Persian Gulf War's addition to national memorial rejected again: Report
· Toronto Sun
Despite lobbying from Persian Gulf War veterans in Canada for the conflict to be included on the National War Memorial, the Department of Veterans Affairs staff didn’t think it warranted an inscription on Ottawa’s Cenotaph.
The war, which ended 35 years ago this week, was referred to as a “smaller, less costly conflict,” according to internal staff documents obtained by Blacklock’s Reporter .
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“We have a whole folder on the National War Memorial ,” one staff email said, per Blacklock’s Reporter . “The Persian Gulf War was not included as a matter of scale and no war dead as a result of Canada’s involvement in that conflict, likely the same for the 1999 Kosovo and 2011 Libya air campaigns.”
More than 4,000 Canadians served in the Persian Gulf War between 1990 and 1991 to remove Iraq’s invading forces from neighbouring Kuwait.
Some veterans suffered ‘heavy burdens’
Canadians troops left the region after Iraq accepted ceasefire terms in March 1991, which ended with no Canadian casualties, though a department memo noted that some Canadian soldiers “returned home with heavy burdens,” Blacklock’s reported.
The National War Memorial features inscription dates for the South African War, the First World War, the Second World War, the Korean War and the Afghanistan mission.
“These are Canada’s five most costly military engagements in terms of lives lost,” said a memo obtained by Blacklock’s .
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“The words ‘in service to Canada’ inscribed on the memorial in 2014 is an acknowledgement of all Canadian military members and veterans which includes those who fought and died in smaller, less costly conflicts,” said the memo. “This includes service and sacrifice on United Nations peacekeeping, NATO and other coalition missions. Unfortunately many people do not understand what this inscription means.”
Persian Gulf Veterans of Canada, a group that has advocated for those who served in the conflict, has sought for recognition of the war with an inscription on the national monument. A departmental advisory group has rejected their petitions twice, Blacklock’s reported.
“The sentiment was that any recognition of a conflict on the National War Memorial should match the intensity, longevity and degree of sacrifice of the five military wars and missions inscribed on the monument,” a 2024 staff email said, per Blacklock’s . “There should also be broad support from the veteran community and Canadian public for any new inscription on the National War Memorial.”