OTTAWA — Canada’s largest conservative networking conference opened Friday morning with an Indigenous land acknowledgement recognizing Ottawa as the “never surrendered homeland of the Anishinàbe Algonquin Nation.”The acknowledgement was delivered at the opening the second full day of programming at the Canada Strong and Free Network conference, formerly known as the Manning Centre gathering, which brings together conservative politicians, activists, and donors from across Canada. The land acknowledgement had not been delivered during the conference’s Wednesday evening opening reception or during Thursday’s first full day of events..The statement drew attention online and among attendees given ongoing debates within conservative circles over land acknowledgements and reconciliation language.Following publication of the remarks, the Canada Strong and Free Network said the comments were delivered by an outside event sponsor and not on behalf of the organization itself.“To clarify, these comments were made by an event sponsor, not on behalf of the Canada Strong and Free Network,” the organization’s media team said in a statement.“We do not have editorial oversight for our speakers, nor do we pre-screen remarks.”The Canada Strong and Free Network conference is one of the country’s largest annual conservative political events and regularly features senior Conservative politicians, provincial premiers, campaign strategists and international guests.This year’s conference comes as conservatives continue internal discussions about the future direction of Conservative party and Pierre Poilievre’s leadership.
