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Speech by Silent No More's Angelina Steenstra at Turning in of Petitions Against Morgentaler Order of Canada

OTTAWA, ON, August 20, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Welcome to all of you on this important occasion.  My name is Angelina Steenstra and I am the National Coordinator of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign; an outreach to people hurt after abortion.  I am also speaking on behalf of Campaign Life Coalition.

On July 9 of this year, hundreds of you joined me in a public protest over the Governor General's Order of Canada award given to the abortionist Henry Morgentaler.

Once again, I am here to say there is nothing heroic or award-winning about taking the life of an unborn child.  As a woman who has suffered an abortion, I know that to be true.

Giving an abortionist Canada's "highest" honour is dividing the nation, contrary to the Award's original intent!

Abortion divides.

Since July 1, thousands of phone calls, letters and e-mails have been sent to the Governor General, the Prime Minister and members of parliament.  In fact, an overwhelming number of MPs are known to oppose the award.

And, now today, we are handing over to the Governor General 30,000 petitions that have been gathered across the country in the last few weeks protesting this award.  And these petitions will continue, especially when the members of parliament return this fall.

National division on this award is not diminishing over the summer months.

Recently, Campaign Life Coalition commissioned a national survey done by KLIRVU asking Canadians if they approved the award being given to Henry Morgentaler - yes or no.  Very important to note, is that 13,000 were sampled.  Usually polling data is gathered from 1000-1500 individuals.  Of the 13,000 sampled, 57% opposed this award.

It is most disturbing that the media did not publish the results of this poll, or even contact the polling company to verify the survey methodology.

Lifesite news has the details for any media who wish to revisit those polling results.

Today, by handing over these petitions, we are providing the Governor General with even more evidence that her office and the Advisory Council are using the Order of Canada to cause division in the country.

Again, we say that this division is reasonable ground on which to revoke the award.

We recognize the Advisory Council is clearly in a conflict of interest by now being asked to revoke the award.

So for that reason, we call for an independent body to recognize that choosing candidates who divide the nation is outside the constitutional intention of the Order of Canada.

To the Prime Minister, we are calling for a formal, long overdue review of the Order of Canada.  The Prime Minister's office has this authority.  And I am sure the award guidelines can be strengthened to prevent this kind of national division from ever happening again.

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