The nationalist turn proposed by the Restoration Committee was met with resistance in the general council of the Liberal Party of Quebec on Saturday. While some are open to it, others wanted to minimize its scope.
This desire to reappropriate the “nationalist” label that has been associated with the CAQ for several years was the subject of several on-site interventions at the event, which was attended by around 400 activists in Drummondville.
Some, like former Liberal minister Luc Fortin, see this as simply a “return to basics,” as expressed in Jean Lesage’s “Maîtres chez nous.”
His former colleague David Birnbaum even went so far as to confide to journalists that anglophones may “need to make adjustments” to promote French in Quebec. A constitution for Quebec, such as that proposed by the Reconstruction Committee, could be an interesting path, says the former MP.
However, other activists seemed outraged that such a change was even being considered. “Is it necessary for us to call ourselves nationalists? We are particularly proud of being ‘non-nationalist’,” declared François Villeneuve at the microphone during a plenary session to comment on the report led by André Pratte and MEP Madwa-Nika Cadet.
Federalist “will remain”
An activist from the Jacques-Cartier riding school in western Montreal was even more adamant. “Quebec is a nation, but if Quebec intends to require me to be a nationalist in order to be liberal, then that is NO. […] I remain a Federalist and I am here to stay,” she said into the microphone.
For her part, an activist from Lévis emphasized that the party should present itself as “federalist-nationalist” in order not to confuse newcomers.
The president of the Laurentides political commission, André Leclerc, was initially surprised by the proposal, although he now supports it. The CAQ, he explained, defined nationalism as an approach “that divides, that separates.”
The PLQ must therefore offer a more unified “liberal nationalism,” he claims. “Today you have revived my pride in being liberal. “In the last two years, like many of you, I have been a bit confused,” emphasizes André Leclerc.
A former adviser to Robert Bourassa and Jean Charest, who was in the hallways of the event, recognized that nationalism was facing resistance. “Perhaps not resistance that leads to a break, but there will be people who disagree but come together. Otherwise they will not be liberal,” emphasizes Ronald Poupart.
Attack on English universities
The difference between the Liberal and CAQ approaches was highlighted by the strong criticism of the Legault government for its decision to double tuition fees for Canadian students from outside Quebec.
The PLQ’s interim leader believes this is a “clearly unacceptable” decision that could harm Quebec’s economy by discouraging Canadian students from attending universities in Quebec. “François Legault is a PQ player in secret and then, sometimes, from time to time, we see him come out. He is a PQ who loves to divide, who based his political career and his election on dividing Quebecers,” Mr. Tanguay explained.
Antoine Dionne Charest, who was also present in the General Council, also strongly condemned the Legault government’s decision. “It is a frontal attack, not only against English-speaking institutions in Quebec, but against the English-speaking community,” said the son of former prime minister Jean Charest.
“We are doing irreparable damage to Quebec’s institutions,” believes the man who took part in the PLQ revival committee.