Raymond Chan, PC, MP (Traditional Chinese: 陳卓愉; pinyin: Chén Zhuōyú; Jyutping: Can4 Ceok3 Jyu4), (b. 1951) is the first Chinese Canadian to be appointed to the Cabinet of Canada. A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, Chan was elected to Parliament in the 1993 federal election, defeating then Defence Minister Tom Siddon in the riding of Richmond, British Columbia. Chan is the third Chinese Canadian to be elected to Parliament, after Douglas Jung, who secured a seat in 1957, and Art Lee in 1974. The Privy Council Office as it appeared in the 1880s The Queens Privy Council for Canada (French: Conseil privé de la Reine pour le Canada) is the council of advisers to the Queen of Canada, whose members are appointed by the Governor General of Canada for life on the... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ... Traditional Chinese (Traditional Chinese: 正體字/繁體字, Simplified Chinese: 正体字/繁体字) refers to one of two standard sets of printed Chinese characters. ... Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ), commonly called Pinyin, is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. ... Jyutping (sometimes spelled Jyutpin) is a romanization system for Standard Cantonese developed by the Linguistic Society of Hong Kong (LSHK) in 1993. ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... A Chinese Canadian is a person of Chinese descent or origin who was born in or immigrated to Canada. ... The Cabinet of Canada (French: Cabinet du Canada or Conseil des ministres) plays an important role in the Government of Canada in accordance with the Westminster System. ... The Liberal Party of Canada (French: ), colloquially known as the Grits (originally Clear Grits), is a Canadian federal political party. ... Popular vote map with bar graphs showing seat totals in the provinces and territories. ... Thomas Edward (Tom) Siddon (born November 9, 1941) is a former Canadian politician. ... Richmond is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Latin: Splendour without diminishment) Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Official languages English Government - Lieutenant-Governor Iona Campagnolo - Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 36 - Senate seats 6 Confederation July 20, 1871 (6th province) Area Ranked 4th - Total 944,735 km... Douglas Jung (鄭天崋, pinyin: Zhèng Tiānhuá) (February 24, 1924 - February 1, 2002) was the first ethnic Chinese Member of Parliament (MP) for the Canadian House of Commons. ... Art Lee, a lawyer, was elected to the Parliament of Canada as a federal Liberal to represent the electoral district of Vancouver East in 1974. ...

Early life

Raymond Chan was born in Hong Kong on October 25, 1951. He emigrated to Canada in 1969, two years after Canada liberalized its immigration policy. He received a Bachelor's Degree in Applied Science (Engineering Physics) from the University of British Columbia (UBC) in 1977. From 1977 to 1993, he worked as an engineer for TRIUMF, a particle accelerator laboratory at UBC. Though he grew up an atheist, he converted to evangelical Christianity after debates with Christian friends and prayer. [1] He attends services with the Chinese Mennonite Brethren church. October 25 is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... Emigration is the action and the phenomenon of leaving ones native country to settle abroad. ... A bachelors degree (Artium Baccalaureus, A.B. or B.A.) is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or major that generally lasts for three, four, or in some cases and countries, five or six years. ... Applied science is the exact science of applying knowledge from one or more natural scientific fields to practical problems. ... Engineering physics (EP) is an academic degree, usually at the level of Bachelor of Science. ... The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Canadian public university with its main campus located at Point Grey in the unincorporated Electoral Area A, immediately west of Vancouver, British Columbia. ... TRIUMF, which stands for Tri-University Meson Facility, is a particle accelerator laboratory located on the University of British Columbia campus in the University Endowment Lands, just outside the city limits of Vancouver, British Columbia. ... For information about the band, see Atheist (band). ... The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after and influenced by the teachings and tradition of Menno Simons. ...

Political career

Chan joined the Liberal Party of Canada in 1991, and was elected to Parliament in the 1993 election, defeating Defence Minister Tom Siddon in the riding of Richmond, British Columbia. Chan secured the nomination win over future cabinet colleague Herb Dhaliwal, who subsequently chose to run in the adjacent Vancouver South riding. He was then appointed by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien as the Secretary of State for the Asia-Pacific Region for the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. He served in this position from 1993 to 2000. The Liberal Party of Canada (French: ), colloquially known as the Grits (originally Clear Grits), is a Canadian federal political party. ... Popular vote map with bar graphs showing seat totals in the provinces and territories. ... Thomas Edward (Tom) Siddon (born November 9, 1941) is a former Canadian politician. ... Richmond is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Latin: Splendour without diminishment) Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Official languages English Government - Lieutenant-Governor Iona Campagnolo - Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 36 - Senate seats 6 Confederation July 20, 1871 (6th province) Area Ranked 4th - Total 944,735 km... Harbance Singh (Herb) Dhaliwal, PC , B.Comm (born December 12, 1952) is a Canadian politician. ... Vancouver South is a Canadian electoral district that covers the southern portion of the city of Vancouver, British Columbia. ... The Prime Minister of Canada (French: Premier ministre du Canada), is the Minister of the Crown who is head of the Government of Canada. ... Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien, usually known as Jean Chrétien, PC, QC, BA, BCL, LLD (h. ... Fron 1993 to 2003, the title of Secretary of State was given to officials in the Government of Canada. ... Map showing general definition of Asia-Pacific The term Asia Pacific or Asia-Pacific, sometimes abbreviated as APAC, generally applies to the littoral East Asia and South East Asia states that are near the Pacific Ocean, plus the states in the ocean itself (Oceania). ... The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT), more commonly known as Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, is a department in the Government of Canada which has responsibility for foreign policy and diplomacy, as well as import/export and international trade policies. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

He was defeated in the 2000 election by Joe Peschisolido of the Canadian Alliance. After Peschisolido crossed the floor to the Liberal Party, Chan battled Peschisolido for the Liberal Party's nomination, and won it after a fiercely-contested race. The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of Canada. ... Joe Peschisolido (born April 27, 1963) is a Canadian politician and businessman. ... The Canadian Alliance, formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance, was a Canadian conservative political party that existed from 2000 to 2003. ... In politics, crossing the floor is to vote against party lines, especially where this is considered unusual or controversial. ...

Chan was returned to Parliament in the 2004 election. He was subsequently appointed to the cabinet by Prime Minister Paul Martin as the Minister of State (Multiculturalism) for the Deparment of Heritage. The Canadian federal election, 2004 (more formally, the 38th general election), was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons. ... Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938) was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada and a former leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. ... In the Canadian Cabinet a minister of state is a junior cabinet minister, usually given specific responsibilities to assist a senior cabinet minister in a specific area. ... Multiculturalism is the idea or belief that modern societies should embrace and include distinct cultural groups with equal cultural and political status. ... The Department of Canadian Heritage, also referred to as Heritage Canada or simply Department of Heritage, is the department of the government of Canada with responsibility for policies regarding the arts, culture, media, communications networks, and sports and multiculturalism. ...

The Head Tax redress controversy

As an ethnic Chinese, and being a cabinet minister of the multiculturalism portfolio, he was assigned by the government to negotiate with the Chinese community on redressing the Head Tax, a fee imposed to Chinese entering Canada from 1885 to 1923. Chan, along with the ruling Liberals, did not initially support apologizing because it, on the advise of their legal experts, felt that the government would expose itself to unlimited liability. The Liberal government has adopted the position of "no apology, no compensation" as the basis of negotiation with the Chinese community. The Canadian Head Tax was a fee charged for each Chinese person entering Canada. ... The Liberal Party of Canada (French: ), colloquially known as the Grits (originally Clear Grits), is a Canadian federal political party. ...

A private member's bill was introduced in November 2004, and after amendments by a standing committee and negotiation with Chinese Canadian groups, led by the National Congress of Chinese Canadians, the government announced that it had reached a settlement. This settlement became an instant source for controversy. The settlement was a simple acknowledgment that did not include an apology. The fund offered by the government only went to a trust fund, and did not reach the head tax payers (or their descendants). Moreover, the settlement was reached without consulting the Chinese Canadian National Council (CCNC), who led the campaign for fully redressing the issue since the 1980s. But this amended bill died when the government fell on November 28, 2005 due to a vote of no confidence. The Chinese Canadian National Council (CCNC) is an organization whose purpose is to monitor racial discrimination against Chinese in Canada and to help young Chinese Canadians learn about their cultural history. ... November 28 is the 332nd day (333rd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A Motion of No Confidence, also called Motion of Non Confidence is a parliamentary motion traditionally put before a parliament by the opposition in the hope of defeating or embarrassing a government. ...

During the 2006 federal election campaign, redressing the head tax became an emotional issue in the Chinese community. The three other major Canadian federal parties (Bloc Québécois, Conservative Party of Canada, New Democratic Party) all pledged to issue an official apology for the Head Tax in the Parliament of Canada and work with the Chinese community to find common ground. During the campaign, in an action some see as a response to that of the other parties, the Liberal Party changed its position and supported apologizing for the head tax. Chan, on the advice from a second legal opinion, stated that an apology would not expose the government to unlimited liability, as the Liberals had been previously informed. In addition, it was revealed that he told the government that the Chinese groups would likely agree to the policy of "no apology, no compensation" even though the groups did not support it. Chan and the Liberals have blamed the Heritage Department legal advisors responsible for the initial report of unlimited liability for being too conservative on the issue. Chan later stated that had he known that apology would not lead to unlimited liability, he would have supported apologizing. He also pledged to re-evaluate the legal advisors employed at the Heritage Department should he be re-elected and re-appointed to the cabinet. Rendition of party representation in the 39th Canadian parliament decided by this election. ... The Bloc Québécois is a centre-left federal political party in Canada that is devoted to the promotion of sovereignty for Quebec. ... The Conservative Party of Canada (French: Parti conservateur du Canada), colloquially known as the Tories, is a right-leaning conservative political party in Canada, formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in December 2003. ... The New Democratic Party (NDP; Nouveau Parti démocratique in French) is a political party in Canada with a progressive social democratic philosophy that contests elections at both the federal and provincial levels. ... The Parliament of Canada (French: Parlement du Canada) is Canadas legislative branch, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario. ...

However, parts of the Chinese community have accused the Liberals for being insincere, given that they changed positions during the middle of an election campaign after being against apologizing for so long. Some Liberals have responded that the issue was simply re-evaluated when it came back on the table, and that a correction was made. Chan is being blamed for issuing a compromised deal that did not represent the prevailing views of the Chinese community. Others have suggested that it is merely a matter of timing- that the Heritage Department lawyers responsible would have given the same advice to a government of any shade. Some believe that Chan has been betrayed by the party and is a scapegoat for the entire controversy.

The Christian fundamentalist controversy

The Richmond riding was also noteworthy for its abundance of registered third party campaigns. According to Elections Canada, the Richmond riding was tops in the country in this and any other federal election to date. (see reference below) While some were in opposition to Raymond Chan, most were against his primary rival, the Conservative Party candidate, Darrel Reid. Reid, a noted social conservative and Christian fundamentalist, was attacked for his stated position on stem cell research and treatment, gay rights issues, creationism and the “hidden agenda” issues which plague the Conservative Party. These third party campaigns may have contributed to Reid losing the election to Chan. Elections Canada is the non-partisan agency of the Government of Canada responsible for the conduct of federal elections and referendums. ... Darrel Reid Darrel Reid (born June 3, 1957, in Grande Prairie, Alberta; PhD Queens 1994) is a Canadian politician. ...

Despite the controversy, or perhaps because of it, Chan was re-elected in the 2006 federal election.

External links

• Raymond Chan's homepage
• How'd They Vote?: Raymond Chan's voting history and quotes
• List of the registered Richmond riding third party campaigns in the 2006 federal election.