François Legault does not regret having supported a motion, in 2000, to condemn anti-Semitic comments that Yves Michaud, who died on Tuesday, always denied having made.
“I live well with my vote,” said the Prime Minister on Thursday, heading towards the blue room of the National Assembly.
Mr. Legault is one of the two parliamentarians who voted for this motion in 2000 who still sit in the National Assembly, with CAQ deputy Jean-François Simard.
Mr. Michaud died on Tuesday and this “villainous motion” was one of the battles of his life. In 2020, in an interview with La Presse, he deplored that “the National Assembly, in 20 years, has not found a single moment to apologize”. He then lost hope of receiving an apology before his death. “I feel like I’m going to take this crap to my grave,” he said.
Several elected officials of the time have since apologized. In a letter published in 2021, former Prime Minister Pauline Marois and around thirty former elected officials, such as the liberal Jean-Marc Fournier and the PQ François Gendron, asked the National Assembly to repair this error.
No verification
“These comments were not verified beforehand and Mr. Michaud did not have the opportunity to be heard by the National Assembly, contrary to the fundamental requirements of respect for the right to justice,” noted the authors.
In 2020, a motion was tabled by the Parti Québécois to erase this error, but the Coalition Avenir Québec refused its tabling.
Following his death, PQ MP Pascal Bérubé said he wanted to table a motion again on this subject.
“We will take action again soon, with the agreement of all political parties, to repair, to try to repair. Mr. Michaud is no longer there. We would have liked him to experience this, that he could experience this repair. But we will still take action to prevent this from happening again, and in memory of Mr. Michaud,” said Mr. Bérubé. Québec solidaire supports this approach.
Take the time to read the motion
The Liberal Party and the Coalition Avenir Québec did not want to get involved.
“Listen, we are going to pay tribute to Mr. Michaud. I think we offer our condolences to his family. It is a loss for Quebec. He is someone who has served Quebec for several years,” simply said CAQ parliamentary leader Simon Jolin-Barrette.
Liberal parliamentary leader Monsef Derraji makes a similar speech. “We have a duty to remember his memory. I will limit my comments today to offering my sincere condolences. […] In the Liberal Party, we will take the time to read the motion and, in due time, we will see it come back,” he said.