From: abc@a123.ca   
      
   Legion protests support programs limited to Afghan vets   
      
   BY JEFF DAVIS, POSTMEDIA NEWS JULY 22, 2011   
      
   The Royal Canadian Legion is protesting a decision by Veterans Affairs to   
   give Afghan war veterans access to new support programs, while denying   
   them to veterans wounded in other theatres.   
      
      
   OTTAWA — The Royal Canadian Legion is protesting a decision by Veterans   
   Affairs to give Afghan war veterans access to new support programs, while   
   denying them to veterans wounded in other theatres.   
      
   The details of the so-called Legacy of Care Program — including   
   eligibility requirements — were posted Friday to the website of the   
   Canadian Forces' director general for compensation and benefits.   
      
   The Legion was appalled that some programs were limited to veterans of   
   Canada's 10-year Afghanistan mission, said Pierre Allard, the service   
   bureau director at the Legion's Dominion Command in Ottawa.   
      
   "There was no indication at all it was restricted to Afghanistan veterans   
   only when it was announced," he said. "But lo and behold there seem to be   
   some caveats here for Afghanistan-only serving members and their   
   families," he added.   
      
   "Those benefits should be standardized for everybody, irrespective of   
   theatre of operations, and the Royal Canadian Legion firmly believes   
   that."   
      
   The Legacy of Care Program was launched in 2010, and includes five   
   initiatives aimed at helping veterans and their families cope with life   
   after war.   
      
   Details released Friday show that the Attendant Care Benefit, the   
   Caregiver Benefit and the Spousal Education Upgrade Benefit are offered   
   only to soldiers who have sustained "catastrophic impairment" while on   
   operations in Afghanistan.   
      
   Allard said the decision can likely be traced back to bureaucrats who are   
   trying to pinch pennies.   
      
   "Treasury Board bean counters were a little bit too sticky with their   
   pencil and eraser," he said. "We think they should reverse this."   
      
   Allard says the Legion has notified the Veterans Ombudsman of its   
   disagreement with the policy, and has written letters of protest to   
   Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Veterans Affairs Minister Stephen   
   Blaney.   
      
   Small numbers of Canadian Forces personnel are currently deployed to   
   Haiti, Sierra Leone, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, the Persian   
   Gulf, Kosovo, Cyprus, the Palestinian Territories, Syria and Egypt.   
      
   A larger contingent of over 600 is engaged in operations in and around   
   Libya.   
      
   "We have forces deployed doing interdiction of the coast of Libya, and   
   some air operations over Libya," Allard said. "The could easily be a   
   scenario that somebody could be seriously injured in that operation, and   
   their service to Canada would not be as honourable as if you served in   
   Afghanistan."   
      
   "Its not logical," he said.   
      
   Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Friday this particular fund was   
   designed to respond to the "urgent needs" of troops coming home from   
   Afghanistan.   
      
   "The intention of Veterans Affairs and certainly our department was to   
   expand the services and to extend those benefits into new areas of   
   support, particularly for families and particularly in areas of education   
   and medical support both physical and psychological and that is what   
   these programs are designed to do," he said.   
      
   "Is there more we can do? Yes, clearly."   
      
   But the focus on Afghanistan, he added, was in recognition of the   
   "catastrophic" injuries many returning soldiers have suffered.   
      
   "We are seeing a number of soldiers with the effects of post traumatic   
   stress so the extension of further benefits to them was in some cases   
   tailor made and designed for the Afghan mission," he said.   
      
   "We are examining ways that we can extend programs further, we are always   
   looking to be as inclusive as possible when it comes to the delivery of   
   services."   
      
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