Ensemble Montréal accuses the administration of Valérie Plante of improvising on the racism file by launching an internal investigation “on the corner of a table” to identify problematic situations. The opposition party intends to return to the charge at the next meeting of the municipal council with its request for the holding of an independent investigation.
The duty revealed on Monday that on March 20, when the administration rejected the idea of an independent investigation into the racism experienced by employees, the Direction générale had contacted all of the City’s departments and boroughs to list the cases of racism and discrimination that took place in 2022. The Direction générale gave departments and boroughs 24 hours to send it this information.
That day, Mayor Plante and the elected representatives of Projet Montréal had swept aside the emergency motion submitted to the municipal council by the opposition, which called for a public inquiry. “The time is no longer for documentation, but for action”, declared Valérie Plante.
“We realize with the article published today, it is not true what the administration gave as an excuse”, denounced the adviser of Ensemble Montreal in Louis-Riel, Alba Zuniga Ramos, during a press briefing on Monday. “She seeks to document [les cas] because it doesn’t have enough data. But she seeks to document in her own way, perhaps to save face. Maybe she thinks she can do it internally. […] One would expect better from an administration that says transparency is its trademark. »
Next tip, next request
The leader of the opposition, Aref Salem, does not intend to let go of the piece and intends to submit another motion to the next meeting of the municipal council in April in order to request the holding of a public inquiry.
Ensemble Montréal also expresses concerns about the work of the Commissioner for the Fight against Systemic Racism and Discrimination, a position created two years ago and occupied by Bochra Manaï.
“For two years now, our party, Ensemble Montréal, has been asking the Commissioner for a clear action plan with specific and realistic objectives and a timetable, as recommended by the OCPM. [Office de consultation publique de Montréal] in 2020. Instead of an action plan, only 12 commitments have been published in March 2022. There is still no clear vision or actions taken or to come,” said adviser Abdelhaq Sari.
The elected official recalled that the former head of the diversity file and the fight against racism and discrimination within the Plante administration, Cathy Wong, always insisted that the complaints process should be revised. “I expected the Office of the Anti-Racism Commissioner to tackle this issue and that the process would be simplified and more reassuring for the person,” he said.
The opposition intends to continue “tapping on the same nail” to demand an independent investigation. Since the next motion tabled at City Council will meet the required deadlines, it will be debated, which was not the case on March 20. Aref Salem hopes that the administration will recognize the extent of the problem of racism in the City of Montreal.
It should be noted that in the context of an investigation carried out by The duty, about thirty City employees, from nine boroughs of the metropolis, claimed to have suffered racism and discrimination. Employees say they filed a complaint with their employer without obtaining justice.