For immediate release
VANCOUVER, B.C., September 7, 2007 – The Honourable Jason Kenney, Secretary of State (Multiculturalism and Canadian Identity) and the Parliamentary Secretary James Moore, on behalf of the Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada, the Honourable Michael M Fortier, announced today that the Government of Canada office building located at 401 Burrard in downtown Vancouver will be named after Mr. Douglas Jung.
Douglas Jung (1924-2002) was the first Chinese Canadian Member of Parliament, serving in Parliament from 1957 to 1962. The building at 401 Burrard is located in his former riding of Vancouver Centre.
“We are pleased to name this building after Douglas Jung, a distinguished War veteran, parliamentarian, human rights advocate, and community leader who made incredible strides in advancing the status of Canadians of Chinese descent,” said Secretary of State Kenney and Parliamentary Secretary Moore.
Born in Victoria BC, at a time when federal legislation discriminated against those of Chinese ancestry in Canada, Jung later in life would receive the highest honours a citizen can receive from Canada and a provincial government – the Order of Canada and the Order of British Columbia.
His many accomplishments include serving Canada in World War II, being the first Chinese Canadian lawyer to appear before the British Columbia Court of Appeal, being appointed a judge on the 1962 Immigration Appeal Board in Ottawa, and successfully implementing the “Amnesty” program that made it possible for thousands of Chinese who had come to Canada using false names to regularize their status with the Immigration Department.
Minister Fortier selected Jung’s name based on the recommendation of a volunteer committee that was formed to review submissions from the public and recommend a name for the Minister’s consideration. From April 27 to May 18, 2007, Public Works and Government Services Canada held a public consultation inviting citizens to submit name suggestions for the building. To qualify, the suggestion had to be the name of a person (posthumous), a place or an event of historical significance to Canada and the region.
Minister Fortier “wishes to thank the members of the naming committee: Lesley Heieis, BOMA, BC; Mary-Ellen Kelm, Simon Fraser University, Elizabeth Perin, retired PWGSC employee; Kenneth Tung, S.U.C.C.E.S.S.; and John Winter, BC Chamber of Commerce; for their involvement and dedication to this sensitive task and trust the Douglas Jung Building will truly reflect the contribution of a great Canadian to his community.”
The Douglas Jung building is located at the corner of Burrard and Pender (401 Burrard). Environment Canada and Fisheries and Oceans Canada are the two principal occupants of the building.
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Ce texte est également disponible en français.
For further information, media may contact:
Frédéric Baril
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Fortier
613-868-1128
Media Relations
Public Works and Government Services Canada
819-956-2315
PWGSC news releases are also available on our Internet site at http://www.pwgsc.gc.ca/text/generic/media-e.html
