Monument to mark War of 1812 as DND struggles to get Afghan war recognized

OTTAWA – The Harper government wants to commemorate the War of 1812 in stone and has asked artists interested in designing a national monument to step forward with their qualifications.

The bids will be considered even as the Canadian military struggles to get recognition for the war in Afghanistan and to find a home for the emotionally charged battlefield cenotaph that once sat at Kandahar Airfield.

The National Capital Commission and Heritage Canada issued the call for artists and say the 1812 monument will be placed on Parliament Hill.

The government hopes to have the structure designed and built by the end of 2014, capping off two years of celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the war.

At the same time, efforts to get national recognition for the war in Afghanistan have stalled.

Defence sources say an effort to have the dates of the conflict carved into the National War Memorial in Ottawa have been blocked by Veterans Affairs Canada, which argued internally that recognizing Afghanistan would open the door to petitions from ex-Cold War soldiers and peacekeepers.