Canadian vs. Quebec Nations...

PM accused of insulting Quebec
Refusal to call province a nation draws ire of Bloc, PQ, but PMO stands by comments
STEVEN CHASE AND ANDRÉ PICARD

OTTAWA and MONTREAL -- Prime Minister Stephen Harper's refusal to call Quebec a nation has given political rivals a weapon they've been seeking to chip away at Conservative fortunes in the hotly contested province.

Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe accused Mr. Harper of insulting Quebeckers. "If I went to Ottawa next Friday, on the eve of July 1, and I refused to recognize the existence of the Canadian nation, that would be an enormous scandal, and rightfully so," he said.

Mr. Harper was drawn into the debate about Quebec's nationhood during a Quebec City trip on the eve of the province's politically charged St. Jean Baptiste Day holiday.

He was asked by local reporters whether he considered Quebec a nation -- a question the Parti Québécois and Bloc Québécois had challenged him to answer.

Mr. Harper dodged the query, saying he respects the Quebec legislature's declaration that Quebec is a nation, but felt Ottawa has no need to enter the debate. "I don't know, quite frankly, what its legal significance is," he said, adding later that "it just seems to me to be a semantic debate that doesn't serve any purpose."

The comments were pounced upon by the Bloc, which has been looking for a wedge issue that hurts the Tories ever since the separatist party lost ground to the Conservatives in the Jan. 23 election.

The Tories are hunting more seats in Quebec by promising to rectify the so-called fiscal imbalance of wealth between Ottawa and the provinces, cleaning up federal politics and giving Quebec City a bigger voice on the international stage.

The Bloc's provincial allies, the Parti Québécois, said Mr. Harper's comments show he's ignorant of Quebec culture and history. "I'm disappointed to see that Mr. Harper is incapable of looking Quebeckers in the eyes and recognizing who they really are," PQ Leader André Boisclair said this weekend.

While he wasn't criticizing Mr. Harper, Quebec Premier Jean Charest, a federalist, left no doubt about where he stood.

"As Premier of Quebec I want to say loud and clear that we form a nation," he said at Montreal City Hall on Saturday. "The fact that we are a people and a nation doesn't contradict in any way the fact that we are also Canadian citizens."

The Prime Minister's Office said Mr. Harper's comments stand. "I can tell you that Quebeckers know who they are, they don't need us to tell them," said Sandra Buckler, spokeswoman for Mr. Harper. "What they want is to be respected, and that is exactly what our Conservative government is doing. Mr. Boisclair is panicking because Quebeckers don't want another referendum due to our approach of a federalism of openness."

New Democratic Party Leader Jack Layton, in Quebec for St. Jean Baptiste Day on Saturday, said he's disappointed that Mr. Harper can't call Quebeckers a nation, in part because he thinks it would help assuage separatist feelings. "It's not a hard or challenging observation to make and it corresponds to historical realities."

Political analysts said Mr. Harper has little to gain by publicly declaring that Quebec is a nation because it risks angering his base in Western Canada, or even rock-ribbed federalists inside Quebec.

"Engaging a national debate on Quebec's role in Canada is a no-win for Stephen Harper outside of the province of Quebec," said Allan Gregg, pollster and chair of the Strategic Counsel.

Mr. Harper should have expected the question would arise when he staged a cabinet retreat in Quebec's capital city the day before the province's national holiday, said Peter Donolo, the Strategic Counsel's executive vice-president.

"He was clearly trying [to] exploit symbolism, so he shouldn't be too surprised when the symbolism comes around and smacks him in the head," Mr. Donolo said.

The Tories boosted their Quebec electoral support to 25 per cent in the 2006 election, from 9 per cent in 2004. An early June Strategic Counsel poll indicated Conservative support had held steady since Jan. 23.

even flow? wrote:

Will there be a new mailing address instead of POC? Just curious.


Not to take the steam out of your sails there grandma, but didn't Harper cut another stupid comment about the parade here this weekend. The man just can't say the right things when the mic or camera is on.

I don't know, haven't heard that one, i'm so pissed at this PM, at least Chrétien would have babble something funny about it, and he wouldn't have retreat himself in the citadel on 24th of june to say such an idiocy...

Lack of flags at Harper Quebec speech

Kevin Dougherty, CanWest News Service; Montreal Gazette
Published: Sunday, June 25, 2006
ST. JOSEPH DE BEAUCE, Que. -- Prime Minister Stephen Harper ended a two-day visit to the Quebec City region Saturday with a speech that was interrupted by the noon peal of church bells.

"Even God is happy I am here today," he joked.

"This is not a day for big speeches," Harper told a crowd of about 200 at the municipal park of this Beauce town south of Quebec City, after praising Maxime Bernier, his industry minister and the local Tory MP.

The prime minister also paid tribute to the hard work and attachment to "family values" of the Beaucerons.

Harper then shook hands and posed for pictures with ordinary Quebecers. But no flags were flying, even though it was Quebec's special day.

"Honestly, we didn't think about it," St. Joseph Mayor Michel Cliche confided.

But the mayor did note Harper was the first non-French Canadian prime minister ever to visit his town of about 5,000.

On Friday, Harper and his cabinet met behind the thick stone walls of the Citadel, the 19th century fortress overlooking the old part of Quebec City.

He noted that 2008 is the city's 400th anniversary, calling it "the original capital of Canada."

One exception to the lack of flags Saturday was a half Canadian, half American flag on a sign carried by Lucille Gilbert.

Harper and Bernier agreed to autograph the sign. In return, Gilbert gave the prime minister a bottle of champagne and a card.

The Conservatives won eight of their 10 Quebec seats in this region and Harper is said to be counting on at least doubling that score in the next election, so he can form a majority government.

"Bienvenue dans la nation de la Beauce," ("Welcome to the nation of the Beauce,") said Yvon Poulin, as he shook hands with Harper.

"You will win 42 (Quebec) seats next time," Poulin told the prime minister.

""I hope so," Harper replied.

Poulin told a reporter the Tories already have 10 1/2 Quebec seats, counting Andre Arthur, the controversial radio commentator who won Portneuf riding as an independent but votes with the Conservatives.

Jean-Claude Richard, a trucker and former president of the Conservative riding association in neighbouring Megantic-L'Erable riding, told Harper he was in Dallas on Wednesday and returned home to shake hands with the prime minister.

Harper ended his speech Saturday with the salutation, "Bonne Fete nationale!" a reference to Quebec's June 24th holiday.

He did not take reporters questions, but on Friday when asked if he recognized Quebec as "a nation," a word whose meaning in French is closer to "a people" than to "a country," he said he didn't want to get into a "semantic debate that doesn't serve any purpose."

Harper said he recognized that the Quebec National Assembly, as the province's legislature is known, unanimously approved a resolution affirming that Quebec is a nation.

"I don't know quite frankly what its legal significance is," he said. "But it is important for the prime minister of Canada to defend the unity of Canada."

Harper also said he disagrees with the Charest government's plan for a carbon tax, which the oil companies say would add 1.5 cent a litre to the pump price of gasoline in Quebec.

"We believe that a carbon tax won't be effective at all," he said, adding that a carbon tax would raise gas prices for consumers.

http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=b181e601-96f4-47b7-a0bd-925a925e231b&k=65437

So, how would Canada react if the Prime Minister would make an official announcement just saying " The government of Canada, officialy recognize the Quebec nation..."? Would there be riots in the streets of Vancouver and Toronto? Or would it just be business as usual? I suspect it would make no difference at all and would give the PM a huge popularity boost in Quebec, so where's the damn problem, it's 2006 damn it...

fife wrote:

of course there would be riots in toronto, but that would be because of the world cup not because of quebec. i personally think that Toronto and Quebec are very similar.

just try to get serve in french in a Toronto restaurant, good luck, it's easier to get french service in Florida than in Toronto...

surferdude wrote:

Quebec is a province in Canada. Internally it refers to itself as a nation but it is not. If Quebec wants to be a nation it should seperate, or lobby to have all provinces be named nations. And maybe Montreal can be a distinct nation within the nation of Quebec. As Montreal has just as distinct a culture and history within Quebec as Quebec has within Canada.

It's just time for Quebec to go it's own way. They will never be happy being a part of Canada.

wow, thanks for that, Quebec is a nation, however you spin it or refuse to say so, and i don't really understand the point of not recognizing it since it's an historical fact, it's not just an opinion, it's a fact, maybe we should go directly to the UN to get this fact recognize, that's what the first nation did to get around the Canadian stubborn feeling...

polaris wrote:

in all honesty ... i don't really care whether quebec calls itself a nation - its like gay marriage, it's not that big a deal i think ...

i'm more concerned with whether or not the people who voted for harper will still vote for him ...

so to interpret your word, you're happy that Harper didn't recognize Quebec as a nation just to watch Harper's vote flying away .

In Quebec it will depend on who's the next Liberal chief, i guess, and how Layton manage to stay a figure in the medias and in the population...