Prime Minister François Legault on Tuesday sharply denounced Ottawa’s decision to retain its new special envoy for the fight against Islamophobia, Amira Elghawaby, despite her controversial statements to Quebecers.
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“Mr. Trudeau, by keeping her in office, he supports the contempt of Quebecers,” François Legault thundered a few minutes before entering the Blue Room. Ms. Elghawaby has still not “apologized,” the CAQ Premier noted.
In contrast, his federal counterpart Justin Trudeau said in the morning that he “100% supports” Ms. Elghawaby.
Statements made by the new federal commissioner in the fight against Islamophobia have sparked an outcry in Quebec since their appointment last week. In particular, in a 2019 op-ed piece co-signed in the Ottawa Citizen, Amira Elghawaby wrote: “Unfortunately, the majority of Quebecers seem to be influenced not by the rule of law but by anti-Muslim sentiment”.
In 2013, she claimed in the Toronto Star that “Quebec today” is, like 19th-century Western societies, obsessed with “the fear of the loss of purity — pure blood, pure race, qualities and values, and pure national ties.” . She then quoted Canadian philosopher John Ralston Saul.
emotion in the opposition
The case also drew attention from the Quebec opposition. After the Legault government denounced the “lack of humanity” in demanding Amira Elghawaby’s resignation over her controversial remarks about Quebecers, the Liberals are now calling for her resignation unless she apologizes “within the next few hours”.
The Westmount-Saint-Louis Liberal MP posted a message on social media on Monday denouncing the CAQ government’s refusal to “acknowledge systemic racism”, its “nameless rigidity” and the “lack of humanity” the she demonstrated by not supporting the appointment of Amira Elghawaby as Canada’s special envoy for the fight against Islamophobia.
This morning I made a mistake and I sincerely apologize.
I understand and share your outrage at what Mrs Elghawaby said.
If I may have hurt someone, I’m sorry.— Jennifer Maccarone MP/MNA (@JMaccarone) January 31, 2023
A few hours later, this post was deleted. Then the interim head of the PLQ, Marc Tanguay, wrote another message himself, this time denouncing “the unacceptable and offensive statements” made by Amira Elghawaby.
Asked about the mess, Marc Tanguay explained Tuesday morning that “Jennifer Maccarone’s tweet was the result of incomplete teamwork.” “That’s why she withdrew it,” he said in a news conference, assuring that the PLQ’s position is that which he himself expressed.
Mr Tanguay is following in the government’s footsteps and is now also demanding an apology from Ms Elghawaby.
“This is an essential requirement for us. If she doesn’t do that, she can’t keep her job,” he said.
Like the CAQ, Mr. Tanguay finds insufficient clarification from Ms. Elghawaby, who argued that she “does not believe Quebecers are Islamophobic” and that her comments were based on a Bill 21 poll.
“What she has said on social media leaves a doubt,” he said.
Mr. Tanguay urges Mrs. Elgahwaby to apologize as soon as possible. “It’s getting very late for her to apologize. She should do it in the next few hours. If she doesn’t, we will understand,” he said.
QS wants an appointment
Quebec Solidaire spokesman Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois also wants Ms Elghawaby to step down more clearly, saying what he said was “wrong” and “hurting”. He regrets that the activist and former journalist’s comments “lump all Quebecers together” while “Quebec’s nation is not monolithic.”
- Hear Jack Jedwab, President of the Association for Canadian Studies, interview on the topic of the Richard Martineau program via QUB radio :
However, he believes it is too early to call for his departure. “Ask for resignations all the time is not my style,” he said. Meanwhile, Québec has asked solidaire to meet Ms. Elghawaby to discuss the fight against Islamophobia. The date of this meeting has not yet been determined.
In a message published on social networks, Solidarity MP Haroun Bouazzi accused the Legault government of trying to divert attention from its problems by pointing the finger at a veiled woman.
Photo archive QMI Agency, MATTHEW USHERWOOD
Amira Elghawaby.
“It’s back to school in the National Assembly and the CAQ government doesn’t have a clear plan for the just energy transition, for public schools, for the crisis in our hospitals? Legault’s Strategists: Look! The! A woman wearing the veil,” he protested.
Canadian Relations Minister Jean-François Roberge responded that Québec Solidaire was separated from the people of Quebec before entering the Blue Room.
– With the agency QMI
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