A gathering of people from Bamfield wanting to write letters asking for a ceasefire in Gaza last summer has turned into a peace movement that will connect the west coast of Vancouver Island with the nation's capital in Ontario.
Keith Wyton was one of those people who wanted to write letters.
"We started to think of the broader context of what Canada was doing" in the Middle East, he said. Brainstorming led from the idea of a rolling train representing Canada's role as a peacekeeping nation, and the idea to ride the literal train across the country was born.
Canada has changed from a peacekeeping nation to a member of NATO that participates in threat assessments, Wyton said. The grassroots group hopes to persuade the federal government to become more involved on a diplomatic level.
Riders will board the VIA Rail Canadian Train in Vancouver on Nov. 15 and head to Ottawa, where they are going to ask the federal government to reinvest in peace operations.
"Over the last few decades Canada has lowered its commitment to UN Peacekeeping," says Wyton, who is spearheading the train project for the west coast. "At its height we had almost 4,000 Canadian UN Peacekeepers and today there are less than 30."
Crossing the country on the iconic railway, the "peace train" will call on all Canadians to let the government know "that we still support human rights, peace, diplomacy and international institutions committed to justice and humanitarian values," Wyton said.
Ten people from the Alberni Valley bought tickets for the five-day ride. There will be 15 more from Vancouver, six from Winnipeg, two from Parksville and one each from Nanaimo and the Comox Valley.
John Mayba of Port Alberni pre-purchased a block of tickets for the train and will be one of the participants heading to Ottawa. Mayba is no stranger to peace-focused events.
"My recollection of peace-making actions in Port Alberni goes back to the mid-80s when there were a number of Earth Day walks for peace organized by the Alberni Environmental Coalition," Mayba said.
"In the mid-90s, about a decade of New Year's peace walks were held. These were organized by a committee headed by Jack Granneman a member of the local Catholic Church. The first couple were held at Bob Dailey Stadium; later they took place at Glenwood Centre," said Mayba.
"These consisted of speakers and singing, which was led by a guitar playing Granneman and other local musicians including Danny Dolen. The group later received an invitation from the Sikh Temple to come for lunch after the rally and the annual event became a walk for peace to the Sikh Temple," he said.
Peace train passengers and supporters gathered at the Port Alberni Train Station on Saturday, Oct. 26 for a team photo with bright blue hoodies. Bernadette Wyton also had a banner depicting a train painting by Qualicum Beach artist Norma Emerson: all the smoke or steam coming out of the train's stack is made up of words that mean "peace" in various languages.
In all, there will be 40 peace participants on the train, according to Wyton.
Wyton will deliver a petition for peace to Courtenay-Alberni MP Gord Johns after the Nov. 8 cutoff. "We'll break 700 names this week," Wyton said. "We need 500 to qualify for a valid petition."
Johns hopes to present the petition to Parliament near the time the peace train arrives in Ottawa, Wyton said.
Receptions and vigils have been planned for many of the stops across Canada. Johns will host an all-party reception for passengers once the train arrives in Ottawa. On the Friday there will be panel discussions with conflict study experts. The next day there will be a rally on Parliament Hill.
Wyton said the response to the peace train "has been amazing. We've got five advisers who spent their whole careers in peace and conflict studies. They've been really instrumental in guiding us."
The peace train kicks off Thursday, Nov. 14 at the Canadian Memorial Peace Centre in Vancouver, prior to the train's departure on Nov. 15.
For more information about the project, go online to www.peacetraincanada.com.
