Fifteen years ago, the former municipal councilor of Hérouxville André Drouin probably did not imagine that his “code of life” would have such posterity. From the “test of values” of the CAQ to the “civilizational compatibility” invoked today by Éric Duhaime, the debate has never ceased.
The leader of the Conservative Party of Quebec repeated Sunday at Everybody talks about it what he was already saying last November: “We live in a society where the rights of gays like me are protected […] where women have a certain place in society […] We have to make sure that the immigrants who arrive here are aware of these realities. »
Well aware of the mistrust of which his party is the object, the president of the political commission of the PCQ, André Valiquette, had declared: “I would like to say to the leftists that our proposals have nothing to do with racism […] All are welcome in Quebec to assimilate, but that does not mean that all civilizations and all cultures assimilate easily. »
Mr. Valiquette would no doubt have been more inspired to speak of integration rather than assimilation, but his remarks echoed a concern about identity, which we may or may not find legitimate, but which is very real, and that the PCQ clearly intends to exploit, as the ADQ, the PQ and the CAQ did before it.
However, there is a long way from words to actions, particularly in politics. The result of fifteen years of debate on “civilizational compatibility” has simply been to increase distrust of immigrants without anything being resolved.
Prime Minister François Legault may say that “at home, that’s how we live”, the “certificate of learning democratic values and Quebec values” which is now required of newcomers is a simple formality which anyone can easily comply with. We can at most recognize certain pedagogical virtues in it.
Both the CAQ and the PCQ are calling for the repatriation of full powers over immigration, but the Legault government still believes that it must first meet the needs of the market, and there is nothing to suggest that it would be otherwise with a government led by Mr. Duhaime.
Since the “reasonable accommodation crisis”, the debate on “Quebec values” has occupied a growing place and unexpectedly branched off towards secularism. The French language nevertheless remains the first of these values and the greatest source of concern.
However, beyond the rhetoric, neither language policies nor immigration policies contribute to reassuring those who observe the deterioration of the situation of French. On the contrary, their shortcomings have rather the effect of reinforcing anxiety.
Researcher Frédéric Lacroix, who had already demonstrated “Why Bill 101 is a failure”, explained on Monday in our pages how the federal government’s new immigration objectives are condemning Quebec to a “demographic drowning”.
To maintain its weight in Canada as a whole, Quebec should practically double the number of immigrants it will welcome as of 2024, while it cannot even integrate those who are currently settling there. The result would be a rapid drop in the proportion of Francophones, particularly in Montreal, where it is already very easy to live, study and work in English.
The historic agreements signed with Ottawa in the last century, which do not take into account temporary immigration, which is increasing rapidly, are no longer adapted to today’s reality. “The power of selection of immigrants has thus slipped, indirectly, from Quebec to Ottawa,” observes Mr. Lacroix.
Even if the federal government were to agree to grant full powers to Quebec, which seems highly unlikely, setting thresholds lower than those for the rest of the country would have the effect of accelerating the reduction in its demographic, and therefore political, weight, which will already decreasing.
In other words, Quebec would have the choice between losing its French character or losing its weight within the federation. In reality, he already seems doomed to lose both.
“The Quebec government will have to wake up. And quickly,” writes Mr. Lacroix in conclusion. Maybe that’s hoping too much. It would rather be up to Quebecers to wake up. English Canada has plenty of time to impose the immigration model it thinks suits it best, regardless of the consequences for Quebec, which, as we understand, barks, but does not bite. The blabla of each other on “civilizational compatibility” makes no sense in a system that leaves no other choice than to be eaten fried or boiled.