http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061128/wl_canada_nm/canada_politics_quebec_can_col Parliament recognizes Quebecers as a nation OTTAWA (Reuters) - Parliament recognized Quebecers as a nation within a united Canada on Monday, backing a controversial proposal that already prompted one minister in the minority Conservative government to quit. The House of Commons voted 266-16 in favor of the motion, which the government said it saw as a way to head off pressure from French-speaking separatists who want to break away from Canada. Critics said the proposal could actually bolster the separatists, and the Bloc Quebecois said it would use the change to demand extra powers, including Quebec's right to speak at international meetings. Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Michael Chong resigned over the vote and said the separatists would use it to sow confusion. "I believe in this great country of ours, and I believe in one nation, undivided, called Canada," Chong, whose Cabinet brief included ties with Quebec and provinces, told a news conference. "They (the separatists) will argue that if the Quebecois are a nation within Canada, then they are certainly a nation without Canada." Chong's resignation does not threaten the government's survival, but underlines political tensions over the status of Quebec, which has held two failed referendums over whether to break away from Canada. Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper drafted the motion last week in response to one from the Bloc that recognized Quebecers as a nation, but did not include the words "within a united Canada." BY-ELECTION LOSSES The news for Harper did not improve later on Monday when Conservative candidates did poorly in two by-elections to fill vacant seats in Parliament. The party had hopes of capturing London North Center in Ontario but came in third behind the Green Party and the victorious Liberals, who had won the seat in the January 23 election this year. As expected, the Bloc easily retained control over its stronghold of Repentigny in Quebec, winning 67 percent of the vote compared with just 19 percent for the Conservatives. Chong said he remained a Conservative member of Parliament and was loyal to Harper. He was the first minister to leave the Cabinet since Harper defeated the Liberals in January. Chong quit after the government said it would dismiss Cabinet ministers if they did not vote for the proposal. "It won't change anything in their day-to-day lives," Industry Minister Maxime Bernier, a leading Quebec legislator, insisted during parliamentary debate. "It won't give Quebecers more powers."
Once the parti quebecois win the election again, it's secession time. And considering the current Quebec Liberal Party is tanking in the polls faster than Bush, I'd say the Parti Quebecois will take over pretty soon. Bye bye, Quebec.
The old rumor (last time we had secession talk) was that if Quebec seceded, the Atlantic Provinces would look to join the US. (As states.) I have no idea if that's been discussed this time, but it is an interesting thought.
Let them go, save the rest of Canada some cash and headache from reading everything bilingual. (Montreal is an awesome place to visit though)
Quebec is pretty important for the Canadian economy. They lose a large chunk of their GDP if Quebec jumps ship.
Perhaps we could work a trade for Washington, Oregon and Hawaii? We might have to swap Alaska and Nanuvik to even things out?? I really hate to do this deal....but if we're going to lose the Atlantic provinces to free agency anyways, this might work...
What this really means is very unclear, and I think Harper was counting on that. It’s a symbolic move, but the way that it’s worded makes it have a significantly different meaning in English than it has in French, so it will be interesting to see how that plays out. The resolution, even in English, recognised the Quebecois as a nation. In French the word Quebecois means anyone from the province of Quebec, but in English it means the people of French decent from the province of Quebec. So in the first case it refers to a region, and in the second it refers to a certain group of people. We’re quite used to talking about the Blackfoot Nation or the Cree Nation or the Assembly of First Nations, so the idea that the Quebecois, meaning the people, are a nation isn’t a big stretch for a lot of people. The by that definition the Acadians would be a separate nation too, and the Newfoundlanders could well be a nation as well. Whether or not Albertans could be called a nation gets foggier, I think, but I don’t think anyone is particularly worried about whether they are or not. In Quebec it remains to be seen how this will play out. Politicians of different stripes want it to apply the word Quebecois in this resolution to the region, for various reasons, but the Quebecois the people were for a long time very repressed and within the last half century or so have been going through a sort of a cultural awakening and retaking of their political power, and as part of that they have for decades now been quite concerned about preserving their culture and having it respected, even to the point of not having a lot of respect for other cultures as they were celebrating their own. People who are not “pure laine Quebecois” have often been racially discriminated against in recent decades there. So the bulk of them may well be quite happy with the interpretation that recognises them as a people. As a footnote on separation, that is in large part an emotional issue that has never been well thought out, or at least explained, even by those promoting it. The average Quebecer, or Quebecois, has no idea what “sovereignty association,” as it was called in the last referendum, would mean. Further, the Cree people in northern Quebec, or we could call them the Cree Nation in northern Quebec, have already passed a resolution saying that if Quebec separates from Canada they will separate from Quebec and stay with Canada. There are also parts of western Quebec that have indicated that they would separate from Quebec and stay in Canada, and the western part of Montreal likely would too. Can they do this? They have every much right as the province does to “self-determination,” another word that has become key in all of this. So if Quebec ever did vote yes to some referendum on separation then there would be a big mess, but we’d be a long way from Quebec becoming an independent country.
But it also means Canada doesn't have to pay for a lot of the services. By just getting rid off this mandatory bilingual law will save the rest of Canada tons of money. And if they leave, almost all big companies will move their headquarters in Canada to Toronto anyway (already happening).
Unless New Brunswick declares independacne as well. Otherwise, I guess French would still be official language. Or, maybe we could have Chinese as second language
If you’re not a Canadian then I’m impressed. New Brunswick is the only officially bilingual province in Canada. The three territories are multi-lingual, including French and some First Nations languages, and the rest offer many services in both English and French, including lots of immersion schooling, but Quebec has one official language, French, and the rest of the provinces have English as their one official language.
i've spent a bit of time in canada over the years, west to east, in vancouver, edmonton, winnipeg, toronto, montreal. entering any of the first four you're greeted with the canadian flag, road signs in english and french, but in quebec, the border crossing flies the quebec flag only, and all road signs are only in french. it already fels like un monde apart.
Although other provinces have English as their one official language, but French is everywhere none the less. All road sign as written in English and French, all government documents (drivers test, health care etc) are all in both languages. All student must take at least some French course. Just seems a lot of wasted money in places where there is hardly anyone speaking the language. (although learning the French language does come in handy some times, I love French Canadian girls )
It’s not by choice that most signs in public places in Quebec are in French. That’s the law. You can still get served in English in most places in Montreal, although there will be some places where they may choose not to serve you in English. I’ve never had any significant problems there or in Quebec City or on the main highways between the two cities. I have a functional level of French that I usually start in, as a sign of respect and it does seem to be appreciated when I do that, and then they are generally happy to switch to English if their English is good, but note that the English many of them have isn’t great either. The sign law hasn’t always been that way either. The language bill, the infamous Bill 101, was one of the most controversial parts of the cultural renewal/nationalism that I mentioned above. The early part of that period is called the Quiet Revolution, btw, but the later parts haven’t been quite as quiet. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_101 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quiet_Revolution
It’s a little trickier than that, but your general point is correct. All federal government services and publications, including road signs in national parks and the like, will be bilingual. Provincially some are and some aren’t, and some are in certain areas and not in others. My Alberta driver’s license is in English only, and most provincial signs here will be in English only, but I believe my Ontario license was in both languages and many Ontario signs, at least in eastern Ontario, are bilingual. Food packaging has to be in both languages too, wherever you are in Canada. I think there is at least 1 French language television station and radio station anywhere you are in Canada, and French immersion schools are very common outside of Quebec. Inside Quebec there is a strict set of laws that determines what language your children can be educated in, although at the post secondary level I believe you can go anywhere you want and choose to take classes in the language of your choice.
i can get by in french usually, but in any case, i agree, it's nice to make a stab at the language when you start out, then switch to english when you get in trouble. my accent's pretty good, in italian as well, and often makes people think speak a lot more than i actually do, which sometimes causes it's own problems. then there's denmark, where i'd go in a store and ask in pigeon danish, "do you speak english" and was always met by an incredulous laugh and an "of course!"
true, I found its almost never a good idea to ask someone "do you speak English", much safer assuming they do, and find out if they don't later.
