Dear Editor,
Jasper National Park’s Manager of Resource Conservation has been fired for no stated reason but anyone who knows Dr. Wilmshurst is well aware of the great love and deep concern that he has for this park. So we may presume that he was fired because he chose to carry out his job according to his high principles, extensive knowledge and considerable experience to fulfill Parks Canada’s mandate to protect Jasper National Park for future generations.
Whether this demonstrably underhanded order ultimately came from the federal government or senior Parks Canada staff in Ottawa is irrelevant. The faceless individual who took this step is part of a bureaucracy that has become so poisoned with suspicion and intolerance that anyone who does their job according to what they believe is best for a national park is now in danger of facing this kind of draconian measure.
There is honour in Dr. Wilmshurst being fired for following the high standards of protection for Canada’s revered national parks. Nothing but dishonour can be ascribed to those who see fit to getting him out of the way so they can follow the government agenda without question or conscience.
The federal government hand in hand with powerful business interests has brutally crippled a once-proud department. Thousands of staff have either lost their jobs or voluntarily left the now noxious atmosphere of these magnificent areas protected over a century ago by a far-sighted government to become an integral part of Canada’s heritage and psyche.
If we are not to lose these areas altogether to commercialization we need to ensure that highly principled staff like Dr. Wilmshurst are permitted to voice their concerns so Parks Canada may begin to return to its mandate to protect these wild places and their wildlife for future generations of Canadians and visitors from around the world.
Jill Seaton (Chair)
Jasper Environmental Association
