The French reasoned strongly between the heavyweights of the Freedom Convoy which paralyzed downtown Ottawa last winter, but very little during the public inquiry that followed. This omnipresence of English could harm the understanding of this unique manifestation, warn experts.
“The largest number of participants and vehicles came from our border with Quebec,” testified in English the former chief of police of Ottawa, Peter Sloly. A Convoy organizer, Benjamin Dichter, had the same memory: “I saw thousands of people crossing from Quebec […] with Canadian flags alongside the Fleur-de-lis. »
Yet the State of Emergency Commission heard only the language of Shakespeare from the mouths of 70 of the 76 witnesses heard between October 13 and November 25. Data compiled by The duty show that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the politician who spoke the most French, still used English in 96% of his testimony.
“There may be aspects that will escape them,” believes Stéphanie Chouinard, assistant professor at the Royal Military College in Kingston. For example, the motivations of the many Quebec demonstrators who were not affiliated with the only French-speaking demonstrator heard.
“It leaves out certain elements of the demonstration. But relevant elements, not necessarily”, nuance João Velloso, professor of law at the University of Ottawa. According to him, the French-speaking slogans were explained by the close proximity of the site of the occupation to Quebec — barely a few minutes on foot — but he notes that Quebeckers were marginalized among the organizers of the event.
6 out of 76 witnesses spoke French
Only 6 witnesses out of the 76 invited to explain the Freedom Convoy spoke more than one sentence in French. This, even if the Franco-Ontarian judge Paul Rouleau invited them to speak in French or in English during his bilingual opening speech.
Among those who used English exclusively are representatives from Ottawa, elsewhere in Ontario, from Alberta or from the federal government who do not speak French. Others, however, were French-speaking or had mastered this language. A panel made up of three Canadian intelligence officials, all French-speaking, for example, took place entirely in English.
“More broadly, it is symptomatic of what is happening in the public service, explains Professor Stéphanie Chouinard. As soon as you appear in front of an English-speaking person, you switch to English. »
Only protester Steeve Charland testified only in French. The deputy clerk of the Privy Council Office, Nathalie Drouin, made a few interventions in her language, like the former Ottawa city councilor Mathieu Fleury, during a tense exchange with the lawyer for the organizers of the Convoy.
The proceedings were accessible to the public in both official languages, thanks to an interpretation service. Government documents and other evidence, such as text messages between ministers, were mostly written in English.
Minister only in English
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s testimony totaled some 1,629 French words (calculation includes questions and answers). This represents approximately 3.9% of the 41,000 words heard. Only two other members of his cabinet, Dominic Leblanc and Anita Anand, spoke more than one sentence in French before Judge Rouleau.
“I might go have a cigar with my colleague Mendicino,” joked Minister Dominic LeBlanc at the very end of his appearance. This extract is part of the 700 words spoken in French (2.75% of his testimony). Defense Minister Anita Anand, although English-speaking, answered in French some of the questions, all in English, from the prosecutors (1.87% of the testimony).
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland did not use this language, which she nevertheless masters. No more than the Minister of Justice, Quebecer David Lametti, or his colleague at Public Security, Marco Mendicino. Ministers Omar Alghabra and Bill Blair, for their part, do not speak French.
19 questions about the commission
The little French heard at the Rouleau commission contrasts with the predominance of French in the questions put to the government on this subject by the opposition in the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois raised this subject 15 times during the five weeks of public hearings, compared to three times for the Conservatives and once for the NDP. In total, the 19 questions represent less than 2% of the 1031 asked during this period.
“If the members of the Bloc Québécois are asking these questions in the House, it is clearly an issue that affects Francophones, while the commission is dominated by English,” commented Anne Lévesque, assistant professor of law at the University of Ottawa.
“The Conservatives have every interest in not bringing the Rouleau commission into the spotlight, because leader Pierre Poilievre has shown himself as a sympathizer [du Convoi] », Analyzes for her part Stéphanie Chouinard.
A poll by Abacus Data shows that a majority of Canadians already agree with the Trudeau government’s decision to invoke the Emergencies Act to end the Freedom Convoy protests in February.
With Laurianne Croteau, Marie Vastel and Denise Ledoux