OTTAWA, ON, December 11, 2001 - In a press statement released immediately following the announcement by Veterans Affairs Minister Ron Duhamel that the Canadian Government expressed regret over the execution of 23 Canadian soldiers in World War I for desertion or cowardice, the National Council of Veteran Associations (NCVA) has polled the majority of its 40-member organizations.

As a result, Cliff Chadderton, Chairman of NCVA, has stated that the Canadian Government's expression of regret regarding these executions is not sufficient to meet the circumstances.

"It is my understanding that the Canadian Government refused to grant a pardon in these cases in which the execution was carried out under the British Army Act of 1914," Chadderton said. Under ordinary circumstances, a pardon can be granted only if there is evidence to exonerate the accused.

Chadderton suggests that the Canadian Government should have followed the example of the New Zealand Government which, by a special act of Parliament on September 14, 2000, granted pardons to the five soldiers of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force who were executed for mutiny or desertion.

The New Zealand Government recognized that, to grant a pardon, there would have to be evidence that the offence did not take place. The New Zealand Government, however, included a section 10 in its legislation which reads as follows:

10. Effect of pardonsThe pardons effected . . . recognise that the execution of the 5 soldiers to whom those pardons are granted was not a fate that they deserved but was one that resulted from: a. The harsh discipline that was believed at the time to be required; b. The application of the death penalty for military offences being seen at that time as an essential part of maintaining military discipline.

Chadderton expressed a view that the Canadian Government could have followed the same procedure and passed an Act of Parliament granting pardon, notwithstanding the lack of evidence upon which the sentence of execution was carried out.

It was the original view of NCVA that the Canadian Government should not become involved due to the possible confusion which would follow. Chadderton said, however, that when the Canadian Government took action to express its regret, it should have gone all the way and granted the pardons, regardless of the circumstances.

The text of an earlier news release follows for information: 

Cliff Chadderton, Chairman of the 40-member National Council of Veteran Associations, stated today that he "fully understood" the actions behind Veterans Affairs Minister Ron Duhamel's announcement concerning the execution of 23 Canadians in World War I.

Chadderton stated that his organization's thorough study of the matter indicated that, although there may have been some fully justifiable reasons for the executions, he was not at all impressed with the manner in which the cases were investigated. "Undoubtedly, there were some instances where, under British Army policy, the questionable executions were carried out merely to maintain discipline," he said.

Chadderton stated that the policy followed during World War II was much more humane. "I served in the infantry and saw some cases where good soldiers could stand only so much. They were treated as medical problems and sent to the rear as suffering from battle fatigue. Some, in fact, returned to their units," he said.

"In the RCAF, combat airmen who could not withstand the pressures of constant bombing raids were categorized as ‘lack of moral fibre.' This was a cruel judgement but at least they were not executed," he concluded.