Greetings All. FYI Gordon A. Watts gordon_watts@telus.net Co-Chair, Canada Census Committee Port Coquitlam, BC http://globalgenealogy.com/Census en français http://globalgenealogy.com/Census/Index_f.htm Permission to forward without notice is granted. ======================================= Take control of bureaucracy Editorial Humboldt Journal June 20, 2002 By Bill Hancock b.hancock@sk.sympatico.ca Almost everyone has a family member who keeps track of the family tree. Perhaps it is an elderly aunt, perhaps a younger person, but without exception there is always someone who seems to know almost everything about past relatives - where they came from, what they did, how many kids they had, what they did for a living, even how many cows they owned. Occasionally a person discovers that some previously forgotten family member was a bit of a troublemaker, like one rural family who found they were related to Pretty Boy Floyd, the notorious gangster. It was a source of entertainment for the family for years and it provided the occasional comedic moment whenever someone feared one of the kids might end up the same way if he didn't learn to drive a little slower. Good or bad news for families looking into their pasts, the point is that the information was important to them and there is no logical reason why anyone would want to intentionally prevent them from finding it. That's precisely what's happening, however. During the course of talking recently with Humboldt citizens who are descendants of British Home Children, a point was brought up that efforts to research their own families was being hampered by Canada's Chief Statistician, Dr. Ivan P. Fellegi, who refuses to release post-1901 Census information on the excuse that a promise was made never to release or reveal any of the information collected. There's just one small problem - through court actions and committee testimony, no evidence has been presented that a promise was ever made. That apparently doesn't matter to Dr. Fellegi, who continues to resist releasing the Census to the National Archivist. Fellegi's obstinacy means all Canadians, not just the millions of descendants of Home Children, are denied access to information about their own predecessors. England, Scotland and Wales release their Census information after 100 years and the United States releases its information after 72 years so families can discover their own heritage. In Canada, Parliament decided years ago that 92 years was sufficient for keeping secret how many cows and chickens Uncle Herbert and Aunt Sally had way back when, yet Dr. Fellegi seems to be the only person standing in the way of full disclosure. In effect, a bureaucrat is overruling the will of Parliament in letter and spirit. This unnecessary, embarrassing fiasco is making our country look ridiculous to outside observers and Canadian citizens alike, and the majority of MPs and Senators who support access to post-1901 Census information should be raising sheer hell about it. They would be wise to act quickly before this matter becomes an even larger issue. BH