Conservative Senator David Tkachuk made the following statement today in the Senate chamber:
Honourable Senators, all of you will be familiar with the following:
I do swear that I will be faithful and bear True allegiance to Her Majesty
The Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada,
Her Heirs and Successors. So help me God.That is the oath of a Senate Page.
A regrettable incident took place on Friday during the Throne Speech. A Senate Page, Brigitte DePape, chose to disrupt proceedings.
She broke her oath to the Queen and her signed contract with Parliament not to behave in a way that brings her impartiality into question.
We were all surprised by what she did. Being a familiar face, it struck few of us as odd when she made her way from her place into the middle of the chamber. Many of us thought she was there to assist someone, not to protest. She walked back and forth with her STOP Harper sign until the Sergeant-at-Arms from the House acted to remove her.
This was clear contempt for the Parliament she had sworn to serve, taking place as it did in the middle of one of the most democratic acts in the world — a post election address from the Queen’s representative, who was flanked by a newly elected Prime Minister and the Leader of the Government in the Senate. Onlookers were MPs lead by a speaker who won a seat in this great institution at the age of 25, only a few years older than the protesting page.
Brigitte dishonoured her fellow Pages. She sullied the Page program itself. She betrayed those who put their trust in her. And she insulted this institution.
There are those who have characterized what she did as heroic.
No. Heroic are the men and women, many of them her age or younger, who serve in Afghanistan, defending the principles and practices of democracy that resulted, most recently, in the election we just had.
What she did was not heroic. She was surrounded not by enemies but by people she could trust not to harm her. People unlike her, who believe in and adhere to a code of civil behaviour.
All of us here should be offended by what she did. We expect – in fact demand — that our Pages behave in a neutral fashion. That is the only way the program can work. They are allowed to have political opinions. In fact, I hope they all do. But for the duration of their time as Pages those opinions, those leanings are to be left outside this chamber.
We are taking this incident very seriously. The Page was fired immediately. She has also been banned from the Senate, the House and the Library buildings.
The Security Sub-Committee of Internal Economy met this morning and the Steering Committee will be meeting this afternoon to discuss what the implications are for security in the Senate and for the conduct of the Page program itself. We will be looking into the hiring practices for Pages, including the background checks that are done related to those. I pray that no one else here assisted her in this stunt.
Honourable Senators, I can assure you that after due consideration, we will take all the appropriate measures that the circumstances dictate. I don’t have to tell you what would have happened if she had something else inside her jacket instead of a poster. I will keep you informed of developments.
George in BC
I should actually care about what the unelected Dave Tkachuk has to say?
What a pompous ass.
You wouldn't care if he was elected or unelected if he disagrees with you. Who's the pompous ass?
With all due respect, who was in 'contempt of parliament' first, yet received a majority government despite the ruling?
I find it amazing that Brigette DePape is getting more analysis and coverage than the initial ruling handed down from Speaker of the House, Peter Milliken, to PM Harper. This serious, unprecedented ruling of 'contempt of parliament' of the CPC launched the election, and was triggered by Harper's refusal to divulge the true cost of his unnecessary prison system.
The media did not analyze or question the first contempt of parliament ruling in depth, which helped the electoral results favour a majority Conservative government.
Chronologically, Brigette DePape was second in contempt. She is pointing out what 60% of Canadians know- Harper continues to hide information and is in continuous violation of our Charter of Rights and Freedoms and due parliamentary process, and is enacting massive bills which curtail our rights to privacy hidden in omnibus bills.
Where is the media coverage of this process? Both interviews of Brigette DePape, by Jane Taber and Evan Solomon of the CBC, were dismissive of her views. She deserves proper coverage, and these bills regarding privacy should receive careful examination as well.
What is the real disgrace and affront to our parliamentary system is when unelected Senators thwart the will of the elected House of Commons, as you did last year when you killed Bill C311. Shame on you – where's the Sargeant-at-arms to remove you?
So, are these more stringent background checks going to dismiss everyone who applies for the job who;
-commits themselves to volunteering in Canada and overseas
-participates in democracy in more ways than just voting every few years
-has articles published with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives or other reputable organizations? DePape wrote two articles for them last summer. One entitled 'Un-equal access to opportunity for inner-city youth and suburban youth' and the other entitled 'Protesting the G20, a waste of time?'.
-earn top marks, recipients of major scholarships such as the Loran scholarship, which requires students to show excellence not only in community service but in Academia.
I'm having a hard time envisioning how they're going to put these types of restrictions into place. Do they want a bunch of complacent youth with no real experience or brains to do this job which, as you've made ever so clear is highly sought after amongst university students in Canada. Perhaps we should make the people who run errands for the Senates take some form of truth pill and ask them “will you ever stand up for what you believe in?”. If they pass, congratulations they get the job!!
Mr. Akin, if you're so disgusted with what Brigette has done, why do you continue to give her attention? Are you afraid of what this “naive” 21 year old girl can do to the oh-so democratic institution of the Senate, a club of unelected officials with HUGE paychecks and pensions who have the ability to shut down bills that are passed in the House of Commons (you know, the room with people who were elected to be there)? Those sitting in the senate have no accountability to the public, so why are you taking what they have to say so seriously?
If those who are found to be in contempt of parliament are not allowed in the HoC, Senate and parliament buildings ever again, why is Harper there? Yes I'm aware he won a majority (despite the fact that he was elected by a minority, but that's a whole different matter, kind of) but what I would like to see answered is why he was even allowed to run for government after this charge? If he was allowed then Ms. DePape should most certainly be as well.
I guess this whole contempt of parliament thing is pretty new and there hasn't been a precedent of it before Mr. Harpers charge. However, if you're going to ban one person for this charge, you might as well ban everyone else who has been given this charge. Unless you believe Mr. Harper stands above the law….?
And your last phrase, are you accusing Ms. DePape of having the will to carry out a more violent means of protest? Maybe you should check out a fund she has set up in the wake of the publics reaction to her. http://www.stopharperfund.ca/ to support organizations devoted to NON VIOLENT means of civil disobedience. You're right, she did not have anything more dangerous than a piece of paper hidden under her uniform. Don't make it out to be anything more than it was, or what you clearly think it was; an act of “disrespect” or whatever.
Just remember, respect can only be given when it has been earned, not demanded.
David Tkachuk you are in a little MINORITY group. We the majority of Canada support her. WE ARE CANADA. Your personal beliefs DO NOT agree with the morals and beliefs of Canada. We the VAST MAJORITY of CANADIANS SUPPORT DEPAPE and also want to STOP HARPER!
David, check out the excellent blog today by Emily Dee on the subject to get to know a little more about the good senator!
David Tkachuk Has No Moral Authority to Criticize Brigette DePape
http://pushedleft.blogspot.com/2011/06/david-tkachuk-has-no-moral-authority-to.html#comment-form