If we wanted to list all the attempts to renew Canadian federalism, the format imposed for an opinion letter would not allow us to do so. We would therefore limit ourselves to highlighting the most recent unsuccessful attempt by the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ) and the potentially upcoming one by the Parti libéral du Québec (PLQ).
Thus, in order to get closer to Francophones, the PLQ seems, through its redefinition, to want to occupy the same nationalist niche as the CAQ. Like the latter, it proposes to play the autonomist symbolism within a Canada dominated by centralizing federal governments. Given the poor results obtained by the CAQ in the face of attempts at encroachment by the central government, should this negative assessment not accompany the PLQ’s reflection in its future approach?
In any case, Antoine Dionne Charest, son of former premier Jean Charest, intends to propose a draft Quebec Constitution that would serve as a beacon for a new nationalist image concocted by the PLQ. This possibility will be debated at the party’s next convention. While Denis Coderre opposes it, claiming that the Canadian Constitution allows for administrative arrangements without it being amended, the other leadership candidates seem rather in favour of Antoine Dionne Charest’s project.
A Quebec Constitution could be seen by some as a form of national affirmation. However, this new initiative will have to conform to the constraints imposed by the 1982 Constitution and the Charter of Rights, which will greatly reduce its scope and influence on the recognition of Quebec within Canada.
In my opinion, only a Quebec Constitution in a Quebec that has become independent will be able to ensure the survival of the nation in the long term. All other artifices coated with cosmetic symbolic effects will only constitute an extension of a joust to the advantage of maintaining a status quo that would consolidate the dependence of La Belle Province within a dominant Canada.
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