Glyn Berry was a Canadian Foreign Service Officer of the highest calibre, dedicated to his work, to his professions and his family. Born on June 14, 1946, he grew up in Barry, South Wales. He studied at the University of Wales in Swansea before moving to Canada in his 20s to further his academic studies. He chose to remain and became a Canadian citizen while never losing his connection to Wales and his love for rugby.
He joined the Canadian Foreign Service in 1977 and served in Oslo, Washington, Havana, London, Islamabad and New York.
In 1993 he was appointed to the Canadian High Commission in London and represented the Canadian government at the Wales – Canada rugby match at Cardiff Arms Park in November 1993 where he celebrated his adopted country’s first victory over the hosts.
In 1999, he was assigned to Pakistan as the Senior Political counsellor and was acting High Commissioner when the attacks on Sept 11, 2001, plunged the region into war.
Mr Berry was appointed as the Chief Political Officer at the Canadian Mission to the United Nations where he chaired the General Assembly’s committee on peacekeeping operations.
In 2005, he was named Political Director of the Kandahar Provincial Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan, overseeing post-war reconstruction. He was fulfilling a desire to go back to a country that he has previously visited numerous times during the Taliban regime, to help bring peace and stability to a society he was deeply fond of.
Glyn Berry was killed on January 15, 2006 in an attack on a convoy in which he was travelling on his way back from one of his frequent meetings with local tribal leaders.
Glyn Berry’s remarkable contribution and sacrifice to the cause of peace and the reconstruction of shattered societies is honoured by friends, colleagues and family across Canada and from the international community.
