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For queen and country
Why did this happen?
Why did Canada take
part in such an ugly
conflict using the most
despicable methods

of war, save perhaps
the extermination
camps of the Nazis?

It was true that
Canada, at the time,
was a mere dominion of
Britain, and therefore we
went to war when they
did. But notions of being
dragged into depravity
by our colonial masters
are insufficient. In truth,
Canada embraced the
chance to go to war on
Britain’s side with great
enthusiasm. Many of
us were British at the
time, or at least of British
descent. In English
Canada at least, there
was no doubt that we
should be involved.

And why not? This
should have been an easy
war for the powerful
British, and indeed, the
conventional war lasted
but a year, until the
Boer nations, Transvaal
and the Orange Free
State, were conquered.
However, the Boers
in the annexed land
refused to give up.

Their outmanned and
under-equipped combat-
ants began fighting a
guerilla-style war that
the British were unable
to counter effectively.

To turn the tide, the
Imperial forces began
using “scorched earth”
tactics against Boer civil-
ians who were aiding the
guerillas with supplies
and shelter. Livestock
was confiscated. Crops

 

were burned and the
fields were salted. And
eventually, the British
decided that that the
best way to keep the
non-combatants from
providing aid would
be to keep them under
guard in overcrowded,

But it seems ironic that the Harper Government is spend-
ing millions this year lionizing the War of 1812, a war
‘Canada’ wasnt even alive for. Yet at the same time,
Canadians remain woefully uneducated about the war
that was the most shameful in our history.

filthy disease-infested
concentration camps.
Most of the pris-
oners were women,
children, and the elderly.
Separated by race, it is
believed that roughly
28,000 whites died, and
16,000 blacks died.
Selective memory
Outside of history
majors, few Canadians
today know anything
about the Second Boer
War. It concluded 110
years ago, and has been
out of our living memory
for decades. Even books
in our schools barely
mention the issue. When
I was taking Grade 12
history in high school,
it was given a passing
mention as some war that
preceded World War I.
And of course, it’s
easy to see why no
Canadian would even
want to remember it.
It was a war where we
and our allies were
undoubtedly the bad
guys. Canada was noth-

ing more than a colonial
henchman out to help

Britain do her dirty work,

subjugating yet another
nation for the “Empire
On Which the Sun Never
Sets,” using the most
barbarous methods
imaginable to set up

a country that would
later become apartheid
South Africa. Not exactly
a feat to be proud of.

But it seems
ironic that the Harper
Government is spending
millions this year lion-
izing the War of 1812, a
war “Canada” wasn’t
even alive for. Yet at the
same time, Canadians
remain woefully unedu-
cated about the war that
was the most shameful
in our history. It seems
as though all the effort
the Conservatives have
put into remembering
one old war is matched
only by our collec-
tive effort as a people
to forget another.

One thing I truly
feel that Stephen Harper
has done right as Prime
Minister has been apolo-
gizing to the Aboriginal
peoples of this country
for the hundreds of
years of oppression
they were forced to
endure under the yoke

  

We owe it to the victims of
South Africa to remember.
We also owe it to our
veterans and the men
and women serving in
our armed forces today
to remember. We owe
it to them because we
cannot truly appreciate
the gallantry, dignity,
and professionalism that
they have served with
until we acknowledge
that it is not simply a
natural outcome of being
Canadian. Like any other
nation, we are as capable
of monstrosity as we
are capable of heroism
in the face of combat.

of colonialism. It didn’t
change much, but it was
an admission that we
were in the wrong, and

I feel it should count for
something. Perhaps we
owe the people of South
Africa the same courtesy.
It may have happened

over 110 years ago, but
it would be a start.

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The real value of service
Vimy Ridge. Normandy.
Peacekeeping in
Yugoslavia. This is what
comes to mind when
we think of Canada’s
military. And obviously,
these were gallant suc-
cesses against despicable
enemies—the aggressive
German Empire, the Nazis,
and the genocidaires of
Southern Europe.
But we have to
be honest with
ourselves. To
simply pre-
tend that our
nation has
never done
anything
wrong in
wartime
is childish
escapism.

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