The Somalia Affair

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Topic spans: 1992 - 1997

Canadian peacemakers were lauded as heroes when they went into an untamed land ruled by rebels. Their mission, Operation Deliverance, charged them with restoring order in Somalia. But in fact, the Canadian Airborne regiment was splitting apart at the seams, lacking both leadership and accountability. Murder after murder, the troops came home disgraced. Tracks were covered and responsibility shifted up and down the chain of command during an investigation that would dismantle the army and implicate the government in a high-level cover-up.

Photo of Canadian aid worker with Somali child by Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press.

20 television clips

3 radio clips

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Lt.-Col Carol Mathieu's testimony

Broadcast Date: Feb. 27, 1997

Lt.-Col Carol Mathieu takes the stand. He is a little grayer and seems less assured than when he entered Somalia four years ago claiming that the Canadians were the new clan in town. He is, however, unwavering in his loyalty and stands by his troops.

Mathieu says that the real facts will eventually come out and he calls Maj. Barry Armstrong, the whistle-blower whose dogged persistence spurred the need for an inquiry, "genuinely certifiable." Defiant to the end, Mathieu ends his testimony with the Airborne's Latin motto "out of the clouds." With a sharp and crisp salute, he looks straight ahead and says "I salute you, ex coelis."

Lt.-Col Carol Mathieu's testimony

• In 1992, Lt.-Col. Mathieu had spent 27 years in the military, serving in Cyprus and in Germany. After a few weeks in Somalia, Mathieu boasted that the Canadians were "the new clan in town" in this CBC Television report. He said the Canadian forces were highly successful in reducing the tension, rebuilding hospitals and disarming the Somalis.

• The inquiry also heard from Michel Rainville, a former captain in the Airborne Regiment. Two witnesses came forward and said that on the night of March 4, 1993, Rainville offered a case of beer as a prize to anyone who killed a Somali. Rainville denied the accusation, saying that the soldiers misunderstood that he meant "work hard tonight and you'll have beer tomorrow."

Lt.-Col Carol Mathieu's testimony

Medium: Television

Program: The National

Broadcast Date: Feb. 27, 1997

Guest(s):

Host: Peter Mansbridge
Reporter: Ron Charles

Duration: 2:10

Last updated:
May 30, 2003

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