Chapter 4: Societal Choices in Contemporary Quebec 1980-today

Federal-Provincial Relations

1980: Referendum in Quebec René Lévesque and the Parti Québécois organized a referendum: asking the population of Quebec to vote on the question: ‘Should Quebec become an independent country?’ YES vote: Yes, Quebec should become independent (Separatists) NO vote: No, Quebec should stay a part of Canada (Federalists) P.E. Trudeau wanted Quebecers to vote NO. He promised he would be open to redefining Quebec’s place within the federation of Canada, through constitutional negotiations. Referendum Results: NO vote wins, with 59%.

On which point do these two politicans disagree?

1982: Patriation of the Constitution Trudeau wanted to patriate the constitution so that Canada no longer needed Britain’s approval to change it. The negotiations with the provinces failed since 8 provinces disagreed, so Trudeau threatened to unilaterally patriate it (do it without approval from the provinces). Trudeau succeeded in convincing 9 provinces to sign the constitutional agreement, but Lévesque was excluded from the discussions. (scandal!!) "Im telling you gentlemen, Ive been warning you since 1976 ... we’re going to go it alone ... We’ll go to London and we wont even bother asking a premier to come along with us."

1982: Patriation of the Constitution The Constitution Act: In 1982, British Parliament approved the patriation of the Canadian Constitution, without Quebec’s consent. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was also established as part of the constitution.

Review Questions Which political party organized the referendum in Quebec in 1980? What was the outcome of the 1980 referendum? Why did Trudeau want to patriate the constitution? Which province was isolated at the end of the constitutional negotiations?

1987: The Meech Lake Accord In 1984, Brian Mulroney became the Prime Minister of Canada. He was the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party. Mulroney wanted to reach an agreement with Quebec. In 1985, Bourassa (Premier of Quebec) agreed to enter into negotiations. In exchange for signing the constitution, Quebec demanded: To be recognized as a distinct society Quebec would have the right to veto any changes to the constitution Provinces could reject any federal programs that interfered in their jurisdictions Quebec would have more power to appoint judges to the Supreme Court of Canada Quebec would get more control over immigration

Elijah Harper's Protest 1987: The Meech Lake Accord During the Meech Lake conference, Mulroney and 10 provinces reached an agreement. The Accord (agreement) had to be approved by Parliament and all provincial legislatures within three years. (by June 1990). Manitoba and NFLD did not approve it in time, so the Accord ended in failure. Elijah Harper's Protest

Bélanger-Campeau Commission and the Allaire Report Bélanger-Campeau commission was set up by Bourassa in 1990 to determine Quebec’s status in Canada. It recommended another referendum on sovereignty be held. In 1991 the Allaire Report was published, suggesting that Quebec get more political autonomy by increasing its areas of jurisdiction. It also recommended that another referendum be held, if negotiations with the federal government failed.

1992: The Charlottetown Accord Mulroney’s federal government tries to enter into new constitutional negotiations. Federal, provincial and Indigenous representatives are invited to Charlottetown to create a new agreement. Canadians are asked to vote on the new agreement in 1992: it was rejected (56% of Quebecers and 54% of Canadians voted no). Mulroney resigned.

Review Questions Why did the Meech Lake Accord fail? What did Quebec hope to achieve through these constitutional negotiations? What happened to Mulroney after the failure of the Charlottetown Accord?

Parti Québécois, Bloc Québécois 1995: Referendum #2 Quebec’s status inside Canada was still unsolved… In 1993 the Bloc Québécois represented Quebec at the federal level. In 1994 the Parti Québécois returned to power at the provincial level. Parizeau was the Premier of Quebec and he organized a second referendum on Quebec sovereignty. YES NO Parti Québécois, Bloc Québécois Liberal Party of QC, Liberal Party of Canada, Progressive Conservative Party **WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE YES SIDE WINS??...No one really knew…

1995: Referendum #2 RESULTS: Based on the results of the referendum, do you think the sovereignty question was adequately resolved? YES NO 49.42% 50.58% https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64MyonHjSb4

2000: Clarity Act After the very close results of the 1995 referendum, the Canadian government asked the Supreme Court if a province could legitimately separate. A province could separate if the question was clear and a clear majority was obtained. In 2000 the federal government adopted the Clarity Act: the federal government must approve the question and the majority must be CLEAR (not just 50% + 1)

Review Questions In what years were the two referendums on Quebec sovereignty held? Compare the results of the first referendum to that of the second. What changed? What did not change? What law did the government of Canada pass in order to frame a new referendum on sovereignty?

Indigenous Relations

Recognition of Indigenous Rights Constitution Act (1982): recognized ancestral rights and treaty rights. These rights are used in land claims agreements to this day. Bill-C31 (1985): Significant changes were made to the Indian Act (ex: women did not lose their status if they married a « non-Indian »). Provincial recognition (1985): Quebec government recognizes ancestral rights of 10 indigenous nations. They can negotiate with governement to get more autonomy.

1990: Oka Crisis

1990: Oka Crisis The municipal golf course of Oka wanted to expand construction onto sacred Mohawk land, in Kanesatake (west of Montreal). The project was going forward, so a group of Mohawk set up a road block to halt the project. The Mohawk of Kahnawake blocked the Mercier bridge in solidarity. Quebec sent the provincial police (Sûreté du Québec) to intervene and one of them was killed. The Canadian army was also sent to help deal with the situation. Finally plans to build the golf course were stopped, indefinitely. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ij-InLdciE

1999: Creation of Nunavut The Northwest Territories was divided and a new territory was created: Nunavut (meaning « our land »). 85% of the population is Inuit, and they govern autonomously.

2002: La paix des braves Agreement between the Quebec government and the Cree Government would pay $70 million a year, in exchange for the exploitation of natural resources in the area (Northern Quebec). It also recognized the Cree’s ancestral rights in the territory

2008: Truth and Reconciliation Commission The commission traveled around Canada, gathering testimonies from survivors of residential schools. Their mission was to raise awareness amongst Canadians about the residential school system and expose the abuses.

How did the relationship between Indigenous nations and the government change after 1980?

Canada on the World Stage p. 300-301 What international organizations does Canada Belong to? What event led to the war on terror in which Canada took part?

Economic Recession in the 1980s Neo-Liberalism (privatization) vs. Welfare State Free Trade Agreements and Globalization Role of civil society Rural Economy: challenges

SOCIAL Aging population (Baby-boomers retiring-economic consequences) Less babies, but more immigrants (1991: QC choosing immigrants) Government policies for families Religious neutrality Indigenous population growth (bad living conditions) Gender Equality: 1988 Abortion completely decriminalized (free of charge in 2008) Pay equity Act

CULTURE Language issues: changes to bill 101 Relearning indigenous languages Governement payed for cultural products (how is culture disseminated) Information society