Long battle nears an end for release of census data
By ROGER BELGRAVE
Staff Writer
The end of a long political battle has begun for Brampton Senator Lorna Milne. Federal legislation that would allow Statistics Canada to release historic census records was recently introduced in Ottawa. The proposed law was introduced in the Senate. It is not the typical venue for introduction of federal government legislation, but fittin in this case. It has been a five-year battle for Milne and others lobbying the Canadian government to make these historic records publicly accessible.
Last October, the victory appeared to be at hand when Government House Leader Don Boudria announced there would be legislation to allow the release of 92-year-old census records for historic research purposes. The information is considered a critical tool for Canadians researching their family histories, medical historians, historians, genealogists and others seeking insight into Canada’s past. Complete victory seems even closer now. Last month, prior to introduc- tion of this legislation, the government released 1906 census records. “I’m just delighted,” said Milne following release of that information.
Microfilm copies of the 1906 records were turned over to the National Archives and the census material made available online. Statistics Canada had previously refused to give the data to the archives, citing privacy concerns, said Milne. When Allan Rock became Industry Minister a year ago, he promised to thoroughly study the issue and take action in the best interests of the country, according to Milne. Release of the 1906 records is a fulfillment of that committee, she said. “I’m particularly pleased that Allan Rock has agreed with the position of genealogists that the 1906 census should be released on the same basis as the 1901 census,” said Milne in a news release. “This will allow research to continue unencumbered.” It was expected the government would be bringing forward this legislation allowing the 1911 and subsequent censuses to be released to the National Archives.
Statistics Canada was refusing to release the information based on a legal interpretation such data is collected confidentially and supposed to remain accessible only to the government. “There was never ever a promise to keep (the records) secret forever,” argued Milne. Milne, 68, believes the legislative breakthrough can be attributed to what she refers to as “grey power” – the lobbying force of senior citizens. “They just put so much pressure on the government that the government had to say yes,” said Milne.
The Senate heard from 20,000 people in the form of petitions during the past session of parliament, accoding to Milne. During the previous session there were about 6,000 names received on petitions, she added. The House of Commons heard from similar numbers.
The Canada Census Committee, a grassroots organization, mounted a national
campaign online to support efforts on
Parliament Hill and Dufferin-Peel-Wellington-Grey MP
Murray Calder also took a lead role in the fight. Brampton
resident Muriel Davidson is co-chair of the Canada Census Committee.
Davidson and Milne are long-time friends who may not always see eye-to-eye
on politics, but are like-minded on this issue.
While there has been political will to allow
public access to the records, there was bureaucratic
resistance within Statistics Canada, according to Davidson. The 78-year-old
genealogist has been tireless in her efforts to
raise awareness and gather support for the cause. She established
a Web site in 1999 to help conduct Muriel Davidson’s Canadian
Census Campaign and became part of a court challenge launched to
force release of the documents. Davidson had the same feeling
of gratification Milne did when the government
announced release of the 1906 census
records. “It was a relief, believe me, when we
got the 1906 (records),” she said.
Census records are an invaluable resource for people
trying to track down family members and investigate
their ancestry. Davidson spends hours assembling
the branches of her own family tree and
has used the information to uncover critical details about her family’s
medical history. Since the release of the 1906 census,
she has heard from people who have used the information
to locate family in western Canada. There is still work
to do, she said. The proposed legislation
that would permit releasing the 1911 and subsequent
census data has to be fine tuned to ensure the
bureaucratic barriers to full public access
are eliminated, Davidson said.
Still, it is a time to savour the moment for the relentless duo from Brampton and others who lobbied for this legislation. “I’m really pleased today,” Milne said when interviewed upon the release of the 1906 census. “This is a good day in my life.” If Canada stopped releasing census records, it would become the only nation in the western world to stop making the information available after a certain length time has elapsed, she said.
The Muriel Davidson’s Census Campaign, with information about lobbying efforts and links to other related sites, can be accessed at www.geocities.com/Heartland/Farm/7843/poll.html. More related information and Web links are also available on a genealogical Web site at www.globalgenealogy.com/Census/
NOTE:-
The Muriel Davidson’s Canada Census Campaign site was first posted
on July 1, 1999 as Lunenburg County’s Canada Census Campaign – it has often
been called the “coast-to-coast-to-coast” site. Bryan Keddy does all the
web posting for Muriel Davidson – both printers at heart.
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