The Agonist - Quebec

Quebec police defend undercover officers

Fri, 24 Aug 2007 18:10:42 -0700

August 24

CBC - Quebec provincial police are standing behind three officers who went undercover during protests at the recent Montebello summit, saying the men weren't there to provoke demonstrators.

"At no time did the officers in question engage in provocation or incite anyone to commit violent acts," Insp. Marcel Savard told a news conference in Montreal on Friday.

The police admitted Thursday afternoon that three masked men caught on video Monday afternoon pushing toward a line of riot police, despite protesters' efforts to stop them, were the force's officers.

Emergency crews respond to threat of collapse in downtown Montreal

Fri, 24 Aug 2007 18:08:25 -0700

Montreal | August 24

CBC - Emergency crews shut down a busy section of Montreal's downtown core on Friday, including part of the metro system, after the discovery of a large crack in the ceiling of an underground tunnel connecting malls to the subway system.

Engineers were closely inspecting the gaping crack and had closed one block because of fears that a major street above could collapse unless it was reinforced.

Quebec Inuit to sign historic self-governance agreement

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 05:42:25 -0700

Bill Curry | Ottawa | August 13

The Globe and Mail - A giant swath of mineral-rich land covering one-third of Quebec is on track to become a self-governing region for the province's 10,000 Inuit.

To be called the Regional Government of Nunavik, it will have its own elected assembly representing Quebec's 14 remote Inuit communities and a public service responsible for services normally delivered by provinces, such as education and health.

A sign of lunacy in language

Fri, 29 Jun 2007 08:20:28 -0700

June 29
Mike Carroccetto

Canada is known as a level-headed country, but there is one feature of our national story that is so loopy that even outsiders will on occasion remark on it, if only to ask if it's really true.

We're talking about the absurd practice in Quebec of government officials appearing at the doors of private businesses and denouncing the owners for not showing sufficient respect for the French language.

Well, it's true -- Quebec does engage in this kind of harassment. And recently, the language inspectors were in the national capital region. Staff at a Gatineau eatery named Le French Quarter have the battle scars to prove it.

Canada: Minority government looms in Quebec

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 10:09:37 -0700

March 25

CBC - Quebec faces the real possibility of a minority government for the first time in more than a century, as the province's main political parties remain locked in a virtual tie with voters heading to the polls on Monday.

Liberal Leader Jean Charest has warned voters a minority government will weaken Quebec's bargaining power with the federal government.

Update: March 27:
canada.com - PQ Leader Andre Boisclair said he's staying on as party leader

Update: March 26:
IHT - Liberal Party wins minority governing mandate in Quebec; conservatives gain ground.

Quebec election campaign to revisit separation

Mon, 19 Feb 2007 18:24:49 -0800

Randall Palmer | Ottawa | February 19

Reuters - The question of whether Canada will remain one country will hang in the balance again as the mainly French-speaking province of Quebec heads into an election campaign this week.

The campaign will be partly about health, jobs and taxes, but underlying it all will be the perennial tussle between the separatists, who promise an independence referendum if they are elected, and the federalists who want a united Canada.

"The Parti Quebecois means wishful thinking. It means a return to division by another referendum, as quickly as possible," Quebec's federalist Premier Jean Charest told about 2,500 fellow Liberals in a pre-campaign weekend speech. "In brief, the PQ represents a step backwards."

Charest has summoned the Quebec National Assembly for an emergency session on Tuesday to hear his preelection budget. The next day, he is expected to dissolve the assembly and launch a campaign for an election on March 26. ( image: campnet.net )

Quebec gets voice at UN organization

Sat, 06 May 2006 06:02:43 -0700

Rhéal Séguin | Quebec | May 6

Globe and Mail - Quebec may not be a nation in the eyes of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, but the province's "specificity" and "unique personality" give it the right to a formal voice at the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Yesterday, Mr. Harper and Premier Jean Charest signed an agreement that will give Quebec official representation in the Canadian delegation at UNESCO.

Quebec will be the only province with a "formal" voice at the UN body... Mr. Harper insisted his government deals equally with all provinces. "Federalism of openness does not mean playing favourites or stirring up jealousies, but it does mean that the time has come to forge a new relationship with the provinces," Mr. Harper said.

The agreement symbolized the harmonious relationship Mr. Harper and Mr. Charest have developed since the Conservatives took office last February in an attempt to isolate the separatists with what Mr. Harper has called his "open federalism."

Brief Throne Speech hails U.S. as 'best friend'

Wed, 05 Apr 2006 06:58:00 -0700

Gloria Galloway | Ottawa | April 5

Globe and Mail - The federal Conservatives acknowledged the priorities of other political parties but signalled a strong directional shift from the previous Liberal government in a Throne Speech yesterday that referred to the United States as "our best friend and largest trading partner."

The address that Governor-General Michaëlle Jean delivered in the Senate contained few surprises. The government of Stephen Harper focused on its established priorities of accountability, safe streets, reduced waiting times for medical treatment and a tax cut.

In contrast to the occasionally antagonistic relationship between the previous Liberal government and the U.S. administration, yesterday's Throne Speech promised to build stronger bilateral and multilateral ties "starting with the United States, our best friend and largest trading partner."

rut roh

Quebec Sovereignty: Boisclair talks referendum

Sun, 20 Nov 2005 18:46:17 -0800

Rhéal Séegun | Quebec City | Nov 19

The Globe and Mail - With the classic rhetoric of a young, aggressive politician, newly elected Parti Québécois Leader André Boisclair says he will seek a clear mandate to hold a referendum on sovereignty in the next provincial election.

Meanwhile, last week in Montreal, Prime Minister Paul Martin delivered a rare speech almost entirely devoted to national unity.
By portraying the coming federal election in Quebec as a choice between sovereignty and federalism, Martin is hoping to convince Liberal voters who sat out the 2004 vote in Quebec to support him against the Bloc Qu�b�cois this time around.

Update Nov 20:

Canadian Press - Prime Minister Paul Martin vowed Sunday to fight any attempts by Parti Quebecois Leader Andre Boisclair to take Quebec out of Canada in violation of the Clarity Act.

CTV.ca - In an interview to be aired Sunday, PQ leader Andre Boisclair says independence is up to Quebecers only and he sees no reason to submit to the federal Clarity Act.

Quebecers embrace country's values

Thu, 27 Oct 2005 07:16:26 -0700

Susan Delacourt | Ottawa | Oct 26

New poll reveals strong attachment to federal ideals.
Surprising finding as anniversary of referendum nears

The Toronto Star - You can take Quebecers out of Canada, perhaps, but it's much tougher to separate them from fundamental Canadian values and identity, a new poll reveals.

About two-thirds of Quebecers reported a significant attachment to Canada's international stature, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and federally financed social programs in a sweeping, major poll carried out for the Centre for Research and Information on Canada (CRIC.)

It's an optimistic, even surprising finding for federalism, landing just as the country is set to mark the 10th anniversary of the 1995 Quebec sovereignty referendum and as a looming report on the federal Liberal sponsorship scandal is threatening to whip up more separatist sentiment in the province.

JPD's take after the jump

Quebec still torn on future in Canada

Sun, 23 Oct 2005 17:38:20 -0700

Brian Laghi | October 22

The Globe and Mail - Quebeckers are just as divided over independence as they were a decade ago, although they would comfortably vote to stay in Canada if the question were put to them clearly and directly, a new poll indicates.

Quebec rejects introduction of Sharia law into legal system in the province

Thu, 26 May 2005 20:48:01 -0700

May 27 | Quebec

AP - Quebec on Thursday rejected the use of Islamic tribunals to settle family disputes, with one legislator saying that Sharia law could isolate the Muslim community in the French-speaking province.

Quebec rejects introduction of Sharia law into legal system in the province
Quebec | May 26

940 news - While Ontario considers a move to allow Islamic law to help settle some family disputes, Quebec sent a clear message Thursday it will not permit Muslim tribunals.

Quebec lawmakers from all parties voted unanimously in the legislature to reject the use of Islamic tribunals in the legal system. The vote was a pre-emptive strike to stop a growing movement among some Muslims to have the religion to play a role in family law.

Wal-Mart Leaves Bitter Chill

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 10:24:51 -0700

Doug Struck | Jonquiere | April 14

WaPo - The baby buggies are all gone. In electronics, only "Le Gros Albert" and a few other leftover DVDs remain. A few pairs of pink boots are left in the shoe department. Over in household goods, red and yellow liquidation tags dangle beside thin skillets as Wal-Mart prepares to close.

The retailing behemoth, whose $10 billion annual profits are based on low prices, low expenses and its relentless pace of store openings, announced it will shut the doors here May 6 after workers voted to make this the first unionized Wal-Mart in North America.

Students in strike - Intransigent , you said ? (Translation )

Sat, 26 Mar 2005 12:48:06 -0800

Bouchard J. & J Plamondon | Montreal | March 26

Le Devoir - Wednesday, the student population will underline a sad anniversary. This fateful date that is March 30, 2004 marks the implementation of a clear message: Superior education cannot be accessible to every layer of society. However, is this message the one of the multiple social consensuses present in Quebec or the one of a government clearly in margin of what is the Quebecoise society since the last 40 years? We believe that to ask the question is to answer it.

The authors are prsident and vice-president of the federation of CEGEP students of Quebec ,a federation of pre-university college students

Wal-Mart ordered to stop harassing workers in Quebec

Fri, 25 Feb 2005 19:17:26 -0800

Montreal | February 25

CBC News - The Quebec Labour Relations Board has ordered Wal-Mart Canada to stop intimidating workers who want to form a union.

The board's ruling cited efforts to "harass and intimidate" three employees at a Sainte-Foy store outside Quebec City.

A union representative said this was the second time Wal-Mart "has been reprimanded for trying to intimidate workers in Quebec".