GUEST COLUMN: Two Nations, Divisible

Today may be the final day of Canada's existence. For the second time in fifteen years, the future of the United States' biggest trading partner is being decided by the people of Quebec. As you read this, voters in the second most populous province of Canada are heading to the polls to answer the following question: "Do you agree Quebec should become sovereign, after having made a formal offer to Canada for a new economic and political partnership?" Until recently, separatists in Quebec have formed little more than a significant minority, however a poll conducted just over a week ago suggest that most Quebeckers will today answer "Yes" to sovereignty. The Quebec drive for sovereignty has a history as long as that of Europeans on this continent. It is an emotionally charged issue that has at times inspired deadly passion. In October 1970 civil rights were suspended in Quebec after the separatist terrorist organization Le Front Liberation du Quebec kidnapped a British diplomat and killed a Quebec cabinet minister. The basis for this feeling of nationalism in Quebec are varied, but are concentrated around two central issues. The major complaint that Quebeckers have is that the French in North America have a distinct nationality, separate from that of the rest of the country, and that this nationality is not being allowed to mature within the context of Canada. The fact of the matter is, since the Quebec Act of 1774, Quebeckers have had their right to language (French), religion (Catholic) and law (Civil code, similar to that of France) guaranteed by law. Canada is now a fully bilingual state, with government service available in French even in areas in which there is not a francophone to be found. The powers of the Quebec government (or L'Assemblee Nationale as it is called) even extend so far as to allow it to overturn the Canadian constitution, a power which it exercised last in 1988. The Quebec citizens enjoy more protection than virtually any other minority people in the world. The second complaint deals with political and economic power. Separatists in Quebec are under the impression that the Quebec citizens are being exploited at the hands of a clique of anglophones in Quebec. It cannot be denied that until the second half of this century, the French in Quebec were treated as second class citizens, but the situation changed radically in the sixties (during the so-called Quiet Revolution). Today, the government and virtually all the means of production in Quebec are controlled by native Quebeckers. Status as a Canadian province has also given Quebec access to the advantages provided by the alphabet soup of world organizations to which Canada belongs, including NAFTA, NATO, GATT, the G7, the OECD, the Commonwealth of Nations, La Francophonie, and numerous other multi and bilateral agreements. There have been numerous attempts to pacify the nationalist element in Quebec. One of the most recent was a 1987 accord which would have recognized Quebec as a "distinct society" within Canada and would have given Quebec veto power over any changes in the major institutions of Canadian government. This was defeated by a marked lack of flexibility on the part of the premier of Quebec and a single renegade native politician from Manitoba. Another agreement was reached in 1992, which included massive decentralization of government, a "distinct society" clause as well as permanent guarantees for Quebec's representation in parliament and on the Supreme court. This was rejected in a national plebiscite. Following these two failures and a federal election in which a separatist party won the second highest number of seats in the federal legislature, the rest of the country is left only to ask "What do Quebeckers want?" The answer to that question is still a mystery, but it is clear that sovereignty under this plan is not in the best interests of anyone. The leaders of the yes campaign have stressed the emotional. One has gone so far as to say that a yes vote would act as a "magic wand" to make all of Quebec's troubles disappear. They maintain that in the "new economic and political partnership" a sovereign Quebec would enjoy continued use of the Canadian dollar, automatic membership in all of Canada's current treaties and agreements (including NAFTA and, shockingly, The Commonwealth) and dual Quebecois-Canadian citizenship for all residents of Quebec. The no forces assert that any type of sovereignty would spell financial ruin for all of Canada, including Quebec. The facts unequivocally support these claims. A sovereign Quebec will have to assume its disproportionate share of Canada's massive public debt. The separation of Quebec would physically cut the country in half, and would automatically void the interprovincial reciprocity agreements currently in place. If a sovereign Quebec were to continue using the Canadian dollar, it would have no control over its own monetary policy. No member of any international organization has even hinted that an independent Quebec would automatically be admitted, quite the contrary. The Cree natives (who lay claim to well over a third of Quebec's territory) have stated that "If Canada is divisible, so is Quebec" and have promised that they will take up arms if necessary to remain part of confederation. Studies have shown that living standards in all of Canada will fall by almost 25 percent in the event of separation. The results for U.S. exporters and Canadian financial markets will be catastrophic. In 1899 La Presse, a prominent newspaper in Quebec, wrote that "We French Canadians belong to one country, Canada." Let's hope that's the way Quebeckers feel today.