Body checks on the separatists

JOHN AMAGOALIK

Over the past few months, the separatists have been hit by some punishing body checks. Some have been orchestrated by the prime minister and others have been delivered by other events.

The first blow came when French President Jacques Chirac came to visit Canada and Nunavut. By being the first foreign head of state to visit Nunavut since it was created, Chirac not only recognized the Inuit and their important achievement, but described Nunavut as a territory where different cultures can live and work together as equals. Coming from the French president, it was a severe setback for Bouchard and his separatist gang.

The new Governor General, Adrienne Clarkson, in her maiden speech, further destroyed the myth of two founding peoples. She described Canada as a continuing experiment with “Aboriginal, French and English” foundations. It is no longer a two-way deal.

Translation: Bouchard not only has to deal with Jean Chretien, but he has to face the likes of Pita Adamee, Zebedee Nungak, Charlie Watt, and Matthew Coon-Come. As stated many times in this little corner, the aboriginal peoples are the ones the separatists do not want to debate. They know that the aboriginals are not interested in taking part in the separatist’s political adventure and that their roots in Quebec go much deeper than anyone else.

The recent visit by U.S. President Bill Clinton was also a punishing check on Bouchard. During his visit, Clinton reaffirmed that the United States perferred to deal with a united Canada. In Mont Tremblant, Clinton, looking directly at Bouchard in the audience, described Canada as an example of a federalist state where different cultures can co-exist and thrive. He referred to “the lnuits of the Arctic,” as an example of a people who are finding their place in Canada. Bouchard was not amused.

Indirectly, the fishing dispute in the Maritimes set off by the Supreme Court’s decision to recognnize the riqht of aboriginals to fish out of season and without licenses is another roadblock to the separatists. The constitutional recognition and protection of old and modern treaties also applies in Quebec.

For example, the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement is a modern treaty between the nation state of Canada, the provincial government of Quebec, and the Crees and Inuit. Any change to the status of any one of those parties to the treaty has to be approved by the aboriginal peoples of northern Quebec. If the separatists tried to make a unilateral declaration of independence and take aboriginal homelands with them, they wouldn’t have much leg to stand on.

The separatists have felt these heavy body checks. Public support for independence in Quebec is very low. The rank and file have low morale. What do the separatists do? They again start to spew stuff about not paying attention to the rule of law. Backed into a corner, they can be dangerous. Desparate people can sometimes resort to desparate measures.