Posted on 07/08/2006 9:23:49 AM PDT by fanfan
Three young men who found themselves at the centre of a national controversy after being photographed urinating on the National War Memorial on Canada Day have apologized to "veterans and all Canadians" for their actions that night.
One of the men, a youth from Ottawa who cannot be identified by law, wrote in a letter that he did not realize he was violating a national monument and that he was "ignorant" in doing so.
In the letter, obtained by the Citizen, the youth wrote in French, "I am sorry for my actions and their repercussions, and if I had known what this rock represented before the incident, you would not need to be here now, reading this letter. I apologize not just to all veterans, but to each Canadian citizen I have offended."
The Ottawa police say the other two young men involved in the incident -- another Ottawa youth who cannot be identified and 23-year-old Stephen Fernandes of Montreal -- have also written letters of apology to the police, expressing remorse for their actions.
Yesterday, Ottawa police charged Mr. Fernandes with mischief. He will make his first court appearance Aug. 1.
Stephen Fernandes says he was so intoxicated he doesn't remember urinating on the National War Memorial. Photograph by : Peter McCabe, The Gazette
"I was embarrassed," Mr. Fernandes said yesterday about the incident and the ensuing publicity.
Two days after the incident, a friend called to tell him that his photograph had been on the front page of the Citizen. "I was in complete and utter shock," he said, adding he felt immediately remorseful.
He said he didn't intend to disgrace anyone -- war veterans or his family -- and he will take responsibility for his actions. "I want to formally apologize to anyone I may have offended."
Mr. Fernandes said that not only did he not intend to desecrate the war memorial, but he was almost embarrassed to admit he didn't know how significant the monument is to veterans, and revealed he once volunteered at a veterans' hospital in Quebec.
As to what happened the night of July 1, Mr. Fernandes said, "I know this sounds ridiculous, but I have no recollection of what happened that night. I drank about 26 ounces of vodka and some beers."
He said he drove from Montreal to Ottawa on the afternoon of July 1 and met with some friends. They began partying immediately, he said, and he remembers nothing after 11 p.m. "I don't even remember when the picture was taken."
Mr. Fernandes said he doesn't know the two Ottawa youths who were also photographed urinating on the memorial.
The photos, taken by retired army major Dr. Michael Pilon shortly after 11 p.m. last Saturday, sparked outrage among veterans, residents and politicians.
Dr. Pilon said earlier this week he doesn't think the young men should be fined, saying he holds government officials responsible for not protecting the memorial.
Yesterday, lawyer Lawrence Greenspon said that the two youths have made arrangements with the Royal Canadian Legion to perform community service. Mr. Greenspon brokered the deal after he was contacted by the parents of one youth who said their son wanted to "make things good and apologize."
Mr. Greenspon arranged for the youth to visit the Legion and meet with veterans. The youth then offered to work with the veterans by way of restitution, a plan that was approved by the Crown and police, said Mr. Greenspon.
"He and his buddy went went to Parliament Hill to see the fireworks," he said. "They really had to go (to the bathroom), they did their business and they didn't realize it was the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier," he said. "They just didn't realize the significance of the place where they were doing their business."
Bob Butt, director of communications for the Royal Canadian Legion, said veterans welcomed the apology. "We believe that the apology was contrite and that the young man knows what he did wrong after all the publicity that they gained," he said. "He's come and apologized, and he volunteered of his own free will to take on work with a veterans' organization."
And that, said Mr. Butt, is the silver lining -- the chance for the youth to learn more about the role veterans played in Canada's history. "From the two young men, I don't believe it was an act of blatant disregard; it was probably an act that demanded a lot of education," he said.
On Thursday, the young man and Mr. Greenspon went to the police station, where the youth wrote his apology. In it he said that at the moment of the incident, "I was not under the impression I was urinating on a monument, but rather on a simple rock," he wrote. He had felt the urge to urinate for some time, even before the fireworks display. But afraid to miss the show, he waited. And after the 20-minute wait to leave Parliament Hill, he wrote, he simply couldn't wait.
"I therefore decided to find an isolated spot in the midst of the crowd of people. I found the rock (which I now know to be the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier). ... I'm sorry for my actions and the repercussions."
Meanwhile, Mr. Fernandes said he knows being drunk does not excuse his actions and that he would gladly do community work and pay a fine. He said he called Ottawa police on Wednesday to identify himself and drove there on Thursday to turn himself in.
He said the publicity surrounding the incident has been humiliating. "It's not easy knowing the entire country thinks you're a dim-wit."
You're welcome.
Ya beat me to it...
This is the problem with liberalism. If a fine is the penalty then they should be fined. The kids (and at almost 40 you can still be pretty stupid at 23) did a great job of taking responsibility for their actions. My guess is the penalty would have been nothing more than a fine and they are doing much more, they are taking their own time to visit with veterans and learn something.
The did something stupid but hats off to them for taking responsibility.
Being drunk enough to PEE on Something..you're not a guy, are you?
Can you tell us the story of the event in Indianapolis so we can compare them if you want to draw a comparison. These guys didn't "trash" the thing, they unknowingly pissed on a war monument. The next good rain washed it off. Did the kids in Indianapolis actually damage the memorial?
I think the picture was taken by a bystander, not one of his pee-pals.
My take is that the guy is still shading the truth a bit - he says that he was so intoxicated that he has no recollection of peeing on the memorial, but a bit later he says that he remembers thinking that it was just a simple rock. I'd say (especially after seeing the picture) that he knew at the time that it was something other than a rock, but he was drunk enough to think it was funny to pee on it.
Still, he's facing his punishment and apologizing (whether on advice of attorney or not), so it seems fair to me to give him his lumps and move on...
Agreed.
Let the kid learn something about the causes these men fought for. Don't let him learn about anger.....there's enough of that with the liberals.
No he didn't "kill" but he tried to. He tried to "kill" the honor and respect represented by that monument. He definitely "hurt" every veteran and family member whose loved one is represented by the monument. And finally, he definitely did "steal" away into the night, like the snake he is, after his despicable and totally hateful act.
Oh boo freakin hoo. Your last post will go down in my personal Hall of Fame of the most insane FR posts of the year, (although this year you have a lot of competition). He pissed on a piece of stone that he didn't understand the symbolism of. Let's hang him. How idiotic of you...you're being the kind of whiner we all make fun of here.
Deport them to France.
Deport them to France.
There were THREE people who urinated on the National War Memorial. Only ONE has admitted to being drunk. The other two are MINORS. who may or may not have been drunk. One of the minors said he thought the monument was a rock.
Some Canadians think the government is at fault because, unlike our tomb of the unknown soldier, the relatively new National War Memorial (which includes a tomb of the unknown soldier) isn't guarded. The previous Liberal government thought it would look too militaristic if it were.
Note to self: Hitting the post button twice doesn't speed things up.
Not excusing them - BUT I did some VERY stupid things in my youth while under the influence of adult beverages.
This is getty idiotic!
Ah, it looks like I lost count of the yout's... Fernandes was too drunk to remember anything, and one of the minors thought it was a rock. That convinces me a bit more that the apologies should be accepted (along with appropriate punishments).
As for Canadians who think the government is at fault, they're just idiots. (Although I think guards for the Tomb would be respectful, not militaristic).
But you're forgetting, when conservatives are in power, the idiots will blame them for the sun rising.
I'm not telling.
;-)
Surprising that any Freepers actually CARE about the Canadian military, from all the Canada bashing going on past couple of years.
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