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Speaking Remarks for the
Honourable Monte Solberg
Minister of Citizenship and Immigration

at the Winnipeg Citizenship Ceremony

Winnipeg, Manitoba

September 11, 2006

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I am honoured and privileged to welcome you as Canada’s newest citizens. I know you will remember this day for the rest of your lives.

For generations Canada has enjoyed remarkable harmony. Dozens of different cultures, beliefs and religions have lived together, worked together and created a society where harmony is the rule and not the exception and everyone really does have the chance to get ahead.

But it is not that way in much of the rest of the world, and I think it’s important to understand why Canada has been able to thrive where others fail.

To me it’s obvious. We are successful because new Canadians and those of us who were born here both have come to believe that where we come from isn't nearly as important as where we are going. It’s not about what we wear; it’s about what we believe. And Canadians believe some very specific things.

Canadians believe that we are equal people with the equal right to exist, and worship and that we are equally free to live our lives. We believe that men and women are equal before the law, equal partners in society, and just as importantly, equally responsible for upholding and promoting these ideals to our children and grandchildren.

In Canada we believe that we are not subject to any other person but we are all equally subject to the law. That is what Canadian citizens believe.

And we act as citizens act when we meet our obligations to our families and neighbours, obey the law, respect the equal freedom of others and promote and protect these ideas in our families and communities.

As Canadians we are not merely taxpayers, or the consumers of social programs, or just the occupants of a spot on the map. We are something much more important that. We are the free men and women of Canada. We are Canadian citizens.

Let me tell you a bit about one of the people we are honouring here today – Wilhelmine Kagazo.

Wilhelmine came to Canada from Congo in 2001 to join her husband who immigrated before her. In Congo, Wilhelmine was a teacher. When she came to Canada, she could not find a job due to lack of Canadian experience. It took some time, but she was able to find an employer who was willing to give her a chance – and that has paid off for both of them. Since September 2004, Wilhelmine has been teaching French and natural science to Grade seven and eight students at Regent Park school in Transcona. So I want to thank her principal, Madame Monique Gauthier, who is here with her today. Because I think it is a sign of the important role that a community has to play in helping newcomers to Canada succeed.

And Wilhelmine is certainly giving back to her community. She manages to find time for extensive volunteer work with organizations such as the Mennonite Central Committee and the Église Communautaire de la Rivière Rouge. Both Wilhelmine and her husband have strong ties to the Mennonite church: it was by working at a Mennonite church in Kinshasa that her husband first met the Canadian who eventually sponsored him to come to Canada. Today, they are only too glad to be giving back to their community some of the goodwill that they have received.

Yes this is a story about newcomers living the Canadian dream, but it is much more than that. It is also the story of people who understand that being a citizen isn't about striking the noble pose. It’s about being good neighbours. It’s about playing by the rules. It’s about being conscious that as citizens we are responsible for advancing Canadian values and improving our country.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I know that newcomers choose to come to Canada for a thousand different reasons, but at bottom they come because they see in Canada a better life for themselves and for their families. And in turn Canada proudly welcomes newcomers with all their energy, and talents and dreams. As a nation all that we ask of those newcomers is what we demand of every Canadian. We ask for a conscious commitment to a society based on equality, order and freedom. In other words we simply ask today's citizens to exhibit the same ideals that created this great nation in the first place. A nation that after 139 years is still a light in the window for so much of the world.

Congratulations, and thank you.