Dear Mr. Speaker,
Dear members of the House of Commons,
Mr Ambassador,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends,
It is for me a great pleasure and great honour to be received in such a friendly way in Ottawa. Many thanks for your kind invitation.
My dream has always been to visit Canada. The first part of my stay was in Saskatchewan, the breadbasket of Canada. I had the opportunity to visit Regina and Saskatoon. They are all preparing the Centennial of the province. This occasion is of course an opportunity to create a focal point for optimism and pride in Saskatchewan. I was impressed by what I saw in this dynamic province.
Two years ago, Switzerland became a member of the United Nations and I hear that our positions are close in many fields. Our countries promote commonly shared values such as equality and democracy through participation in many international organizations. Let us mention the importance of international humanitarian law or the necessity of abolishing landmines according to the Ottawa Convention. Many Canadians have played a great role in the UN like Lester Pearson, Maurice Strong, Louise Fréchette and Louise Arbour.
Mr. Speaker,
Switzerland’s presence in Canada seems to be very ancient. In 1604, Swiss soldiers accompanied Champlain's expedition to Acadia. Did you know that two persons of Swiss origin were governors of Canada Frederik Haldimand and George Prevost? There were also mountain guides who introduced alpinism in the Rockies.
One Swiss even managed to become a member of the House and afterwards of the Senate, Samuel Merner, a blacksmith, member of the Conservative Party. I would like to be the second but I would have to improve my English. In our Parliament, we have a Canadian born member, Mrs. Barbara Haering who like me represents Zurich in the National Council. She is a good link between our Parliament and North America.
It is of course difficult to compare a small alpine country with one that stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific – a Mari usque ad Mare - and is 250 times bigger. But as Prime Minister Trudeau said 20 years ago “A country is not strong because of the size of its armies and it I not powerful because of its great balance sheet. A country can be influential in the world by the size of its heart and the breadth of its mind, and that is the role that Canada can play”. This remark can be applied to all countries including Switzerland that work to make a better world.
What we have in common is the federal structure: the rights of our cantons and of your provinces, our plurilingual countries with respectively four and two official languages. We know that it is never an easy task to put peoples of different cultures together and always needs skill and respect of the others. We also both have bicameral systems. Tomorrow, I will follow with great interest the question period in the House and be an eager witness of the vitality of your parliamentary life. I am very much looking forward to it.
Once again, many thanks for your hospitality. So far, I have enjoyed every minute of my stay. I would also like to thank all those who, on the Canadian side, have accompanied us and prepared this wonderful programme.
I raise my glass to the prosperity of the Governor-General, the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson and of the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Honourable Peter Milliken, as well as to the future of your great country and to the friendly relations between Canada and Switzerland.
Thank you Mr. Speaker and I look forward to meeting you in Switzerland.
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1) Samuel MERNER ou Mürner, né le 29 janvier 1823 à Reichenbach, décédé le 11 août 1908. Forgeron. Conservateur. Membre de la Chambre des communes de 1878 à 1882 /non réélu). Sénateur de 1887 à 1908.
2) A Mari usque ad Mare is Canada's motto (Latin for "From sea to sea"). Like the term "dominion," it comes from the Bible, Psalm 72, Verse 8: "He shall have dominion also from sea to sea" The motto was adopted officially in 1921, when it was included in a new design for Canada's coat of arms. In French, the words are "D'un océan à l'autre"