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Peacekeepers to be honoured

formerarmybrat23

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TOM AYERS
The Cape Breton Post
http://www.capebretonpost.com/index.cfm?sid=51978&sc=145

SYDNEY — Maurice Dickson didn’t take any fire, but he did his fair share of dangerous duty as a United Nations peacekeeper in the Middle East from 1965 to 1966.

“The Canadian government had a commitment to peacekeeping in the Sinai at that time and I was detached from my regular unit,” said Dickson, a native of Albert Bridge who retired five years ago to a home in Marion Bridge.

“I was a mechanic and one of my jobs was to do recovery in the desert. We had people doing patrols and if they broke down, we had to go and get them and do repairs.

“You had to go through checkpoints and we never got shot at, but I did have guns pointed at me.”

Dickson spent more than 42 years in the Canadian military, including a year-long stint wearing the trademark blue beret of a UN peacekeeper. He wouldn’t trade any of that experience for anything.

“The only thing that bothers me is that we spent a year of our lives over there and nothing seems to have changed. I’m glad I did it, but you kind of want to make a contribution.

“But I suppose if you promote peace, even if only for a few months, it’s better than nothing.”

Dickson will be decked out and present in Sydney on Thursday, which is national peacekeepers day. It will be marked in style with a parade of former police and military peacekeepers and an inspection by Lieutenant Governor Mayann Francis.

The open public event, organized by the Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping, is to be held at the Civic Centre downtown, starting at 10:45 a.m. Commander David Cooper of Sydney will lead the parade to the Lieutenant Governor.

To promote respect for the veterans and urge Canadians to recognize peacekeeping service as a valuable public contribution, the association will also host an information table at the Mayflower Mall starting at 11 a.m., Wednesday.

The size of the Canadian military presence in Afghanistan, with about 2,500 members currently serving under a joint task force led by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, should not mislead people into believing Canada has abandoned its peacekeeping tradition, said Tom White of New Victoria, the veterans’ association’s provincial director.

“The blue beret is still there and there’s still Canadians wearing it,” said the retired military member and a former peacekeeper himself. “Canada has about 180 or 200 peacekeepers right now.”

White said about half of them are in Haiti, and the rest are scattered around in 11 other countries including the Darfur region of Sudan, Eritrea, Cyprus and even Iraq.

“There is a difference between peacekeeping and peacemaking, because you first have to make peace before you can keep it,” added Dickson. “It’s an altogether different role.”
 
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