bout de papier, Vol. 10, No. 1 (1993) — Winter 1993 // Hiver 1993, p. 29
Hugh Keenleyside joined External Affairs by examination in 1928 and was sent the following year to open the Canadian Legation in Japan. On return to Canada in 1936 he assumed responsibility for American and Far Eastern Affairs.
At the outbreak of World War II he was involved in discussions with the Americans and, indeed, on behalf of Prime Minister King, with President Roosevelt himself, on such questions as the relocation of the Government of the United Kingdom and of the British Naval Fleet in the event of the invasion of Great Britain, which, in 1940 seemed inevitable before the Battle of Britain swung the tide in favour of Britain and the Commonwealth. When the Canada- US Permanent Joint Board on Defence was established in 1940, Hugh Keenleyside was appointed Secretary of the Canadian Section of the Board.
He was appointed Assistant Under- Secretary in 1941 and was deeply involved in all aspects of Canadian-American cooperation in the prosecution of the war against Japan in the Pacific. He opposed the forced evacuation of Japanese Canadians from the west coast to internment camps in the interior and consequently was relieved of that responsibility.
In 1945, Dr. Keenleyside was posted as the first Canadian Ambassador to Mexico. In 1947 he returned to Ottawa as Deputy Minister of Mines and Resources and Commissioner of the North West Territories.
From 1950-59 he served as the first Under- Secretary General of the United Nations for Technical Assistance. From 1959-69 he was Chairman of the BC Hydro and Power Authority, with a strong influence on the negotiation of the Columbia River Treaty.
Dr. Keenleyside never really retired, but remained active in educational activities and in writing his two-volume memoir. A Chair in his name for the teaching of international affairs was established at the University of British Columbia.
He died in Saanich, BC in September 1992 at the age of 94. He was an outstanding early role model in the Department of External Affairs.
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Originally published in bout de papier, Vol. 10, No. 1 (1993) — Winter 1993 // Hiver 1993, p. 29. Read the rest of this issue →
