Despite the results of polls, which indicate that the “Yes” camp has been in neutral for several months, the leader of the Parti Québécois (PQ), Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, believes that the “window has never been so gaping” for the holding of a third referendum on independence. And this meeting will “very probably [la] ultimate chance” to achieve sovereignty, he assessed on Sunday.
“We see one certainty: that our moment will arrive more quickly than expected, therefore not in an idealized and distant future, but within a few years, certainly by the end of the decade,” launched the elected representative of Camille-Laurin, Sunday morning, during a half-hour speech punctuated by standing ovations from PQ activists to the national council of the sovereignist party. “We will indeed experience a third referendum on the independence of Quebec! »
In his eyes, the PQ has become “the leading political force in Quebec” over the past year. This reality, mixed with “systematic encroachment [du gouvernement fédéral] in all areas of Quebec’s jurisdiction”, must ask Quebecers of all stripes to think about the future of Quebec, he declared on Sunday in front of a won over crowd.
“It is more and more obvious that we are witnessing an attack against Quebec. A burden that takes place on the linguistic level, but also on the cultural level, on the fiscal level and in so many other aspects of our society. A charge which has immediate consequences and which accelerates the course of history,” he maintained.
The risk of “disappearing”
Citing the founding father of his political party, René Lévesque, the PQ leader assessed having reached the “moment in our history where the only suitable door for our people is to create a normal country called Quebec”. “Quebecers must realize that our next meeting with History – because it will take place – is perhaps, in fact very probably, our ultimate chance to give ourselves a linguistic and cultural showcase,” he said. he assures.
Otherwise, he warned PQ activists, the destiny of Quebec is clear: decline to the point of obliteration. “Either we maintain the status of a declining minority in Canada until we disappear, or we finally become a majority here,” he said.
The Parti Québécois has been at the top of the polls for several months, but support for sovereignty remains below 40%. In a March poll, it stood at 36%.
The PQ national council was held in Drummondville in the presence of around 500 activists and observers on Sunday. For the first time since the years in power of Pauline Marois, safety bars were installed at the entrance to the partisan event, on the recommendation of the Sûreté du Québec.
A decision taken due to the increased climate of threats towards elected officials, the PQ’s history in this area – primarily the attack on the Metropolis -, but also the growing notoriety of Paul St-Pierre Plamondon. “The events that I personally experienced and other events have ensured that we are in constant contact with the Sûreté du Québec,” said the PQ leader on Saturday.
Further details will follow.