Head Tax 2005

[David Wong]

Well it looks like the injustices of so many years have finally crept into the consciousness of our elected officials.

A pandora's box has been opened. On November 25, 2005 Liberal Minister Raymond Chan announced an offering of sorts to redress the black eye that Canada has been carrying for all these years.

If the readers of this Genealogy site are like myself, a multi-generational Canadian of Chinese descent ( looking for his/her roots) then you'll understand why a number of us "Tu-Sheng" (Canadian Born Chinese aka CBC's) are a bit miffed at this recent offering from Ottawa.

Firstly, unlike the recent redress by the government of New Zealand, whose redress actually included an Apology and made as a requirement of participation on it's negotiations - descendants of Head tax payers; Canada's recent package was negotiated almost exclusively with an immigrant Chinese group (National Congress of Chinese Canadians). Check out their website...it's all in Chinese ( www.n-c-c-c.ca ).

I'm ticked.

There are at least 12 head tax ancestors in our family and an extended family across our nation, we heard nothing of the backroom negotiations on the Headtax. We only first heard about it on the news.

What a shameful disgrace!

I hope everyone one of you, whether born in Canada or new to Canada, will speak up and express your indignation on this insult to the memory of our Chinese Canadian pioneers.

I've written a bit more on my website:
www.generasian.ca/

[Woodson]

For more information and to sign a petition against this secret deal go to

www.headtaxredress.org/

[David Wong]

Hi all-

my apologies for not knowing how to cross link threads... but I felt it important for other people to learn of the important and similar efforts by New Zealanders a few years back.

Here's what I had written in reply to Helen (from New Zealand Poll Tax Thread):

-------------------------------------------------------------

Re: New Zealand Poll Tax - Links

Thanks Helen.

I've been in touch with Steven Young from New Zealand. We are learning from your commendable efforts with the Poll Tax. We've made our Head Tax issue a top election topic for our upcoming Federal Election.

It's amazing how many of the racists are coming out of the woodwork. Just today, a letter was published in the Vancouver Province newspaper by a *new* immigrant (non - asian) who complained about the Chinese...and indicated that he paid a sizeable amount to immigrate here, and that he would frame his receipts also, and contemplate about a refund.

This moron, like the rest of his ilke, misses the point.

And that is : everyone now immigrating to Canada pays some sort of nominal immigration fee, unlike the historic past where only the Chinese were singled out as a race- paid a sum equivalent to a huge home in today's desired neighbourhoods. Then in 1924, all Chinese were excluded from entering Canada for 23 years.

The greatest insult is that our opportunistic Federal minority government, in an attempt to pander to the "ethnic" vote, are using the Head tax issue to appear to right an old wrong. The problem is, and what our moron friend doesn't know, is that our Federal Liberal party has given a token cheque (with conditions attached) to a Chinese group who has no historic ties to Canada's original Head tax payers. The head of this Chinese group, one Mr. Ping Tan, is a recent arrival from Malaysia (ie. 1968).

Although this issue is currently playing out in Canada, the Beijing government has identified it as one of the "hot top 10 topics of 2005". On December 31, 2005 China News International place it as item number seven (7) on their list , after the South east Asian Tsunami, Pakistan earthquake and other world events. Here's a link to their website (in Chinese) :

Happy New Years all. Please have a look at this website prepared by another volunteer colleague to inform:
www.headtaxredress.org/

[helen]

Steven Young has a good website re the progress in NZ. Henry Chan is also doing great work both in NZ and Australia. Good luck for your fight. www.stevenyoung.co.nz/chinesevoice/ChinConf/S2.html

[vancouvewong]

We've made tremendous strides. All media - Chinese and English have all indicated that the Head tax issue has galvanized the Chinese Canadian community in a way it never has...ever.

Every single major political party has come out publicly to acknowledge a formal apology ...even our current Prime Minister, Paul Martin, has expressed his "personal" apology on Chinese media. Now we need to get him to commit to a formal apology in parliament. The word out there is that the Chinese vote can now decide the future of this federal election. Hmmm , we'll see.

For a good collection of up to the moment news items, visit our colleagues' site: www.headtaxredress.org/

There is one other thing that we're learning. We're uncovering the scary fact that a lot of the candidates in the Green party are not as socially progressively minded as we had thought. Here's a sampling of some of the chatter:

>Joseph Tong has sent the following to the Richard Gordon Mathias, the Green
>Candidate of Richmond, the Party Leader and candidates of 10 Lower Mainland
>ridings:-
>
>At the All-Candidates Meeting in Richmond yesterday (January 10), your
>answer on the head tax redress question is doing injustice to the head tax
>payers and is insulting the dignity of the Chinese community the second
>time. If you do not know the sufferings endured for those 62 years by the
>Chinese pioneers due to head tax and Chinese Exclusion Act, do your
>homework before you make your comment.
>
>You said they could choose not to come if they did not want to pay the head
>tax. The Chinese pioneers chose to come with a hope to make a better
>living. They helped build the railway and labored for Canada before the
>racist Act was legislated in 1885. Afterwards, they ONLY had the choice of
>NOT having reunion with their wife and family here if they did not pay for
>the racist head tax imposed on Chinese immigrants. And in fact they did NOT
>have ANY choice to have family reunion here after the Chinese Exclusion Act
>was imposed in 1923.
>
>You said there were other communities that were treated much worse than
>Chinese in the past. First, no one should compare sufferings of different
>victim groups. Second, two wrongs do not make one right. Redress have not
>been afforded to some other Canadian victimized communities does not mean
>that the 62 years legislated racism against Chinese in Canada should not be
>redressed now. I used to regard the Green Party as a progressive political
>body and having genuine concern about humanity and justice. You totally
>disappoint me. The Green Party should be ashamed of you.

and this from another colleague:
The only issue the Green Party is progressive on is the Environment. Everything else is righter than Conservative. Harris, the leader of the party is a defector from the Reform Party.

So I guess the moral is - do your homework on candidates in your riding.

[helen]

Thanks for keeping us up to date. All I can say is that you need to work together on consultations, thenwith common agendas - else they will divide and conquer.If there is to be redress, start in small communities and work outwards towards a common, agreed upon goal.

[David Wong]

Thanks Helen.

As we lead up to the final week before the election (Jan. 23/06), we must not become complacent.

If there is one thing about politicians - and that is, that talk is cheap...especially during the heat of a campaign effort. Some of us are now making the candidates who make verbal promises to sign off on a declaration form.

It will be really interesting to see what happens when the new government is formed here. All of us must maintain our focus. Our detractors can only divide and conquer if we are scattered in our efforts.

I am pleased to learn that from our efforts over the past few months, a small handful of us has been able to turn an obscure issue into a consistent headline grabber. Technology has enabled all of us to co-ordinate this effort across Canada... and there is now talks of a National conference on future steps (post election). I have updated myself of the New Zealand efforts, I sincerely hope our results will mirror NZ's success (and if you had any problems, we'd like to learn from your experience too).

[helen]

Nigel Murphy from the Department of Internal Affairs and Steven Young are a couple of people who would be able to assist.

[David Wong]

Yes. We are our worst enemy.

...this just posted from a local community newspaper, by a real Chinese (!) I guess that makes this letter writer an expert. Too bad none of her facts are correct. And of course, the paper chooses to print this diatribe...ignoring the dozens of other letters written by others over the past few weeks (including mine).

Here it is, have a good laugh and remember, here's proof that you don't have to have brains to be human...just have to know how to kiss politicians' ass to appear intelligent.
richmond-news.com/issues06/013106/opinion/013106le1.html

Richmond News
published on 01/17/2006
Enough is Enough

The Editor,

To all the Chinese people that have been badgering Raymond Chan for an apology and recompensation for the head tax: Stop abusing the privilege of having elected a Chinese MP. Stop abusing the federal reelection. Stop abusing history.

Raymond Chan is your member of parliament. His job is to serve Richmond and represent us to the government. His job is not to air his electorate's personal, racial, and pervasively ridiculous ancient-history complaints to the federal government. The head tax redress is an incredible load of nonsense that a lot of Chinese have bought into. The Canadian government owes you nothing. It was your ancestors' choice to emigrate from China. It was your ancestors' decision to immigrate to Canada. It was your ancestors' belief that the head tax was worth a life in Canada. If you rue your great-grandfather or whoever's choice to pay the head tax that the Canadian government imposed then you have no one to blame but your own ancestors for the waste of that money. Yes, the Head Tax was a great amount of money back then. But your ancestors were the fools that thought life in Canada was a worthwhile trade.

How many of you can argue that if your ancestors had not made the wise decision to pay the head tax and move to Canada, your life in China would've been better than your present life in Canada? Do you think you would have been as educated? As healthy? Stop thinking like a Chinese and start thinking like a citizen of the country your ancestors hoped you would adopt as your home: Canada.

I am Chinese, and I am satisfied with Mr. Chan's stand on the head tax. If he had succumbed to your petty demands my estimation of him would have fallen.

Enough is enough.

The head tax exists in textbooks as evidence and warning to the Canadian government. That's where it belongs-- in history, not on the political stage.

Jade Tong
Richmond

[David Wong]

In response to the earlier crackpot letter to the Editor, this following letter from Mr. Kenda Gee of Edmonton was published:

www.richmond-news.com/issues06/013206/opinion/013206le3.html
 
Contempt for trite conclusion

The Editor,

Re: "Enough is enough," the News letters, Jan. 17

A most hardy laugh and utter contempt goes out to the rather offensive Jade ("Your ancestors were the fools that thought life in Canada was a worthwhile trade") Tong for her diatribe on the Chinese Canadian redress campaign.

Indeed, it's true, Ms. Tong, that "the head tax exists in textbooks as evidence and warning to the Canadian government." Too bad, then, that the same scandal-ridden Liberal administration of today's generation would impose a $975 "Right of Landing Fee" on refugees, despite the fact it was defeated at its own convention in Ottawa prior, and only after international pressure by the United Nations, who properly asked how the merits of a refugee claimant could be based on his, or her ability to pay this ridiculous fee in the first place.

Many decent-minded Canadians who disagree with your trite conclusion, "that's where it belongs - in history, not on the political stage." Unlike you, they have not wasted the education that is freely available to all of us, thank goodness.
If you are looking for work, I hear Raymond Chan's office has an opening for a good executive assistant. However the contract will only last until Jan. 23, when the election arrives.

Kenda Gee
Edmonton

[David Wong]

Canada has now a new governing party in Ottawa (our nation's capital). The Conservative Party. Although our family has supported the former governing Liberal party for many decades, we were delighted to see the collapse of the old party - for it had grown increasing arrogant and corrupt. I did not vote Liberal yesterday, neither did any other member of my extended family.

So the thought: did the Chinese Head tax issue play a role in the downfall of the old Liberal party? Here's a commentary and news release by my old friend Victor Wong over in Toronto:
................

Incumbents were by and large re-elected last night. in BC, Paul Forseth was the only incumbent MP (Conservative) who was defeated (by NDP's Dawn Black, herself a former MP); however many prominent Liberal incumbents in other regions lost:
Anne McLellan, Pierre Pettigrew, Liza Frulla, Jacques Saada, Tony Ianno, Sarmite Bulte, Reg Althingy and others.

Liberal Ministers with Head tax file (indicated retraction over course of campaign):
Paul Martin (Prime Minister): reduced margin
Liza Frulla (Minister of Women's issues): defeated
Raymond Chan (Minister of Multi-culturalism): reduced margin
Sam Bulte (Parliamentary Secretary): defeated

other Liberal Ministers:
Tony Ianno (did not support redress): defeated
Anne McLellan (online comments did not support redress): defeated
Jacques Saada (told Walter last summer, no individual redress): defeated
Reg Althingy (racial gene pool comment last summer): defeated

Liberal Ministers who were more open to apology (ie. all stated a support for 'inclusive process') ( All these (now former) senior Liberal cabinet Ministers won by wide margins ):
Ujjal Dosanjh (former Health Minister)
David Emerson (former Minister of Industry)
Stephen Owen (former Minister of Western Diversification)


Liberal popular vote shrank by about 10% or half a million votes:
2004 election: 4 982 220
2006 election: 4,477,217 (still more votes to be added)

VANCOUVER/TORONTO/MONTREAL , January 24, 2006:
Chinese Canadian groups across Canada are asking Prime Minister Elect Stephen Harper to immediately make good on his pledge to apologize for 62 years of legislated racism under the Head Tax and Exclusion Acts by making a public statement on behalf of the government of Canada on or before Chinese Lunar New Year on January 29, 2006. This is to be followed by a Parliamentary Resolution once the House of Commons is recalled.

“The country turns to a new chapter in our political life just before the Chinese New Year. It would be a most auspicious time for the Government of Canada to start the process of reconciliation with Chinese Canadians and start the New Year in the spirit of unity and mutual respect.” said Joseph Wong, founder of the Chinese Canadian National Council.

In response to the demands made by the Ontario Coalition of Chinese Head Tax Payers and Families (Ontario Coalition), along with the B.C. Coalition of Head Tax Payers, Spouses and Descendents (B.C. Coalition), Chinese Canadian Redress Alliance and the Chinese Canadian National Council (CCNC), the Conservative Party, the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois committed in writing to support the Parliamentary Resolution to apologize, direct redress for the 250 surviving head tax payers and spouses, rescinding of the $2.5 million deal under the ACE program and open, transparent and inclusive consultations and negotiations with head tax families and the broader Chinese Canadian community as to the nature and extent of redress.

“We are calling on the new Harper Government to honour its election pledge and the opposition parties to join in ensuring that immediate action is taken before it is too late for the surviving head tax payers and spouses.” said Avvy Go, member of Canadians for Redress and counsel for the Ontario Coalition. “All the excuses about legal liability given by the Liberal government have been put to rest, first by the courts, and now by the voters.”

All federal political parties were pushed to take a stand on this important issue with more than 1 million Chinese Canadians – who account for 3.5% of the total population and for as much as 40% of constituents in several key ridings, particularly in British Columbia and Ontario. According to Statistics Canada, 40% of Chinese Canadians live in the Toronto area, while 33% live in the Vancouver area.

“It was clear that head tax redress quickly became an election issue which politicians ignored at their peril.” said Susan Eng, co-chair of the Ontario Coalition. “Head tax redress galvanized Chinese Canadian voters, and even before Election Day, they saw evidence of their political clout with the pledges from the three major opposition parties. Even Paul Martin eventually pledged to at least apologize. Now it’s up to the Harper Government to show that election pledges are meant to be kept.”

Canada's “National Dream” was realized when the Last Spike was driven to complete the transcontinental railway in 1885. Instead of gratitude for the Chinese railway workers – thousands of whom gave their lives to the building of this country – the government imposed a head tax on all new Chinese immigrants, collecting more than $23 million by 1923. That year, the government passed the Chinese Exclusion Act to stop all Chinese immigration to Canada. The racist legislation was not repealed until 1947.

For more information, please contact:
Ontario Coalition of Head Tax Payers and Families
B.C. Coalition of Chinese Head Tax Payers, Their Spouses and Descendants
Chinese Canadians Redress Alliance [Montreal]
Chinese Canadian National Council
www.headtaxredress.org

[David Wong]

This may be the beginning of the End.

Canadian Prime Minister elect, Mr. Stephen Harper as part of his first news conference announced:

the new Conservative Government would be sworn in on Monday Feb 6th... Mr. Harper also took the occasion to acknowledge Chinese New Year (with Gung Hay Fat Choy to all Canadians) and to recognize the contribution of the community and reiterated his pledge of an apology and appropriate redress.

This is significant...as now the media frenzie has just began. Heck, I received almost 50 emails in the last 45 minutes.

In addition, my earlier post, where I shared thoughts by Victor Wong of Toronto, I received some interesting responses from a number of individuals...essentially stating that "although the Conservatives won, the major urban centres of Canada (where approx. 75% of Chinese Cdns reside) did not support this Conservative Party ... so what are my thoughts?"

Well, in a few words. It's a beginning. The CC community may not have been completely unified on this issue, but for many, it was the first time they have heard about the whole Head tax issue. And it made some politicians open their eyes to the potential of the CC community. Even more important, our efforts got more coverage on this than any textbook or TV show could have ever presented in such a short time period. I personally hope that as more people become aware of the many regressive pieces of recent history, whether it's with our nation or others, we as a society will learn and grow.

Again, our head tax efforts is only a start. As a socially progressive Japanese parliamentarian stated (about owning up to their country's war time past):

"An apology without proper compensation is hypocritical and compensation without apology is unethical."

[etown]

Hi to All our Friends in NZ and Australia !

Our website is:

www.redress.ca
www.asian.ca/redress

Thanks !

Kenda
Edmonton, Alberta
CANADA

[helen]

Looking to see how this works out for you. Happy New Year to you all

[David Wong]

Hey Welcome eTown!

...for those who know "eTown's" real identity, he is the dude who has been leading the whole redress effort for over 20 years over in Edmonton Canada.

Good to see other Canadians join this board.

And yes, from all of us Canadians to Helen and everyone in New Zealand, Happy New Year of the Dog ...arf arf!