A community in the B.C. Interior has become a flashpoint for American anger over its plans to honour draft dodgers and deserters who fled to Canada to avoid the Vietnam War.

The City of Nelson had announced earlier this month it would erect a bronze monument and hold a two-day festival in July 2006 in tribute to the war resisters.

Proposed monument
Proposed monument

Then the FOX-TV network picked up the story, sparking widespread indignation across the U.S.

Dr. Juergen Dankwort was a Vietnam-era conscientious objector who came to Canada, and he says the people of Nelson should stand firm on their plans.

Juergen Dankwort
Juergen Dankwort

"I am convinced that Canada is, has been, will remain a sovereign nation and will not be intimidated by any political interest," he says.

The City of Nelson has issued a statement distancing itself from the controversy, saying it "regrets any anxiety or misunderstanding that has occurred as a result of this issue."




The festival co-ordinator says the festival will go on as planned and will not succumb to a war of words, but adds that organizers are looking for a new home for the monument – which is being moved out of Nelson.

It's estimated that as many as 125,000 young Americans came to Canada during the 1960s and 70s because of their opposition to the Vietnam War.

Many of them went back to the U.S. after being granted amnesty by President Jimmy Carter in 1977, but the 1986 census shows that about half of them stayed in Canada.