Voters in Quebec province restored Separatists to power in last week's election, but Canadians aren't overly worried that their country is about to be fractured. The opposition Parti Quebecois, which was created to take Quebec out of Canada, won 32 percent of the votes and 54 of the 125 seats in the Quebec legislature. The ruling Liberals won 31 1/2 percent of the votes and 50 seats. The brand new Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) won 27 percent and 19 seats. Liberal Premier Jean Charest lost his seat. PQ's leader Pauline Marois becomes Quebec's first woman premier. She's tough and will push for separation. But there's little support for separation among Quebecers or the Quebec assembly right now. The Liberal party, which won the last three elections, was accused of corruption, lethargy and inefficiency. It expected to be decimated but would have won if it hadn't lost some seats to CAQ. The party will now elect a new leader and plan a comeback. CAQ, a new party with no coherent plan, managed to nip at the heels of the established parties. PQ won but so narrowly that its position in the provincial assembly is shaky. Recent provincial elections sparked fears that Quebec might leave Canada. This time the situation is different and the Public Service Alliance of Canada — to the dismay of many — advised its 22,000 union members living in Quebec to vote for PQ as being best for workers. In the 1995 referendum Quebec voters defeated the separatists' bid to leave Canada by a razor-thin margin — in the 1980 referendum separatists had lost more decisively. French Quebecers favored separation more than English-speaking ones in both referendums. The Canadian Parliament passed the Clarity Bill in the year 2000 to dispel confusion. In previous referendums Quebecers were led to believe that if they voted to leave Canada they'd still retain Canadian passports and other benefits and that an independent Quebec will remain intimately associated with Canada. The province receives more than $7 billion from Canada in “equalization payments” every year — these are designed to ensure that richer provinces dish up money to benefit poorer provinces. Now the law says that the referendum question must state clearly that separation is separation and nothing less. At the Canadian government's request, the Supreme Court of Canada has also ruled that Quebec lacks the authority under the Constitution or international law to break away unilaterally but that, if most Quebecers want to leave, the governments of Canada and Quebec must undertake talks to bring that about. Support for separation from Canada has been tumbling among French Quebecers and the majority now reject even a referendum on the subject. The Liberal party and CAQ, which have more seats than PQ in the provincial assembly, also oppose a referendum. Even PQ is stating that it would arrange a referendum only if it felt that Quebecers favored it. So PQ wants to increase the use of French in Quebec, stating that immigrants must pass a French test before qualifying to run for public office. It seeks to ban all religious symbols or dress — hijabs, yarmulkes and turbans — except for Christian ones, for those working in the government. It wants to stop French-speaking and bilingual students from attending English-language junior colleges. No party excited Quebec voters. The Liberals were corrupt, the PQ paranoid and CAQ a puzzle. Analysts expect that the PQ government, like most Quebec governments, would demand more powers from the federal government. But Canada already is highly decentralized and the provinces enjoy wide powers, even in foreign policy. The PQ's other major concern is to strengthen the French language in an English-speaking continent. But French has flourished in Canada for centuries. Canadian bilingual laws, moreover, entitle Canadians to receive government services in the official languages of their choice. All middle-level and higher Canadian officials also are required by law to be fluent in both official languages. Another difference from past elections is that in the recent past Canadian prime ministers — Pierre Trudeau, Brian Mulroney and Jean Chretien — were Quebecers as were many of their Members of Parliament. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, however, is from western Canada and support for his Conservative party in Quebec is minimal. He knows too that now Canadians outside Quebec say that if the province wants to leave, so be it. He congratulated Marois on her victory but added: “Our government will remain focused on jobs, economic growth and sound management of the economy. We believe that economic issues and jobs are also the priorities of the people of Quebec.” With only some 20 percent of Quebecers supporting sovereignty and the province hobbled by a $184 billion debt and 7.7 percent unemployment, the prime minister's message probably mirrors the wishes of most Quebecers. Canadians can breathe easier — for now.
— Mohammed Azhar Ali Khan is a retired Canadian journalist, public servant and refugee judge. He has received the Order of Canada, the Order of Ontario and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and Golden Jubilee Medals.
