Well That’s All Sweet And Everything –
– but the proof will be in his governments actions, not what a civil servant says.
Residential schools apology deeply moved Harper, changed his views
Aboriginals across Canada were moved to tears last June in a wave of deep emotion to Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Indian residential schools apology on the floor of the House of Commons.
Newly released internal e-mails indicate the event had a significant impact on Mr. Harper as well.
The day after the June 11 apology, Michael Wernick, the deputy minister of Indian Affairs, confided to one of his colleagues that the event appeared to have changed the Prime Minister.
“I certainly get the impression the PM has had a personal transformation and this may have a substantial impact on his worldview,” Mr. Wernick wrote in an e-mail to Gina Wilson, a senior official responsible for the residential schools file.
A Conservative official confirmed that the Prime Minister was deeply moved by the experience, particularly as he came to understand how the schools affected not only the former students, but their children.
Over the years I heard the heartfelt concerns of different political leaders who have attained power - good old Paul Big Winds Come From Empty Caves Martin is a prime example….. he said he was concerned, but then left the Kelowna Accord sitting on the table.
Jean Chretien also talked a good game, but right off the top of my head no huge change comes to mind.
That Stephen Harper was or was not moved by his experience is a subjective call, and any of us who were involved in any way with the apology have our personal opinions on that - but what we feel, or what a civil servant says Harper felt, are not material.
What does count is what he does, or allows to be done.
With a lot of hard work and dedication (and more than a little luck), he can overcome the attitudes of advisors like Tom Flanagan - time will tell.
Well at least we now know that the guy is human,well partly anyhow.Maybe now he will hug his boy instead of shaking his hand
No Dirk, what we know is that a Deputy Minister says he was “deeply moved” - we know nothing more than that.
The ocean moves deeply, and that place can be COLD. That must where the handshakes come from.
I’m sure DM Wernick was given a memo drafted by the PMO. Senior bureaucrats don’t get promoted to Deputy Ministers unless they play nice with the ruling government. In the past, it was the PCO’s call mostly but with Harper it seems like the PMO is the more powerful office.
Brazeau’s Senate appointment, the inadequacies in funding and staffing the Truth and Reconciliation Committee, and proposed changes to post-secondary education funding demonstrate how “moved” Harper was.
Nonetheless, the manufactured sincerity worked. Harper had no need to address Aboriginal issues during the election since he could ride on the coat tails of his “apology”.
Nastydad always taught me:
“Your feelings only matter to you. What you do matters to others.”