OTTAWA, ON, January 8, 1996 - Canada's human rights record might be jeopardized in international circles if the government refuses to support a claim for compensation earned under the Geneva Convention and owed to veterans who were imprisoned by Japan and subjected to slave labour in World War II.

"Japan has refused to pay, probably because Canada has not supported the claim," according to Cliff Chadderton, CEO of The War Amps and Patron of the Hong Kong Veterans. "This has led to the request that Canada provide the compensation and seek reimbursement from Japan."

The question has been before the Human Rights Commission of the United Nations in Geneva since 1987. In a final decision handed down in November of last year, the Geneva-based body of human rights experts denied the claim launched by The War Amps on jurisdictional grounds.

Chadderton has written to Prime Minister Chrétien today, providing an explanation of the Canadian government's liability in the matter. His letter indicates that if the Canadian government will not act, his organization intends to file an application under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, accusing Canada of failing to protect the human rights under international law of those Canadians to whom Japan has denied payment for their employment as slave labourers in Japanese war industries.

Chadderton's letter to the Prime Minister refers to the ruling of the United Nations Human Rights Committee, which concluded that remedies exist in Canada to deal with the issue.

In particular, Chadderton's letter suggests that the conduct of the Canadian government in failing to protect the interests of Canadian PoWs involves a breach of Canadian domestic law, including the Charter.

The letter poses the question of whether the lack of action by the Canadian government will reflect unfavourably upon Canada's human rights record. The statement reads: "It would be our further position that the actions or omissions of the Canadian government over the course of this matter seriously call into question Canada's responsibility to fulfil its obligations under international treaties such as the Geneva Conventions, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights".

The letter asks the Canadian government to consider the matter and take the necessary action to see that appropriate compensation is paid "to right this serious historic wrong".

"Favourable action by the Canadian government may not result in a cost to the Canadian taxpayer in the long run," Chadderton said, suggesting that under international law, Canada could get a favourable opinion from the United Nations, which would represent a moral obligation on the part of the Japanese government to repay any funds advanced to Canadian veterans.

The War Amps, which has UN status, has been pursuing this claim on behalf of Canada's Far East PoWs through the Geneva-based human rights agencies of the United Nations since 1987.

Chadderton states that Japan has never denied the legality of the claim, taking the position that the peace treaty between Canada and Japan resolved the issue of reparations.

"The essential point," Chadderton said, "is that the Geneva Convention, in Articles 130 and 131, specifically prohibits any government from entering into an agreement "which wilfully deprives its citizens of their right to legal process".

Chadderton stated that it was on this basis that Canada itself was in violation of the international agreements, in that it was a signatory to the 1952 Peace Treaty. Also, Canada can be held accountable, as pointed out in the letter to the Prime Minister, for failing to protect the rights of the Hong Kong Veterans by remaining silent when the issue was discussed before the United Nations body in Geneva.

The claim of approximately $18 per day for 44 months was based on the provision in the Geneva treaty that wages for slave labour would be based on the "going rate" being paid to Japanese war workers. According to the submission filed with the United Nations, the claim, per survivor or widow, would be approximately $22,000. It is believed that there are some 400 Pacific PoWs alive, plus another 450 widows.

In his letter, Chadderton reminded the Prime Minister that the claim for compensation was not related to the provisions of Canada's Veterans Pension Act, of which monthly payments up to $1,700 for a single man and $2,100 for a married veteran can be paid, but only if a disability exists. The compensation for slave labour is due to the veteran in the form of "back pay," regardless of whether he has a war-related disability.