Public figures opposed to the monarchy invite citizens and elected officials to withdraw from the authority of King Charles III by taking an oath to the Quebec nation instead.
“I have the impression that many Quebecers are of our opinion and can play a role in making things happen”, ignites one of the four “conspirators” and ideator of the approach, Sébastien Ricard, alias Batlam du Loco Locass group.
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A dozen public figures, including comedian Sébastien Ricard, took a symbolic oath to Quebec rather than to King Charles III in a video that was shot in the Blue Room of the National Assembly of Quebec.
The actor and musician joined forces with several artists and other personalities to propose an alternative oath in two acts, which he recorded in the Blue Room of the National Assembly of Quebec. First to abjure any submission to the king and then to be able to swear allegiance to another authority: the Quebec nation and the Republic of Quebec, in friendship with the Aboriginal peoples.
The actress Pascale Bussières, the singer-songwriter Daniel Boucher and the president of the Mouvement Québec français Maxime Laporte lent themselves to the exercise in a first video, as did the actor Pierre-Luc Brillant, who was a candidate for the Parti Québécois in the last elections.
Not just a symbol
The leader of the PQ, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, affirmed his intention to refuse to take the oath to the British crown during the swearing-in of deputies on October 21.
Sébastien Ricard hopes that other elected officials will follow suit, because according to him, this is not a useless ceremony, but a harmful tradition.
“The deputies find themselves turning their backs on those who elected them to redirect their allegiance to the king to a monarchical regime while in Quebec we claim to be democrats”, the actor is indignant.
“It’s far from being just a symbol. It is the very foundation of the regime, ”adds Maxime Laporte, who devotes a master’s thesis in political science at UQAM to the question of the oath of elected officials.
In 2022, it is high time to break this bond of allegiance to the crown, like the United States, India and Ireland, which have managed to move from “subjects to verbs in their history by constituting themselves into republics”, he believes.
They hope that many citizens will follow suit by sharing their video on social networks accompanied by the hashtag #monoath.
ACT OF ABJURATION
Me, […]I deny all allegiance, all submission to Charles III, declared King of Canada.
To him, his heirs, successors and representatives, I recognize no sovereignty over Quebec.
ACT OF ALLEGIANCE
Me, […]I swear that I will be loyal to the Quebec nation and that I will serve the Republic of Quebec faithfully in friendship with the Aboriginal peoples.