Liberal times in Nunavik

The new premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, is no stranger to northern Canada.

As federal environment minister in the Tory government led by Brian Mulroney, Charest visited Nunavut several times in the early 1990s, including at least one extended visit with his family. While in that job, he presided over the first federal programs aimed at funding research into persistent organic pollutants in the Arctic.

So while Nunavik residents should know that the new premier of their province is not unfamiliar with Arctic issues, they should also prepare for some changes they may not like.

Charest is a moderate, small “c” conservative. Based on past history, he can be expected to lead a government that will turn its back on the free-spending ways of the Parti Quèbecois.

The most heavily publicized plank in Charest’s recent election campaign was a promise to cut taxes by $1 billion over the next five years, and at the same time, spend more on health and education.

It’s not clear how he’ll do this. But for Nunavik residents, this means that, with the possible exception of health and education, their provincial government is likely to spend much less in the region than they’ve been used to in recent years. In time, Nunavik residents can expect reduced spending on things like infrastructure, housing and economic development. Unlike the PQ, the Liberals have absolutely no desire to take Quebec out of Canada.

That means Charest’s Liberals have no need to busy themselves with grandiose nation-building exercises in northern Quebec, and no need to buy friends from among Quebec’s aboriginal leaders.

Above all, it means they have no need to engage in the bribe-and-conquer tactics that PQ governments used so effectively to buy off the Cree and Inuit leadership in northern Quebec. For example, Ted Moses, the grand chief of the James Bay Cree, even announced during the election campaign that he planned to vote PQ, and he urged other Cree to do the same.

Wisely, Pita Aatami, the president of Makivik Corp., took a traditionally neutral stance during the campaign, and didn’t endorse any parties or candidates.

But Makivik, along with the Kativik Regional Government, has also benefited from the PQ’s generosity. And right now, Nunavik leaders have good reason to be concerned about whether that provincial government generosity will continue.

Many in Nunavik were expecting that Geoff Kelley, the MNA who acted as native affairs critic when the Liberals were in opposition, would end up with the native affairs portfolio within Charest’s new government.

Instead, Charest gave the job to Benoit Pelletier, the MNA for Chapleau in western Quebec.

A constitutional lawyer and adjunct professor of law at the University of Ottawa, Pelletier’s main portfolio is intergovernmental affairs. That job is likely to take up the bulk of his time for the foreseeable future, since Charest has declared that he wants to work with other provinces to create a new fiscal relationship with Ottawa. This means that the native affairs portfolio may not get the attention that Nunavik residents might like to see.

At the same time, Pierre Corbeil, a dentist from Val d’Or who was elected as MNA for Abitibi-East, has been appointed to serve as the political minister for the northern Quebec region. It remains to be seen if Nunavik leaders can build a relationship with him.

As for Nunavik’s new-government negotiations with Quebec City and Ottawa, they will surely be delayed until Pelletier and his officials can familiarize themselves with the file.

Nunavik leaders should use this delay to work on the unnecessary political problems they created for themselves during the long process that led to the creation of a “framework” agreement on Nunavik’s proposed regional government.

As part of that, they should develop a public information campaign to tell people about what’s going on. Such an initiative should go a long way toward alleviating some of the fear and suspicion that the new government process has provoked among many Nunavimmiut.

They should also learn some basic political courtesies. When faced with critics and people who ask honest questions about the new government proposal, they would do well to memorize certain key phrases to insert into their answers:

“Thank you for your comments.”
“Even if we disagree with you, we value your opinion.”

Character assassination may be fun, but in the long run, learning to treat dissidents with dignity and respect is a better tactic. Paranoid defensiveness will not help Nunavik leaders build the support they need for their new government project, especially within the new political environment they are about to enter. JB