veterans and
their families.
Let us know what you think
about the new Salute! by emailing
vac.consultation-consultation.acc@canada.ca .
________________________________________
The Veteran and Family
Well-Being Fund is open for applications
Does your organization support
the well-being of Veterans and their families?
Apply for the Veteran and
Family Well-Being Fund. Funding is available to organizations from
the private, public or academic sectors doing research and realizing
projects and initiative in support of the well-being of Veterans and
their families. Applications will be accepted until 8 February 2021.
Not sure if you qualify? Check
out our funding guidelines.
Interested in applying? Find
the application here.
https://vfwb-fbvf.vac-acc.gc.ca/vfwb/public/login?lang=en...
________________________________________
(The English message precedes)
Le magazine d’Anciens
Combattants Canada Salut! est désormais un bulletin d’information
électronique et nous sommes fiers de vous présenter ce premier
numéro. Veuillez partager ce courriel avec vos amis et vos réseaux
et les encourager à s’inscrire en consultant le site
parlonsveterans.ca pour se tenir au courant des questions qui
comptent pour les vétérans et leur famille.
Faites-nous savoir ce que vous
pensez du nouveau Salut! en nous envoyant un courriel à l’adresse
vac.consultation-consultation.acc@canada.ca.
________________________________________
Les demandes sont acceptées
dans le cadre du Fonds pour le bien-être des vétérans et de leur
famille
Votre organisme soutient-il le
bien-être des vétérans et de leur famille?
Présentez une demande dans le
cadre du Fonds pour le bien-être des vétérans et de leur famille. Du
financement est offert aux organismes des secteurs privé, public et
universitaire qui mènent des recherches et qui mettent en œuvre des
projets et des initiatives à l’appui du bien-être des vétérans et de
leur famille. Les demandes seront acceptées jusqu’au 8 février 2021.
Vous n’êtes pas sûr d’être
admissible? Consultez les lignes directrices pour le financement.
Vous souhaitez présenter une
demande? Vous trouverez le formulaire ici.
https://vfwb-fbvf.vac-acc.gc.ca/vfwb/public/login?lang=fr...
OVO Release of Report /Le BOV publie un rapport
VAC
VVi20 Jan 2021
Le français suit
Today the Office of the
Veterans Ombudsman (OVO) released its report on Mental Health
Treatment Benefits For Family Members, In Their Own Right, For
Conditions Related To Military Service.
The report examines and makes
recommendations regarding treatment benefits for those family
members of Canadian Armed Forces Veterans who might be experiencing
their own mental health conditions as a result of military service.
The OVO believes that this is an important fairness matter in need
of both attention and action.
We encourage you to read the
full report and appreciate you sharing it through your networks and
on your social media channels.
Sincerely,
Nishika Jardine
Veterans’ Ombudsman Office of
the Veterans Ombudsman / Government of Canada
Click here to read the full report: Report on Mental Health
Treatment Benefits For Family Members, In Their Own Right, For
Conditions Related To Military Service.
Facebook: @VeteransOmbudsman
Instagram: @Veteransombudsmancanada
Twitter: @VetsOmbudsman
________________________________________
Aujourd’hui, le Bureau de
l’ombudsman des vétérans (BOV) a publié son Rapport sur les
avantages pour soins de santé mentale destinés aux membres des
familles, de plein droit, pour des problèmes de santé mentale liés
au service militaire.
Le rapport porte sur les
avantages médicaux offerts aux membres de la famille des vétérans
des Forces armées canadiennes qui ont leur propre problème de santé
mentale lié au service militaire et il fait des recommandations à
cet égard.
Le BOV croit qu’il s’agit
d’une question importante en matière d’équité qui doit être portée à
notre attention et pour laquelle il faut prendre des mesures.
Nous vous encourageons à lire
le rapport en entier et nous vous remercions de faire part du
rapport au moyen de vos réseaux et de vos médias sociaux.
Veuillez agréer nos
salutations les plus sincères,
Nishika Jardine
Ombudsman des Vétérans Bureau
de l’ombudsman des vétérans / Gouvernement du Canada
Cliquez sur le lien suivant pour consulter le rapport en entier :
Rapport sur les avantages pour soins de santé mentale destinés aux
membres des familles, de plein droit, pour des problèmes de santé
mentale liés au service militaire.
Facebook: @OmbudsmanVeterans
Instagram: @Ombudsmanveteranscanada
Twitter: @OmbudVeterans
Canada Announces Sweeping New Travel Restrictions in Attempt to
Contain COVID-19
Last Updated: January 30, 2021
VVi 01 Feb 2021
On January 29, 2021, Prime
Minister Trudeau announced sweeping new measures for travellers that
will come into effect in the coming days and weeks.
The measures are intended to
further protect Canadians from the new variants of the COVID virus
that are circulating.
While Trudeau acknowledged
that travel is only responsible for about 2% of cases, he pointed
out that just one travel case infected a Barrie, Ont. nursing home
with the new British variant that resulted in multiple deaths and
many cases.
All flights suspended between
Canada, the Caribbean and Mexico
Effective Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021, all four of Canada’s major airlines
– Air Canada, West Jet, Air Transat and Sunwing – have agreed to
cancel all flights between Canada and Mexico, Canada and the
Caribbean and Canada and Costa Rica until April 30, 2021.
These airlines will organize
ways for their existing customers in affected destinations to get
home, either on repatriation flights or through other carriers.
Snowbirds in these destinations should contact their travel agent or
airline for further information.
So far, flights between Canada
and other destinations, including the United States, will continue
to operate, but it is possible this may change in the future.
All International flights must
land at one of Canada’s 4 largest airports
For the foreseeable future, all international flights arriving in
Canada will only be able to land at Canada’s four largest airports:
Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary.
COVID testing will be
mandatory for all arriving air passengers
All arriving international air passengers will be required to take a
PCR COVID test at the airport.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford
announced today that this testing requirement will come into effect
at Pearson International Airport in Toronto on Monday, February 1st,
ahead of when Federal testing requirements begin at other airports,
which is expected to begin soon.
Mandatory hotel quarantines
All international air travellers will be required to stay in a
supervised government approved quarantine hotel, at their own
expense, until their test results come back, which is expected to
take approximately 3 days.
The cost to travellers for the
mandatory hotel stay and COVID testing will be approximately $2,000.
If you test negative, you may
go to your home and complete the remainder of your 14-day quarantine
there, under what the Prime Minister has described as “significantly
increased surveillance”. This increased surveillance will be
conducted by private security firms who have been hired by the
Federal government to monitor travellers who are quarantining at
home.
Travellers will also be
required to be tested again on Day 10 of their quarantine,
regardless of their initial test result, according to Chief Public
Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam.
If your test is positive, you
will be required to go to a government run quarantine centre.
These requirements have not
yet come into effect, as the government is still in the process of
making arrangements for quarantine hotels and setting up quarantine
centers for those who test positive. It is expected that these
requirements will come into effect soon.
For updates and more
information, keep checking the government website at
www.travel.gc.ca
Pre-flight COVID tests still
required The new measures do
not replace the requirement introduced at the end of December for a
negative COVID test to be completed within 72 hours prior to flying
to Canada.
COVID testing at the land
border is coming soon Trudeau
made it clear that COVID testing upon arrival in Canada will also be
required at the land border soon. No set date was given for when
this requirement would come into effect.
It was not clear if COVID
tests at land borders will be PCR tests or rapid tests. It was also
not clear if mandatory hotel quarantines will be enforced at the
land border once this new testing requirement begins.
More details on land border
testing will be announced soon.
What if I’ve been vaccinated?
At this time, travellers who have already been vaccinated are NOT
exempt from any testing or quarantine rules. You will be subject to
the same pre-arrival and post-arrival COVID testing requirements and
all quarantine requirements upon arriving in Canada as other
travellers.
What if I’ve had COVID?
If you have had COVID-19, you can test positive for up to 6 months.
This scenario has not yet been addressed by the Canadian government.
COVID Coverup: Trudeau gov’t helped China hide origins of COVID-19
Rebel News, Keean Bexte 14 Jan 2021
VVi 16
Jan 2020 db
Read the documents for yourself:
http://www.COVIDcoverup.ca Keean Bexte reveals some explosive information provided to him
by a high-ranking member of the Canadian Armed Forces regarding the
origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rapid Housing Initiative / Initiative rapide pour le logement
VVi 02 Dec 2020
(Le français suit)
Good day,
Recently, the Government of
Canada launched the Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI) through the
Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The program
includes $1 billion to address urgent housing needs of vulnerable
Canadians through the rapid construction of affordable housing. The
CMHC is accepting applications for capital funding related to the
construction of modular housing, the acquisition of land, and/or the
rehabilitation of affordable housing units until December 31, 2020.
Provinces, territories, municipalities, Indigenous governing bodies
and organizations, as well as non-profit organizations are eligible
to apply for funding.
Check out the Rapid Housing
Initiative website to learn more.
Récemment, le gouvernement du
Canada a lancé l'Initiative pour la création rapide de logement
(ICRL) par l'intermédiaire de la Société canadienne d'hypothèques et
de logement (SCHL). Ce programme comprend un milliard de dollars
pour répondre aux besoins urgents de logement des Canadiens
vulnérables grâce à la construction rapide de logements abordables.
La SCHL accepte les demandes de financement d'immobilisations liées
à la construction de logements modulaires, à l'acquisition de
terrains et/ou à la remise en état d'unités de logement abordables
jusqu'au 31 décembre 2020. Les provinces, les territoires, les
municipalités, les organismes de gouvernance et les organisations
autochtones, ainsi que les organismes sans but lucratif peuvent
présenter une demande de financement.
Pour en savoir plus, consultez
le site web de l'Initiative rapide pour le logement.
Sincères salutations,
Équipe de mobilisation et de
sensibilisation des intervenants
Anciens Combattants Canada
vac.engagement.acc@canada.ca
Business
Insider What Vets Miss Most Is What Most Civilians Fear: A
Regimented, Cohesive Network That Always Checks On You
Mike Stajura , New America's Weekly Wonk Nov 26, 2013, 9:39 AM
VVi 30 Nov 2020
soldiers 173rd Airborne Brigade Johannes Simon/Getty Images
When I joined the Army as a 17-year-old, I expected to face many
challenges and hardships as an individual — whether that meant
getting yelled at or shot at or made to jump out of airplanes. What
I didn’t yet understand was how much I’d put aside my individual
concerns and focus on my fellow service members — or how much they’d
do the same for me. The truth is that I had never been in such a
supportive social environment in my life.
That might sound
odd to people who’ve never been in the military. Getting chewed out
for not having your shoes shined hardly seems “supportive” to most
people. But that’s just one part of the military experience.
In the Army, it mattered to someone else whether or not my boots fit
properly. It mattered to someone else whether I had been to the
dentist recently. It mattered to someone else if I wasn’t where I
was supposed to be at the right time. (Believe me, I’d hear about it
if I wasn’t.)
To be sure, all of this attention paid to my
performance was in the interest of team performance, but it also
meant someone was always there for me. Checking on me. Making sure I
was good to go. All of us were doing this for one another. If I was
on a road march and a member of my squad was struggling, I would
help share his load. If I was on crutches and couldn’t carry my tray
in the dining hall, a fellow soldier would be right there to help
me. That’s just how it was. We learned to think of others first.
And then you exit the service.
No more intrusive surprise
health and welfare inspections. No more grueling runs and setting
your speed to the slowest member of your group. No more morning
formations. No more of the countless bureaucratic irritations of
military life. Paradise, right?
Actually, for many of us, no.
Gone, suddenly, is the cohesive structure that existed to take
care of you. Gone is that strong sense of social security. Gone is
the sense that, wherever you go, you know where you fit. Gone are
the familiar cultural norms. Gone are your friends from your
ready-made peer group, who are just as invested in your success as
you are in theirs.
News reports carry a lot of disheartening
statistics about U.S. Veterans. (Like the U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs, I capitalize the word “Veterans” to be
respectful.) Nearly a fifth of Veterans between the ages of 18 and
24 are jobless. Veterans suffer a 33 percent higher rate of
narcotics overdoses than the rest of the population, and their
suicide rate is slightly higher, too. People often react to this
with pity, assuming that the cause is tied to trauma suffered while
in the service.
But I suspect that the main contributor to
troubled adjustment to civilian life is something else entirely, and
rarely is it because of battle trauma. Rather, when Veterans leave
military service, many of them, like me, are leaving the most
cohesive and helpful social network they’ve ever experienced. And
that hurts. Most recent Veterans aren’t suffering because they
remember what was bad. They’re suffering because they miss what was
good.
Of course, many Veterans just power through and do
fine. Veterans on average have better health and earn more money
than the average American. But others fall short of their potential,
simply because they’re missing something, and they can’t tell what
it is.
One friend of mine went from being a combat medic in
the Army to a transfer student in the health field at a major
university. He got perfectly good grades, but none of his efforts to
connect with his new peers and replace the social cohesion that he
was missing worked. He nearly wound up dropping out of school.
Simply put, he felt isolated and adrift.
For this reason, I
think that the social prescription for most Veterans facing
challenges in civilian life — whether those challenges are PTSD or a
lost limb or simply an inability to maintain steady employment —
should be the same: find them a social network to replace the one
they lost.
This helped another friend of mine, a smart,
capable Marine who was discharged from the service right around the
time of her divorce. At first, she floundered, and for a short
stretch she was even homeless. What rescued her was a stint with
AmeriCorps, the federal community service organization, which gave
her a job that led to full-time employment with a national
nonprofit.
AmeriCorps offered my friend three crucial things:
a new mission, a new purpose, and a strong, supportive social
network in which people were actually invested in one another’s
well-being and success. That allowed her to get back on her feet.
(That — and perhaps the fact that Marines are stubborn and
tenacious. Not all stereotypes are bad.)
I am inspired to see
that other Veteran service organizations have recognized the
importance of a sense of community and renewed purpose. Look at The
Mission Continues, a nonprofit that focuses on community service
work for Veterans. They get it. They know that those who have served
in the military are resilient and capable leaders. All that most
Veterans need is a new mission, a new purpose, and a supportive
community of peers.
Veterans aren’t looking for a handout,
and they certainly don’t want to be pitied. If civilian life could
offer Veterans more of the virtues of military life —
accountability, cohesion, and a sense of purpose — I suspect you’d
hear much less about the “problems” Veterans face and much more
about the achievements that come from harnessing such vast energy,
discipline, and public spirit.
Ex-soldiers say it's time for a Canadian to receive a Victoria
Cross for Afghanistan Canada
spent 13 years in combat in Afghanistan without once awarding the
nation's highest military honour
Murray Brewster · CBC News ·
Posted: Nov 10, 2020 4:00 AM
ET | Last Updated: November 10
VVi 12 Nov 2020
A Canadian soldier with 1st RCR Battle Group climbs over a wall as
he patrols with his unit in the Panjwayi district, south west of
Kandahar, Afghanistan on June 6, 2010. (Anja Niedringhaus/The
Associated Press)
One of the country's former
top military commanders is helping to lead a push to honour some
veterans of combat in the Afghanistan war with Canada's highest
military honour — the Victoria Cross.
Former chief of the defence
staff general Rick Hillier is among those behind a grassroots
campaign and an upcoming documentary that will tell the stories of
10 recipients of the Military Star of Valour, the nation's
second-highest military decoration.
Canada exited the Afghan war
in 2014 after 13 years on the ground — many of them in combat —
without awarding a single Victoria Cross.
The award for "extraordinary
valour and devotion to duty while facing a hostile force" was
created as a singularly Canadian honour in 1993, after more than a
century of being a British Commonwealth-administered citation.
"We had decided to celebrate
our own, except we've never done it," Hillier said in a Remembrance
Day message posted online on Tuesday — pointing out that Canada
itself has never given a Victoria Cross to a Canadian soldier.
Lieut.-Gen. Rick Hillier speaks to the troops following Remembrance
Day ceremonies at Camp Julien Tuesday Nov. 11, 2003, in Kabul,
Afghanistan. The now-former chief of the defence staff wants
Canadians to nominate veterans of the Afghanistan war for Canada's
highest combat honour, the Victoria Cross. (Canadian Press/Terry
Pedwell) He's asking the public
to join a campaign to award the Victoria Cross "to a soldier or
soldiers whom you judge deserving."
A group of five former
soldiers, all of whom served overseas, have researched the cases and
are planning to assemble a documentary, tentatively titled "Valour
in the Presence of the Enemy," said retired corporal Bruce Moncur.
Moncur said he would not
identify the 10 soldiers — all recipients of the Star of Military
Valour — since neither they nor any surviving family members have
been notified.
Hillier said their stories
will be presented to the public — it's not clear when or how — and
pledged that the campaign will offer its recommendations by
Remembrance Day of next year.
A memorial to fallen Canadian and U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan at
DND Headquarters in Ottawa. (Murray Brewster/Canadian Press)
The British, the Australians
and the New Zealanders have each given out a handful of VCs for
actions in Iraq and Afghanistan, while the United States has awarded
several Medals of Honour — the American equivalent — in both wars.
A spokesperson for the
military said "no recommendations for a Victoria Cross were put
forward (to the governor general) by the Canadian Armed forces prior
to 2012."
Canadian troops ended their
combat mission in Kandahar in 2011 and Canadian forces were
withdrawn from Afghanistan three years later.
Since then, two of Canada's
chiefs of the defence staff — retired general Walt Natynczyk and the
current top commander Gen. Jonathan Vance — have launched reviews to
make sure that each soldier received the proper citation.
Too late for new medals?
"A review committee reported to Chief of the Defence Staff General
Natynczyk that the process had been fair and consistent, and that
all awards respected the intent and criteria of the decoration,"
said Lt. Stéphany Lura.
The review requested by Vance
concluded that "all honours for the Afghanistan mission had been
processed and the time limits for such nominations (two years
between the action and the nomination for Military Valour and
Bravery Decorations) had elapsed."
Previously, the military has
said it follows a stringent process, and a nomination for a bravery
award must pass through no less than three committees of senior
officers.
The last of Canada's 94
Victoria Cross medals were handed out during the Second World War —
before Canada took over the award. The country's last living
recipient, Private Ernest "Smokey" Smith, died in 2005.
Nishika Jardine is named as new Veterans Ombudsperson / Nishika
Jardine est le nouvel ombudsman des vétérans
VVi 12 Nov 2020
(Le français suit)
Dear Stakeholders and Advisory
Group members,
Stakeholder
Engagement and Outreach would like to share with you the following
news release - The Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of
Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence,
welcomed the appointment of Nishika Jardine as the new Veterans
Ombudsperson.
This has been posted to the
Veterans Affairs Canada website. We encourage you to pass this along
to anyone who may be interested.
Sincerely,
Stakeholder Engagement and Outreach Team
Veterans Affairs Canada
vac.engagement.acc@canada.ca
***************************************************************************
Cher(e)s intervenant(e)s et membres des groupes consultatif,
L’Équipe de Mobilisation et
sensibilisation des intervenants aimeraient partager avec vous le
communiqué de presse suivant – L’honorable Lawrence MacAulay,
ministre des Anciens Combattants et ministre associé de la Défense
nationale, a salué la nomination de Nishika Jardine à titre de
nouvel ombudsman des vétérans.
Ce communiqué de presse a été
affiché sur le site Web d'anciens combattants Canada. Nous vous
encourageons à le transmettre à tous ceux qui pourraient être
intéressés.
Cordialement,
L’Équipe de Mobilisation et sensibilisation des intervenants
Anciens Combattants Canada
vac.enagagement.acc@canada.ca
Canadian
Soldiers Assistance Team (CSAT) Forum Newsletter - This is a VVi
forum.
COVD-19 is having a
significant effect on our Veterans, First Responders and their
family members. It has presented access challenges to mental health
and wellness support, enhanced risk of personal exposure for those
on the frontline, and has placed significant stressors on family
relationships.
I am pleased to report that we
are engaged in our COVID Restart Plan and are back in our group
programs. Just last week we facilitated our Couples Overcoming PTSD
Everyday (COPE) program, Couples Equine Therapy program, Trauma
Resiliency Program (Phase II), and delivered a virtual Before
Operational Stress program. Prior to that, 20 kids participated in
our Warrior Kids Camp in Alberta over Thanksgiving weekend. Taken
together, it’s been an incredible few weeks of healing made possible
thanks to your support.
I hope you and your family are
staying safe and keeping well. We will be back in touch on
Remembrance Day.
Sincerely,
Scott Maxwell
Executive Director Wounded
Warriors Canada
CANADIAN VETERANS VAC Backlog and Veteran lawsuits
Charles Scott 27 Oct 2020
VVi 29 Oct 2020
Thank you
for raising the issue(s) in the House Rachel.
Not surprising
was Darrell's response- same old regurgitated speech with no action.
It's easy to state "Privacy" when it's before the courts, however,
this government, this VAC Minister had EVERY opportunity to prevent
a lawsuit as we engaged with his office numerous occasions- with no
response.
Rachel Blaney MP for North Island - Powell River
"Yet again, I asked about the backlog at Veterans Affairs
Canada. Yet again, I received hollow responses in reply. I'll be
pushing the issue again tomorrow in the Veterans Affairs Committee.
I will not stop until Canadian veterans gets the supports they need
and rightly deserve."
Lawsuit accuses Veterans Affairs of failing to tell eligible
veterans about benefits
Veterans advocate Sean Bruyea says the department is keeping
veterans in the dark
Murray Brewster · CBC News ·
Posted: Oct 20, 2020 4:00 AM
ET | Last Updated: October 20
VVi 19 Oct 2020
Centre Block on Parliament Hill is lit up in advance of Remembrance
Day on October 28, 2016. A new class action lawsuit against Veterans
Affairs accused the department of failing to inform ex-service
members about available benefits. (Fred Chartrand/The Canadian
Press)
A proposed new class action
lawsuit has been filed against Veteran Affairs Canada accusing it of
failing to inform former soldiers, sailors and aircrew about the
federal benefits to which they are entitled.
A statement of claim was filed
in Federal Court last month by veterans advocate Sean Bruyea. The
claim is being spearheaded by lawyer Peter Driscoll, who
successfully sued the Department of National Defence over military
pension clawbacks and secured a $887 million settlement.
The new case focuses on the
handling of the former Supplementary Retirement Benefit. Bruyea —
who recently won a separate small claims court settlement in a
defamation case against former veterans minister Seamus O'Regan —
had been eligible for the benefit before it was terminated by the
Liberal government as part of its reform of veterans benefits, which
came into effect in April 2019.
According to the court filing,
Bruyea could have received a lump sum payout — equal to 69 months of
the Supplementary Retirement Benefit — "had he been properly advised
by the Department of the eligibility requirements" of the program.
Veterans advocate Sean Bruyea says the degree to which Veterans
Affairs keeps ex-service members in the loop on benefits is "an
important barometer of how veterans are being treated." (CBC)
Bruyea acknowledged the
program was "small" but said it was important because it provided a
small lump sum payment to qualified retiring veterans. He said he's
almost certain he's not the only one who ended up being
shortchanged.
The proposed lawsuit touches
on one of the most common complaints of disabled veterans — that it
can be almost impossible for them to determine which benefits
they're entitled to when the rules have changed so often over the
past 15 years.
Baffling benefits
There have been three major
overhauls of the veterans benefits system since 2005 — changes that
have brought with them some confusing eligibility criteria and
programs that run for several years only to be replaced, changed
into something else or cancelled outright.
In 2015, the Liberal
government promised to fix the system — and asserted as a statement
of principle that no veteran should have to fight the federal
government in court for their benefits.
It also pledged to spend more
money on programs and communicate clearly with former military
members about their options.
While the department has
poured over $10 billion into additional veterans' benefits and
supports over the last five years, Bruyea said it's still failing
veterans if they don't know what they're entitled to receive.
"It is an important barometer
of how veterans are being treated and the obligation the government
has towards its veterans," he said.
Bruyea said he learned when
going through his files that the Supplementary Retirement Benefit
should have been offered to him more than six years ago.
"There are probably more
veterans like me that had not been given the option to sign up for
this program," he added.
A spokesperson for Veterans
Affairs Minister Lawrence MacAulay said he was aware of the case but
was unable to comment on it directly.
"Our government is committed
to supporting Canada's veterans and their families and ensuring they
are aware of all the benefits they are entitled to," said John
Embury, the minister's director of communications. "It would not be
appropriate to comment on this specific case as it is currently
before the court."
The proposed class action is
the second legal case this year to test the extent of the federal
government's obligation to keep veterans informed about programs.
Earlier this year, former
master corporal Charles Scott sued the federal government after his
case file allegedly fell between the cracks at Veterans Affairs not
once, but twice.
Scott claimed he wasn't told
he was at risk for developing post-traumatic stress disorder — even
though the department noted it in his medical file — and was never
given the option to seek treatment in 2008 when he left the
military.
The second alleged lapse on
his file took place in 2019, when Scott's case management file was
lost temporarily and he missed his chance to lock in a supplementary
career replacement benefit. That benefit was phased out with the
introduction of the current Liberal government's revised veterans'
benefit system.
The Liberal government last
year introduced a veterans benefit navigator, an online tool meant
to distil the federal government's array of benefit programs for
veterans into an individually tailored readout that suggests
options.
It took Veterans Affairs
almost a decade to deliver the interactive tool. It was first
recommended by the country's veterans ombudsman in 2010.
Mefloquine is an anti-malarial
medication, which was often prescribed for members of the Canadian
Armed Forces who were deployed to malaria-prevalent areas such as
Somalia, Rwanda and Afghanistan.
However, there are many
serious side effects associated with the use of Mefloquine, some of
which are especially problematic for circumstances experienced by
military personnel. These side effects include, but are not limited
to: anxiety, paranoia, psychotic behaviour, depression, thoughts of
suicide, and hallucinations.
The warning labels for
Mefloquine by Health Canada were revised in 2016 to include the
above side effects, emphasizing the severity and duration of these
effects. Despite allegedly finding that Mefloquine does not have
long-term effects, the Canadian Armed Forces now only prescribes
Mefloquine as the last line of prevention or treatment for malaria.
Legal History and Action
In 2001, a class action was
commenced for veterans who served in Somalia and who were ordered to
take Mefloquine. This action was commenced in Ontario against the
Canadian government, among others. However, in 2018 this class
action was dismissed for delay.
In late 2018, Howie, Sacks &
Henry LLP partnered with Waddell Phillips PC to represent individual
mass tort claims for all veterans who were required to take
Mefloquine from 1992 onwards.
For more information on the
difference between a class action and mass tort actions, please see
our article here.
The Mefloquine Issue
Canadian veterans who were
deployed to various locations including Somalia, Rwanda and
Afghanistan in the 1990’s and 2000’s, and who were required to take
Mefloquine, have come forward claiming they are now suffering from
serious and long-term side effects from the anti-malarial drug.
Many veterans claim they
suffered one or more of these significant side effects after they
were ordered to take the anti-malaria drug, which was initially
prescribed as part of a clinical trial in Somalia, and then
afterwards adopted by the military as their anti-malarial drug of
choice. One of the main issues is that the clinical trial did not
follow proper procedure. Among its failings, the veterans were not
asked to provide their consent and potential side effects were not
disclosed to them prior to the trial. Later on, for missions such as
those in Rwanda and Afghanistan, the government continued to fail to
disclose to its troops the potentially permanent side effects.
As a result, they claim the
federal government did not meet its duty of care. Veterans are now
seeking compensation for the harm and injuries they have suffered as
a result of that negligence on the part of their government.
Mefloquine is rarely used
today in the Canadian military. It was announced in June 2017 by the
Department of National Defence that Mefloquine would only be used if
someone in the Canadian Armed Forces specifically asked for it, or
if there are particular issues with the other anti-malarials (i.e.,
allergy, interaction or contraindications with other drugs, etc.).
Call Today
Call us today for a free
consultation and to see if you are eligible to join our Mefloquine
Lawsuit in Canada.
The Airborne Social
Club (Edmonton) has confirmed they will host a Paratroopers Reunion
in Edmonton during the above period.
This reunion is open to
all former members of the Canadian Airborne Regiment; current and
former members - Regular and Reserve Force Parachute Units/Elements;
former members of the Canadian Airborne Centre; former members
Canadian Forces Parachute Maintenance Depot; 1 Canadian Parachute
Association; current and former paratroopers members of Search and
Rescue Squadrons/Elements; Allied Paratroopers; and all other
paratroopers, whether or not they have served in an active parachute
role or not.
In addition to the above members themselves, a
grateful welcome is extended to all Honorary Club members, wives,
spouses and partners of members no longer with us.
While no
specific theme has been established, members of the Club are at the
initial planning stages and will provide specific details on a
periodic basis.
Although we are endeavouring to reach as many
as possible via all means possible, it is requested that you pass on
this information to those you are in contact with and who we may not
have contacted.
FRONTLINE
IN THE NEWS Job opportunities for military spouses
SEP
18, 2020
VVi 18 Sep 2020 db
The Department of National
Defence is making it easier for military spouses and common-law
partners to find secure and meaningful jobs. Today, the Military
Spouse Employment Initiative will open up opportunities for them
across the entire federal public service.
The average
military family relocates three times more often than the average
Canadian family. This means uprooting their lives, changing their
routines, and encountering new challenges on a regular basis. As a
result, it can be very challenging for partners of serving members
to secure continuous and meaningful employment. To help address this
challenge, in 2018, the Department created the Military Spousal
Employment Initiative to identify job opportunities at DND. Today’s
announcement expands upon the initiative offering the entire Public
Service access to a talented workforce.
The initiative has
already proven to ease some of the stress felt by many military
families, including Justine Walker’s. “I’m very grateful for my job,
and I definitely wouldn’t have it if it wasn’t for the Military
Spouse Employment Initiative,” said Justine Walker, who works as a
compensation assistant at National Defence. A military spouse,
Justine says her full-time position gives her security, both now and
in the future. “When we get posted again, I’ll have options for
transferring my job, finding a new job, or putting my job on hold
while on a temporary posting. My employer is across Canada, and
there are many opportunities to grow within the Department of
National Defence community. I feel extremely secure in my career,
and I’m proud to be contributing to my own pension and making a
career for myself.” Opening up the employment inventory to the
entire federal public service will ensure there are more stories
like Justine’s.
Military partners can now be considered as a
hiring option ahead of other candidates at the Department of
National Defence (with the exception of those with priority
entitlements or preference) if they meet all of the essential
qualifications for the job.
“Military partners – mostly women
– face a high degree of career instability as a result of the
frequent relocations,” notes Deputy Minister Jody Thomas. “This
initiative creates better options for military spouses to find good
jobs and benefits within the federal public service, and is exactly
the kind of tangible support that helps improve the overall
wellbeing of the military families who contribute so much to our
country. Employing a Canadian military spouse is a wise strategic
decision for any employer. Military life teaches our Canadian Armed
Forces families to organize, adapt, manage, and work within a team,
and any military spouse will arrive at their new job with those
essential skills well-developed. By hiring a military spouse,
employers are strengthening Canada and Canadian business lines.”
The inventory is open exclusively to spouses and common-law
partners of serving Canadian Armed Forces members, who either live
at the military member’s place of duty or live separately for
military reasons. The Canadian Armed Forces member must belong to
the Regular Force or to the Reserve Force on Class C service or
Class B reserve service of more than 180 consecutive days. Those who
meet the above criteria are eligible to apply online to the
inventory.
The pool of talent includes many streams such as
information management and information technology (IM/IT),
procurement, materiel management, language teaching, health
services, administration, and general services, as well as general
trades and labour.
The Military Spouse Employment Initiative
has won the Most Effective Recruitment Strategy silver award at the
Canadian HR Awards 2020. The initiative supports several objectives
outlined in Canada’s defence policy, Strong, Secured, Engaged. Those
objectives seek to support military families by addressing and
alleviating the employment challenges that they face when relocating
across Canada.
The Military Spousal Employment Initiative is
a complement to a wide range of services available to military
spouses through Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services and
local Military Family Resource Centres. These services include the
flagship Military Spousal Employment Network, launched in 2018. The
Military Spousal Employment Network boasts over 3,200 military
spouse participants and showcases national and virtual employers
interested in hiring military spouses through an online platform and
virtual and in-person. Last year, just over 25 percent of military
spouses who participated were hired through the Military Spousal
Employment Initiative.
The Advocate-Equalizer A
veteran of Somalia who has suffered from quinism for more than 25
years, Dave Bona shares his insights on the the disease and the
importance of nutrition.
14 Sep 2020
VVi 18 Sep 2020
The term “quinism” may
seem new, but the symptoms of poisoning by mefloquine (previously
marketed as Lariam®), tafenoquine (marketed as Krintafel® and
Arakoda™), and related quinoline drugs are all too familiar:
Tinnitus. Dizziness. Vertigo. Paresthesias. Visual disturbances.
Gastroesophageal and intestinal problems. Nightmares. Insomnia.
Sleep apnea. Anxiety. Agoraphobia. Paranoia. Cognitive dysfunction.
Depression. Personality change. Suicidal thoughts.
These symptoms are not “side
effects”. They are symptoms of poisoning by a class of drug that is
neurotoxic and that injures the brain and brainstem. This poisoning
causes a disease, and this disease has a name: Chronic quinoline
encephalopathy — also known as quinism.
hen I initially began my
investigation of mefloquine and the role it had to play in the
“Somalia Affair”, the very first person I had a conversation with
was Dave Bona. It was during that phone conversation that I would
hear first hand of the destruction this drug was inflicting upon the
lives of our veterans.
I had taken the time to find
out what I could about Dave before I spoke with him, and consulted
the vast number of articles and interviews that he is featured in
online. I discovered a man who had been living in a nightmare for
over a quarter of a century, the result of the neurotoxic drug he
was ordered to take in 1992/93 while part of Operation Deliverance.
I had an idea about what I
might expect to hear during our conversation, but hearing these
things first hand was still shocking to me. He was giving me a
perspective that nothing I had read to that point could ever truly
give justice to. I was now speaking with someone who was living
through a nightmare, and as I listened to him tell me about what his
life has been like for all this time, a range of emotions began to
build up inside of me.
The first thing that hits me
as I talk with Dave is a sense of shock/horror/disbelief at 1) the
symptoms that I am hearing this man describe to me and, 2) anger
mixed with rage at the thought that this man and many others like
him were poisoned at the behest of their government. This quickly
added to my motivation as I set out to do something for these
veterans who have paid a very high price for serving their country,
a country whose government continues to deny them at every turn.
Canada’s Godfather of
Mefloquine Advocacy
The former paratrooper has
been actively involved in mefloquine awareness and advocacy for
three years now. Although mefloquine awareness efforts in Canada had
started several years before his involvement, his contributions have
been enormous. Because of his efforts, a large and ever growing
number of veterans has been made aware of quinism, resulting in an
untold number of lives that will have been saved for receiving his
message.
He’s also among the group of
Canadians who have suffered its debilitating symptoms the longest,
symptoms that have now lasted for the past 26 years. In that time
he’s racked up a lifetime’s worth of experience in living with the
disease and he shares his insights and knowledge with everyone in
videos he posts on Facebook.
The importance of nutrition.
For Dave, nutrition is a critical weapon in his battle with quinism.
Through his own research and by trial and error, Dave is learning
the important role nutrition plays in recovering from traumatic
brain injuries. Unlike PTSD, quinism is another form of TBI, though
it is one that has been caused by a drug as opposed to kinetic
force.
It isn’t only through videos
that Dave gets his point across, as he also provides his analysis of
mefloquine related issues in posts such as this one:
Dave is a very central figure
when it comes to quinism in Canada, and his Facebook page is a
repository of information on mefloquine and a gathering place for
others who are advocating for mefloquine veterans.
Dave has also been the subject
of many stories in the media over the years. Some tell of the ways
that mefloquine has destroyed his life, but a great many others tell
of how he is now fighting back, not just for himself but for the
thousands of others just like him.
What Dave Bona is experiencing
isn’t just a Canadian phenomenon. Thousands of veterans from across
the globe have had the same symptoms, the same thoughts, the very
same feelings that Dave has had. They are the feelings shared by
battle-hardened American veterans of Afghanistan and Swedish
tourists alike.
He has come to be a beacon in
the darkness, helping to guide others away from peril and showing
them to a safe harbour. If you or someone you know is suffering from
the symptoms of quinism, and aren’t sure about what to do, Dave
would be a great resource for you.
You should also visit The
Quinism Foundation at www,quinism.org for the most accurate and up
to date information by the leading figure in quinism research, Dr.
Remington Nevin. The foundation’s mission is laid out in the “About
Us” section of their web page.
The foundation has an enormous
job ahead. We must prepare healthcare organizations to identify
those exposed to quinolines and to screen for symptomatic quinoline
exposure. We must educate clinicians to diagnose chronic quinoline
encephalopathy and other medical conditions caused by quinoline
poisoning. We must train researchers to distinguish the effects of
quinism from those of other disorders, including Post-traumatic
Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). We must
assist government agencies to recognize those suffering disability
from quinism. We must identify risk factors for the disease. We must
attempt to count all those affected. And, we must support a search
for effective treatments.
… The foundation is proud to
be listed as a registered charity in the PayPal Giving Fund, on
Amazon Smile, and in the Network for Good’s donor-advised fund. You
can also read more about the foundation’s charitable activities by
reviewing our listing on Guidestar.
2nd Battalion Princess Patricas Canadian Light Infantry Battle
Group - Battle of Medac Pocket
Alex Brennan September 7 at 1:08
PM
VVi 09 Sep 2020
· 27 years ago Canadian soldiers in
the 2nd Battalion Princess Patricas Canadian Light Infantry Battle
Group found themselves in between two opposing sides. 50% were army
reservist from across our nation. When push came to shove the
Canadians forced a cease fire after other UN forces left without
making a stand. The Canadian Government did not recognize this until
10 years later. Many of our peers didn't believe what we had been
through. For the next two weeks I will be thinking of those men and
women who served with me and endured, artillery, mortar and small
arms fire. Not all injuries are physical. Peace to everyone, hoping
your lot in life is better today. Special shout out to Sheldon Dean
Maerz for his photos.
A 'deafening silence': Canada still struggles with the Second
World War's legacy, says historian
Murray Brewster · CBC News ·
Posted: Sep 02, 2020 4:00 AM
ET | Last Updated: September 2
VVi 05 ep 2020 db
Tim Cook argues Canadians have
a blind spot when it comes to their role in a war that changed the
world
Col. Lawrence Cosgrave (right), the Canadian defence attache in
Australia during the Second World War, accepted the surrender of
Japanese forces on the Government of Canada's behalf on Sept. 2,
1945. (Canadian War Museum/Contributed)
Seventy-five years ago today,
a little-known Canadian colonel — a half-blind veteran of the First
World War — sat pen in hand before a dark cloth-covered table on the
quarterdeck of the American battleship U.S.S. Missouri.
Allied warships had assembled
in a long, grey line in the stifling heat of Tokyo Bay — a mute
audience for the moment the victors met the vanquished.
Along with a host of military
glitterati that included U.S. Gen. Douglas MacArthur, Col. Lawrence
Cosgrave accepted the surrender of the Japanese empire on Canada's
behalf. He signed on the wrong line, causing a minor kerfuffle that
was soon rectified by MacArthur's chief of staff with a stroke of
his own pen.
The Second World War ended at
that moment.
A copy of the Sept. 2, 1945 Japanese surrender document, displayed
aboard the USS Missouri historical site at Pearl Harbor, Oahu. (
Murray Brewster/CBC News)
The most deadly and destructive conflict in human history — a war
that killed at least 75 million people worldwide, claimed 45,000
Canadian lives and left another 55,000 Canadians physically and
mentally scarred — was finally over.
Once the shooting stopped,
said historian Tim Cook, war-weary Canadians were eager to forget
the war — or at least to move on from it. Few people know, and even
fewer appreciate, the somewhat droll role Cosgrove played in that
great moment three-quarters of a century ago.
That act of collective
forgetting bothers Cook. It's reflected in the title of his latest
book: The Fight for History: 75 Years of Forgetting, Remembering and
Remaking Canada's Second World War.
One of the book's working
titles was "The Deafening Silence."
"It's not easy to talk about
our history," Cook told CBC News. "History often divides us."
Cook — one of the country's
leading military historians and authors — said he's baffled by
Canadians' apparent reluctance to come to grips with the war's
legacy.
Historian Tim Cook: "History often divides us." (CBC News)
Following the First World War,
Canadians built monuments from coast to coast. Canadian soldiers who
served in that war — Cosgrave among them — wrote sometimes eloquent
and moving accounts of their experiences under fire.
That didn't happen in Canada
following the Japanese and German surrenders in 1945, said Cook.
"We didn't write the same
history books. We didn't produce films or television series," he
said. "We allowed the Americans and the British and even the Germans
to write about the war and to present it on film."
Some Canadian war
correspondents wrote books in the immediate aftermath of the
victory, hoping to speak to history — but senior military commanders
and leaders subsequently shied away.
Unlike the American and
British generals who wrote Second World War memoirs (Dwight
Eisenhower, George Patton and Bernard Montgomery), Canadian
commanders Harry Crerar, Andrew McNaughton, George Pearkes and Guy
Simmonds all chose to remain silent and allowed biographers to tell
their stories — sometimes decades after the fact.
Cook said the reluctance of
many returning Canadian soldiers to discuss the war beyond the tight
circles of Royal Canadian Legion halls — a silence that persisted
for decades — also contributed to Canadians' lack of engagement with
the country's experiences in the Second World War.
The 'comfortable' image of
Canada the peacekeeper
The advent of peacekeeping has
also tainted Canada's view of the conflict, he said.
While some critics have argued
successive governments have exploited the peacekeeping mythology,
Cook said he's very proud of Canada's peacekeeping legacy. But
peacekeeping "became a very comfortable symbol for us," he said. "I
argue in the book that it too has contributed to the silencing of
the Second World War."
In the 1960s, Cook said,
Remembrance Day ceremonies in Canada suffered from dwindling
attendance. It was only in the 1980s and 1990s — when the war was
being re-examined through American popular culture properties like
the hit movie Saving Private Ryan — that a deeper appreciation began
to take root, he said.
Cook argues that revival of
interest happened almost too late — at a time when many veterans had
already passed away and few living Canadians remembered the war as a
personal experience.
"We shouldn't expect the
Americans or the British and the Germans and the Japanese to talk
about the war" in the same way Canadians experienced it, he said.
"If you don't tell your own
story, no one else will."
History can be "dangerous" for
politicians, Cook argues, because of the divisions it leaves behind
(the conscription crisis of 1944 damaged English-French relations in
Canada) and the effect of its darker chapters — such as the
internment of Japanese-Canadians — when they come to light.
Many of the international
institutions that were born out of the Second World War are under
attack today. That's just one reason why remembering the war is so
important, said Cook.
"I'm not suggesting we should
write heroic history and that we need to chest-thump and stand
behind the flag. But I do think we need to tell our stories."
The American battleship USS Missouri hosted the Japanese surrender
ceremony on Sept. 2, 1945. It is now a museum in Oahu, Hawaii. (
Murray Brewster/CBC News)
ABC Far North Ex-soldiers
say potential COVID-19 drug triggered depression, memory loss
ABC Far North / By Marian Faa Posted ThuThursday 13 AugAugust
2020 at 2:28pm, updated ThuThursday 13 AugAugust 2020 at 9:07pm
VVi 05 Sep 2020 db
Glen Norton blames the anti-malaria drug he was given in the
military for his health issues.(ABC Far North: Marian Faa)
Australian Army veterans given a controversial drug while deployed
in East Timor have raised concerns about its safety, saying the
medicine should not be used as a treatment for COVID-19.
Key
points: An anti-malaria drug has shown early signs as a potential
treatment for COVID-19 in laboratory studies Army veterans given
the drug 20 years ago say it caused them long-term psychiatric side
effects A Senate inquiry found there was no compelling evidence
of lasting health problems but experts recommend more research
The anti-malarial tafenoquine is being explored as a treatment
for coronavirus with laboratory studies conducted in Melbourne
claiming tafenoquine was four times more potent against SARS-CoV-2
cells than hydroxychloroquine.
The study has not yet been
peer-reviewed but drug company 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals (60P) is
planning to conduct clinical research to determine its effectiveness
in humans.
Chief executive Geoff Dow said the company was
optimistic about the initiative.
Glen Norton says he was a "happy and keen" young soldier before
taking a controversial anti-malaria drug.(ABC: Supplied)
"Like many companies, 60P and its partners are trying to do our part
to provide solutions for treating and preventing COVID 19," he said.
But some doctors and veterans have raised serious concerns about
tafenoquine's safety.
Glen Norton is one of almost 700
soldiers who took the anti-malarial during trials conducted by the
Defence Force between 1998 and 2002.
Two decades later, Mr
Norton continues to suffer chronic depression, anxiety, nightmares,
hallucinations, memory loss and extreme mood swings.
He has
been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder but believes his
symptoms are long-term side effects from taking tafenoquine.
"One minute I would be happy, and the next minute I would be curled
up in the corner somewhere crying," he said.
"This drug has
totally destroyed my personal life."
'We were having
nightmares'
Mr Norton said he first began noticing changes
when he took tafenoquine while deployed in East Timor in 2000.
"We used to call Sunday nights psycho night because of the side
effects," he said.
"All of us that were on those drugs were
having nightmares and things like that — we had people literally
screaming in their sleep like they're being murdered."
Two
young men with faces painted in camoflage in the bush.
Glen Norton says he began having nightmares while taking the
anti-malarial on a peace keeping mission in East Timor.(ABC:
Supplied)
Mr Norton is no longer in the Army and owns
businesses in Cairns and Darwin.
He said he was horrified to
hear tafenoquine was being considered as a treatment for
coronavirus.
"I would prefer to catch COVID-19 and take the
risk than to let anyone go through the pain and suffering myself and
other soldiers have experienced."
Doctors debate drug's
safety
Tafenoquine was approved by the Therapeutic Goods
Administration for use as a malaria prevention drug in 2018.
Side effects listed in the product information include sleep
disturbances, depression and anxiety in up to 1 per cent of cases.
Dr Dow said clinical studies of tafenoquine had been reviewed by
independent medical experts, who concluded the drug was safe.
But some doctors have warned the drug's long-term risks may not
be fully understood.
American epidemiologist Remington Nevin
said tafenoquine belonged to a class of anti-malaria medications
shown to be neurotoxic.
"I am afraid we're seeing the same
thing potentially playing out with tafenoquine," Dr Nevin said.
"Our group's concern is that there is simply incomplete study
data on these drugs."
Hydroxychloroquine tablets are displayed on a dark surface
Tafenoquine belongs to the same family of drugs as
hydroxychloroquine, also developed to treat malaria.(AP: John
Locher)
Dr Nevin believes there were critical flaws in the
study conducted on Australian soldiers, who were deployed on
peacekeeping missions at the time.
"When symptoms develop in
this environment, it's very tempting to attribute these — and
possibly misattribute these — simply to the stresses of deployment
and not to the drugs," he said.
"I'm also concerned about the
ethics of the trials that have been conducted and the quality of
clinical data that have been collected from these studies."
Others have argued the drug is safe.
University of Queensland
anti-malaria expert James McCarthy gave evidence to a Senate inquiry
into the use of tafenoquine in the Defence Force in 2018.
Professor McCarthy told the inquiry tafenoquine had never been
associated with neuropsychiatric side effects at normal doses for
preventing malaria.
"Comprehensive reviews of multiple
clinical trials suggest that the incidence of neurological side
effects was no higher in those receiving tafenoquine compared with a
placebo," he said.
Large-scale study underway
A 2018
review by the US Food and Drug Administration found there was enough
evidence to conclude tafenoquine was safe.
However, it also
flagged concerns about the drug's potential neuropsychiatric side
effects and recommended further research.
Some members of the
review committee said safety data from clinical studies were small
and the noted follow-up periods were short.
A scientist looks into a microscope while wearing a protective suit
at the CSIRO Australia Animal Health Laboratory. Researchers are
looking into tafenoquine as a COVID-19 treatment.(Supplied: CSIRO)
Dr Dow said a large-scale study into the psychiatric safety of
tafenoquine had been underway since 2017, with results expected in
the second half of next year.
Mr Norton said clinical trials
of tafenoquine against COVID-19 should not take place until further
research was completed.
"How can you conduct a trial and say
that this drug is safe, it's all singing, it's all dancing, when
you're not looking at the long-term effects of what these drugs do
to the human body?" he said.
'Some days I would have killed
someone'
Veterans are calling for a royal commission into
drug trials conducted by the military's Malaria and Infectious
Diseases Institute, amid allegations of corruption and ethics
breaches.
Wayne Karakyriacos, who also took tafenoquine while
deployed in East Timor, said soldiers did not give informed consent
to participate in the trials.
"We got told if you did not
sign the paperwork, you would not deploy," he said.
"To me,
this is not about financial gain — it's about justice and the truth,
and how the [Military's] Australian Malaria Institute could use
Australian soldiers as guinea pigs."
Ex-soldier Glen Norton says there's been no research into the
long-term side effects suffered by veterans who took the
controversial anti-malaria drug while deployed in East Timor and
Bougainville.(ABC Far North: Marian Faa)
The 2018 Senate
inquiry heard evidence from more than a dozen soldiers, veterans and
their relatives who said tafenoquine had a major detrimental impact
on their lives.
"Some days I had to leave as I would have
actually killed someone with no regret at all. The anxiety and anger
was uncontrollable. This was not the life I wanted to live," one
submission read.
A Defence spokeswoman said the inquiry found
the trials were conducted ethically and lawfully, in keeping with
national guidelines.
She said the Commonwealth had committed
$2.1 million to support veterans concerned about having taken
tafenoquine and other anti-malaria drugs.
"DVA is delivering
a national program that provides concerned veterans with the option
to receive a comprehensive health assessment to identify
service-related illness, disease and injury," she said.
"These health assessments will be conducted by GPs trained to
address medical issues specific to veterans and anti-malarial
medications."
The spokeswoman said Defence had agreed to 12
of the inquiry's 14 recommendations and agreed in principle to the
remaining two.
Back in Dec we lost a good
man, John Labelle. John was the lead advocate on reversing the
CFSA Clawback. He advocated to his very last day.Personally, I
will miss working with this dedicated veteran. I will miss his
friendship.
Federal restrictions hurting ombudsman’s ability to help
veterans: Report
Aug 17, 2020 6:10 AM
Lee
Berthiaume, The Canadian Press This report by The Canadian Press
was first published Aug. 17, 2020.
VVi 31 Aug 2020 db
OTTAWA — The veterans ombudsman’s office is hoping a new report
flagging problems with the watchdog’s limited authority and lack of
independence from the federal government will lead to improvements
in its ability to help those who have served in uniform.
Commissioned by the ombudsman’s office, the report represents the
first real review of the watchdog’s operations since it was created
in 2007 as a place that disabled veterans could turn if they felt
the federal government was treating them unfairly.
Many
veterans have since complained that the office has failed to live up
to those expectations, an assessment that the watchdog itself has
echoed.
“We strive to do our best, with the tools currently
at our disposal, but we can and want to do more to address fairness
issues veterans and their families are experiencing,” the
ombudsman’s office said in a statement following the report’s
release.
“An expanded mandate would make that possible. We
could investigate more veterans’ complaints, sooner, and more
efficiently, which would enable us to have a greater ability to
impact equitable outcomes for veterans and their families.”
The analysis was conducted by Ottawa management firm Goss Gilroy
Inc. and found the ombudsman has made a difference when it comes to
some systemic issues affecting veterans such as inadequate financial
support for large segments of the community.
Yet the analysis
was frank in its assessment of the federally mandated limits on the
office’s ability to investigate individual complaints, describing
those restrictions as “key barriers” to the watchdog’s ability to
help many veterans in need.
“The ombudsman should have the
power to look at any complaint and not be restricted (with some
specific exceptions like legal opinions), particularly when the
department fails to respond to the complainant’s request for an
internal review,” the report said.
It went on to note
widespread and longstanding questions and concerns about the
office’s perceived and real lack of independence given that it
reports to the minister of veterans affairs and Veterans Affairs
Canada rather than Parliament.
While staff in the ombudsman’s
office and Veterans Affairs believed the watchdog has operated
largely independently, the report said, “most external stakeholders
questioned the independence of the OVO while being employed by and
reporting to VAC.”
“Most veterans and other stakeholders
interviewed believe that the OVO should be totally independent from
VAC to avoid misperceptions, to safeguard against interference by
the minister/department and to allow the office to use more than
just ‘moral-suasion’ to achieve results.”
The report’s
findings largely reflect concerns raised by the most recent
ombudsman, Craig Dalton, before he resigned suddenly in May after
only 18 months on the job to become city manager in Lethbridge,
Alta.
In response to the report, Veterans Affairs Canada says
it plans to conduct its own assessment over the coming months to
determine how the ombudsman’s office — which remains vacant
following Dalton’s resignation — can be improved.
While much
of the report focused on the ombudsman’s limited ability to
investigate certain cases and lack of independence, it also
criticized the watchdog for taking a long time to respond to
veterans’ complaints and concerns.
“The veterans who raised
concerns when interviewed noted that despite repeated calls or
letters to the OVO, months could go by before they got an answer to
their enquiry regarding their claim,” the report said.
The
ombudsman’s office blamed a shortage of staff and constant turnover,
but said it was working to address the problem.
VVi Publisher Comment: Highly recommended for ALL
veterans. Although still in the early stages of development,
this web space, or veteran space, has a lot of potential.
Join!
Despite the pandemic, European NATO members have no
plans to cut their military budgets or revise their
defence doctrines this year, according to statements
made by the highest senior commanders of the Alliance
and representatives of various ministries of Defence.
Quite the contrary, many are considering a further
raising of their combat potential as one way to
stimulate their economies, which were negatively
affected by COVID-19.
Accurate plotting of a potential enemy's next moves has
seen militaries worldwide rely increasingly on
sophisticated technologies for strategic advantage, and
that's where NATO's Airborne Early Warning & Control
force comes in.
Personnel changes in your defence community
include: Raytheon, DRS, ADGA, MDA, DND, Canadian Embassy
in Washington, Cdn Forces College, and Climatopolis.
General Jonathan Vance, Chief of the Defence Staff
(CDS), announced, in March 2020, the list of Canadian
Armed Forces (CAF) appointments, promotions, and
retirements for 2020, and then announced his own
retirement in July.
FrontLine has
gathered the key industry leaders in the defence and
national security sectors. These are the project primes
and specialized subcontractors that provide Top
Quality solutions for these critical sectors.
In naval warfare, one of the best tools for area denial
is the anti-ship missile system. Iran is developing
sophisticated anti-ship missile systems to counter any
offensive advantage posed by its adversaries.
Whether we like it or not, systemic relations,
transactions, and clashes between people and polities
across the globe rarely have the consideration to pause
for our convenience (or global pandemics). One’s
understanding of conflict must continually be challenged
in order to be relevant when it is needed most. Through
a historical evaluation of the foreign policy objectives
of the three major pre-Islamic iterations of Iranian
dominance, this essay concludes that many of the
historical lessons can be accurately applied today.
Former Money laundering investigator shares thoughts on
what the pending report onMoney
Laundering in BCis expected
to reveal, and offers his own recommendations to close
legal loopholes that make Canada a lucrative option for
such criminal behaviour.
Since May 25th, thousands of people of all ethnicities
have taken to the streets in multiple cities around the
world, as a groundswell movement for real and equal
justice for all people began to take hold. Will 2020
finally be the year in whichlisteningturns
tohearing, and then toaction?
Change has indeed begun. Hopefully our leaders will
embrace and assist this grassroots progress, but if not,
to borrow from General Mattis, we can still do it
together. What will you do?
As 2020 rolled in, few could have guessed that members
of the Canadian Armed Forces would soon be helping
elderly Canadians battle an invisible enemy: the novel
coronavirus that had emerged in China's Wuhan province
in late 2019.
Toronto Police Service Trainers analyze recent protests
from a best practices and crowd management perspective.
Updated and consistent training is one part of
the solution to change response tactics from aggressive
escalation to serving the public right to peaceful
protest.
As COVID continues to force the federal government to
implement measures that will inject liquidity into the
economy, now is the time to reflect on
annual defence budgets and the impact on capabilities
from long-term funding shifts.
Efforts to combat the effects of COVID-19 may compel
deep cuts to DND/CAF – creating an opportunity to
re-align security policy across government. A clearer
distinction between 'compulsory' and 'discretionary'
missions will help ensure the military's relevance for
the most important challenges facing Canadians.
COVID-19 is both a threat-event and a national security
concern, able to expose vulnerabilities of a nation and
set the stage for grey-zone tactics by adversaries.
An unsettling revelation that Information Ops on the
Canadian public had been underway for some time before
the CDS got wind of it called an immediate
halt. Considering that neither the CDS nor the Minister
were aware of this initiative, one has to wonder what
level of oversight exists for those operators?
10 May update: Partial
remains of second crew member, Captain Brenden Ian
MacDonald, have been identified after CH-148 Cyclone
accident. A repatriation ceremony for all six Canadian
Armed Forces members killed at sea in a helicopter
crash, took place on 6 May 2020. Read original story and
updates here.
2021 – Veteran identifier question / Recensement de 2021 –
Question d’identification des vétérans
VVi 31 Sep 2020
(le
français suit)
Dear Stakeholders and Advisory
Groups members,
I am pleased to let you know
that the questions which will make up the 2021 Census are now public
and will include a Veteran identifier question – the first since
1971. As Minister of Veterans Affairs, I was surprised to learn that
there is no formal listing of Canadian military Veterans. This
creates a significant information gap that hampers the ability to
fully understand and respond to the needs of Canadian Veterans and
their families. That is why Veterans Affairs Canada has been working
closely with Statistics Canada and advocating for the inclusion of a
Veteran identifier question on the national survey.
We recently learned that these
efforts had paid off - the 2021 national census will ask, “Have you
ever served in the Canadian military?”. The addition of this
question will provide the first truly accurate data on Canada’s
Veteran population in 50 years. The data gathered from this survey
will inform programs, supports and services for Canadian Veterans
and their families for years to come. This is truly a victory that
ensures those who serve our country no longer remain hidden from
official statistics and gives us the opportunity to put the best
supports in place that they so richly deserve.
For the latest 2021 Census
information and developments, I invite you to visit the Statistics
Canada website The road to the 2021 Census.
Sincerely,
Lawrence MacAulay
Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National
Defence
***************************************************************************************
Chers intervenants et membres des groupes consultatifs,
Je suis heureux de vous
informer que les questions que contiendra le Recensement de 2021
sont maintenant publiques et qu’il y aura parmi celles ci une
question d’identification des vétérans – la première depuis 1971. En
tant que ministre des Anciens Combattants, j’étais surpris
d’apprendre qu’il n’existe aucune liste officielle des vétérans
militaires canadiens. Il en résulte un important manque
d’information qui empêche de comprendre entièrement les besoins des
vétérans canadiens et de leur famille et d’y répondre. C’est
pourquoi Anciens Combattants Canada travaille étroitement avec
Statistique Canada et plaide pour l’inclusion d’une question
d’identification des vétérans dans l’enquête nationale.
Récemment nous avons su que
ces efforts avaient porté fruit – le Recensement de 2021 comptera la
question suivante : « Avez vous déjà servi dans l’Armée canadienne
». L’ajout de cette question fournira les premières données vraiment
précises en 50 ans, au sujet de la population de vétérans du Canada.
Les données recueillies permettront d’orienter les programmes, les
mesures de soutien et les services offerts aux vétérans canadiens et
à leur famille pendant des années à venir. Il s’agit d’une victoire
qui garantit que ceux qui servent notre pays feront maintenant
partie des statistiques officielles et qui nous donne l’occasion de
mettre en place les meilleures mesures de soutien qu’ils méritent
tant.
Pour obtenir les derniers
renseignements et progrès au sujet du Recensement de 2021, je vous
invite à consulter le site Web de Statistique Canada En route vers
le Recensement de 2021.
Cordialement,
Lawrence MacAulay Ministre des
Anciens Combattants et ministre associé de la Défense nationale
Is this a good
thing?
https//nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/canada-news-pmn/budget-officer-pegs-cost-of-basic-income-as-calls-for-it-grow-due-to-covid-19
Parliamentary
Budget Officer
Yves Giroux...
A Vet friend
passed this on.
I’m sure most Vets
are not aware of
this. You can
either be an A or
B Client. VETERANS
AFFAIRS CANADA
(VAC) PROGRAM OF
CHOICE (POC) 07 –
MEDICAL
SUPPLIES...
Hey all, I've been
looking to buy a
home far from the
city. I've come to
a conclution that
I officially hate
the GTA and cant
live here anymore;
traffic, theft,
crime and
arrogance dont
help my PTSD...
It was brought to
my attention that
some people get “A
coverage” and some
get “ B coverage”.
A coverage covers
service related,
whereas B coverage
covers anything
and everything.
How does one...
Democratic societies value the right to free
speech and, by extention, the right to peaceful
dissent without fear of military intervention –
but not necessarily in our home and native land.
General Jonathan Vance, Chief of the Defence
Staff (CDS), announced, in March, the list of
Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) appointments,
promotions, and retirements for 2020.
FrontLine has gathered the key industry leaders,
project primes and specialized subcontractors
who provide Top Quality solutions for the
defence sector. We will feature them all in our
newsletter (in no particular order) over the
coming weeks.
Frequentis designs resilient networks that meet
modern demands across multiple domains in the
Defence, Civil Aviation, Maritime, Public
Transportation and Public Safety sectors.
Does your fleet need a more durable option to
meet bottom-line requirements? This robust
side-by-side vehicle can manage the off-road
environment while hauling gear, people and
supplies.
COMING SOON: Pandemic not affecting NATO
budgets; Operation Laser; Origins of Iran’s
Modern Power; Iran’s anti-ship missile
capability; NAEWC Force; RAN Offshore Patrol
Vessel
Veterans
Foodbank Association
Wounded
Warriors - Ride for Mental Health
FRONTLINE - Ethics through the Lens of Military Reform
Commandos
MC: United We Conquer - December 21, 2020 - Laurice Alexander
Canada
Army Run
Salute! January 2021/ Salut! Janvier 2021
OVO Release of Report /Le BOV publie un rapport
Canada Announces Sweeping New Travel Restrictions in Attempt to
Contain COVID-19
COVID Coverup: Trudeau gov’t helped China hide origins of COVID-19
Ex-soldiers say it's time for a Canadian to receive a Victoria
Cross for Afghanistan
Mefloquine Lawsuit Lawyers in Canada
PARATROOPER
REUNION 2023 
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IN THE NEWS Job opportunities for military spouses
Federal restrictions hurting ombudsman’s ability to help
veterans: Report
The Veteran's Duty