The nationalist liberals are in exile within their own party, activists of the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ) denounced Saturday morning at the launch of the general council of the party.
“Being a nationalist in the Liberal Party is like being a PQ in D’Arcy-McGee,” said Maxime Binette, 24 and member of the PLQ Youth Commission in Vaudreuil. D’Arcy-McGee is a liberal castle located on the island of Montreal.
At the PLQ, he added, “we feel a little alone in speaking up and saying: ‘for me, the defense of the French language is important. The defense of Quebec values is important”.
The most recent Léger poll grants 5% of voting intentions to the PLQ among Francophones. “Clearly, the Liberal Party no longer meets the aspirations of the Francophone majority,” concluded Mr. Binette.
Long-time activist Jérôme Turcotte, who on Friday published a very critical farewell letter to the PLQ, presented himself to the general council of Victoriaville. “I don’t come to tear up my membership card, I just put it in a drawer,” ideally for a short break, he explained.
” [Il faut] that the people on the inside take the step towards the people who are on the outside and for me, this outside is the French-speaking nationalist voter, ”he added.
He alerted the PLQ to the perils of comfort and reassurance. The party must take “the most uncomfortable positions” to go “towards this French-speaking, nationalist, liberal voter”, he suggested.
He named what he considers to be an error made by the PLQ: the rejection, by the government of Philippe Couillard, of a motion condemning the patriation of the Constitution in 1982.
After him, activist Antoine Dionne-Charest acknowledged that there are “certainly” “debates and discussions to be had” on the liberal position on nationalism. “The party is in a situation that is quite serious, the party is at a pivotal moment in its history. We are right to be worried,” he said.
Understated reviews
Former journalist André Pratte, who leads a committee to revive the PLQ with MP Madwa-Nika Cadet, brushed off some of Mr. Turcotte’s criticisms out of hand. “The word examination of conscience is a bit strong, but there is certainly a reflection to be done”, he all the same conceded.
Mr. Pratte rejected the analysis of Mr. Turcotte, who judges that the PLQ has become “a provincial branch” of the Liberal Party of Canada. “Me, personally, I find that the evidence is not there at all,” decided the former senator.
The interim leader of the PLQ, Marc Tanguay replied that he did not believe “at all” that the nationalists lacked air in his party. MP Monsef Derraji also said he did not “share the point of view” of Mr. Turcotte on the subject of nationalism in the PLQ.
Mr. Tanguay added that it was, in his opinion, “high time for us to come up with new proposals so that the French fact [et] Quebec nationalist fact can be part of the federation”.
“I think that the message from Jérôme [Turcotte] is important, but I recognize and salute those who have decided to make the party evolve,” continued the interim leader. He decided to leave the party, but “there are 400 and even more who have decided to be here and debate, and we will work with those who want to debate”.