Who We Are

 These are the robes of a prosecutor in the war crimes tribunals held in the Hague in the aftermath of the Yugoslavian civil war.

In her role as chief prosecutor, Louise Arbour was relentless in her pursuit of justice, and in dealing with men who had chosen to commit atrocities.

Canada enjoys a good reputation in the world, from decades of being ourselves.

Displayed together is a backpack and passport belonging to one of us. Sean Mannion is one of many Canadians who have traveled the world, and encountered the well wishes of others. That maple leaf on a backpack speaks for itself.

It was time to get going. I always take a shot of the roof of St. Onuphrius.

The path is lined with large scale photographs of life across Canada. Some are location specific, but many are universal for Canadians. Put simply- this is who we are.

Humanitarian

 Humanitarian aid goes hand in hand with human rights. The World University Service of Canada established Girls Clubs in developing countries around the world to help girls along in life.

Christine Briand was an RCMP officer seconded to peacekeeper duty in Haiti in 2010 when that country was devastated by an earthquake. She took part in rebuilding an orphanage. People from her hometown raised money to help the country recover. This is part of being Canadian- lending a hand, particularly in a disaster, whether it's with money or with expertise.

Lester Pearson was one of our greatest prime ministers, but before his tenure in that role, he was the foreign minister. He and Dag Hammarskjold, the UN Secretary General, were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for the concept of using neutral soldiers as peacekeepers to resolve the Suez Crisis.

Mark Isfeld was a Canadian soldier serving as a peacekeeper in the former Yugoslavia, clearing mines. His mother knitted little dolls which he gave to children. He was killed while clearing mines in 1994, but the tradition of "Izzy" dolls continues today.

Robert Semeniuk is a photojournalist who has documented conflict around the world. Among other things, he has documented the damage caused by landmines. The Canadian government under Jean Chretien took the initiative in the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, or Ottawa Treaty, which aims to stop the use of landmines.

This is the uniform of Lt. Colonel Pat Stogran, who commanded soldiers in Afghanistan and later became the first veterans ombudsman.

Louise Arbour led the international prosecution team looking into war crimes in the former Yugoslavia. She would later serve as a Supreme Court judge, and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Justice

 Continuing where I left off yesterday. Nelson Mandela was made an honourary citizen of Canada here in the Museum while on a state visit. Canada's strong stance against apartheid resulted in a warm relationship between Mandela and the country as a whole.

Canadians have often gone out in disaster response around the world. This display case looks at some of that.

Canadians have also been active within the United Nations from the start. John Peters Humphrey, seen at lower right with Eleanor Roosevelt, drafted the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Stephen Lewis has spent a good part of his career doing work for Canada within the UN.

This is the robe of a prosecutor for the war crimes tribunal that looked into the aftermath of the collapse of the former Yugoslavia.

Louise Arbour was the Canadian judge who became chief international prosecutor in those tribunals, seeing the darkest humanity had to offer in the search for justice.

Canada today has a fine reputation abroad, with its citizens welcome around the world.

In The Pursuit Of Justice

 Canadians have been involved with the United Nations since its inception. 

Lester Pearson was the foreign minister at the time of the Suez Crisis. His proposal to have neutral soldiers serve as peacekeepers would bring the crisis to an end, and win him the Nobel Peace Prize. A replica is here, and the original is at the foreign ministry. He would later be one of our best prime ministers.

Mark Isfeld was a Canadian soldier serving on peacekeeping duties in Croatia, working to clear landmines. He would give dolls like the one at right to children- made by his mother. After he was killed in the line of duty, the dolls have continued to be given out by soldiers and humanitarian workers.

The Peacekeeping Monument is downtown, near the National Gallery.

This is the robe of a prosecutor for the International Criminal Court.

Louise Arbour was a Canadian judge who served as the chief international prosecutor examining war crimes in the former Yugoslavia. Her intensive work into the prosecution of war criminals had to have been an ordeal, but in the service of justice. This kind of work has been carried out by other Canadians in her wake, in the former Yugoslavia and beyond.