What is Canada’s objective after the recent election? Stay a united federation. Canada is now a centralized country that should get on track to decentralize if it wants to reach a real, stable unity. But still, why should it fear for its unity? The result of the elections. When two pro-centralization parties gain that much influence. Even if one is more radical and marginal than the other, there is a problem.
For those who don’t know, the Canadian elections resulted in the reelection of the government of Justin Trudeau, this time with a minority. A minority that will this time be supported by the Neo-Democratic Party, a left-wing party that vast parts of its program are basically infringing provincial competencies.
When you see NDP leader Jagmeet Singh promising to reopen the emergency room for a hospital in Manitoba when every Canadians know that health is a provincial matter, it’s clear the NDP isn’t a party that wants to respect the constitutional rights of the provinces. Yet the Liberal Party could say no the NDP, it’s not clear they will.
It is already planning to contest Bill 21, a controversial secularism bill passed by Quebec with the overwhelming support of the population. Yet Trudeau claims to be protecting minority right in Quebec, we know that what is truly wants is the people of Quebec to shut up and do what they are told to do and stop to challenge Canadian almost-monolithic multiculturalist ideology. And yes I’m calling multiculturalism a monolithic ideology in English Canada, as it’s impossible to tune in the TV out there and here anything else that Quebec is a racist province which bigotry should be repressed by the courts. Let’s be clear here: Quebec Bill 21 only ban religious signs for teachers, police agents, and judges. This is very reasonable and many countries in Europe and in the MENA are already doing this.
If the Quebec people want secularism, why should they be forced into multiculturalism which has no democratic legitimacy nor is it in our tradition?
The reason is simple: courts enforce the charter of rights and freedom, a constitutional level document that was passed during the foundation of the new centralized regime in 1982. What is interesting is that the new constitution created in 1982 was never signed by Quebec, now was any Quebec leader at the meeting. The meeting where the decision took place happened in the kitchen while Quebec Premier, René Lévesque, was asleep and unaware of the situation in his hotel. Then, a new constitution that included the English-founded ideology of multiculturalism was enforced without any referendum, and Canada always refused to recognize it did any wrong. So a constitution that has no democratic legitimacy in Quebec else than what is basically a show of strength will decide when our democratic decisions are OK and when we should overturn them.
So when Justin Trudeau will say he is challenging in court the bill 21, he is fighting a fight he is sure to win since the rule was dictated by his father without a democratic mandate. Of course, all of this might surprise you, many foreigners may think Canada is the greatest country in the world. When a whole political regime is enforced to a whole people for this many years without consulting them before changing it, you know that something is wrong. Yes, Quebec could have decided to quit Canada, it’s true. But if the regime founded in 1982 is so confident it would have gained a democratic legitimacy, why did it always failed to do negotiations and deliver for a better Quebec autonomy?
The answer that sadly, this regime ruled by the fear. The fear of the economic collapse in case of independence. The fear of being called a racist. The fear of being who we are. And now that Quebec isn’t the only province to stand up to the Toronto-Montreal regime, it should quickly understand that the unshared rule is coming to an end.
Canada must give it’s provinces real autonomy after delivering real good-faith negotiations, and finally stop being what it is to Quebec, Alberta, and Saskatchewan. Hopefully, this will happens in a few years. Otherwise, we can be sure Canada will be boiling soon.
