MINISTER STÉPHANE DION STATES THAT THE TRUE GENIUS OF FEDERALISM IS ITS ABILITY
TO
RECONCILE UNITY AND DIVERSITY
PUEBLA, MEXICO, September 30, 1999 –
Speaking today to an audience at the 4th International Congress of the Americas
entitled "The Americas in transition: challenges of a new millenium",
the Honourable Stéphane Dion, President of the Privy Council and Minister of
Intergovernmental Affairs, stated that federalism is one of the best means to
"foster and promote the values of tolerance and solidarity" in an
increasingly diverse world.
Mr. Dion identified the coexistence of different
populations within a single country as one of the major challenges facing the
Americas and the world as a whole during the next century. The federal form of
government, he argued, can help address these challenges as it "enables
peoples with their own identities to work together to achieve common objectives
within a single state."
The Minister outlined the main principles that
guide the Canadian way of seeking unity in diversity. "The Canadian system
is founded, above all, on individual rights," noted Mr. Dion. "That
being said, individuals maintain or develop affinities through sharing common
traits. Some of these affinities (...) are translated into collective identities
(...) The Canadian ideal consists in seeing these differences between groups of
citizens as the very opposite of a problem, as a strength which, rather than
separating citizens, enables them to pursue together the pluralist quest for
what is right and good." He added that "the promotion of collective
identities or affinities in Canada does not mean the negation of individual
rights."
Mr. Dion touched briefly on the historical forces
that helped shape Canada's cultural diversity. He noted particularly the
"opportunity, the privilege and the obligation" that Canada inherited
from its history "to promote the French language and French-speaking
cultures in Quebec, throughout Canada and around the world."
Mr. Dion focussed on the issue of collective
identities in Canada, paying particular attention to Quebec's specificity and
the quest for enhanced autonomy for Canada's Aboriginal peoples. He pointed to
these examples to illustrate how individual rights and collective identities can
be reconciled.
The Minister then turned his attention to the
flexibility of the Canadian federal system. He explained that the Canadian
Constitution provides a great deal of latitude to the provinces to pursue common
objectives in ways best suited to their individual circumstances. "We can
see that the provinces' equal status is not to be confused with
uniformity," he noted.
"The ideal pursued by our country, through
its federative form, its democratic institutions, its charters of rights, its
bilingualism and its multiculturalism, is to enable each of its citizens to
thrive in freedom, taking account of the context in which they are evolving,
while respecting their collective allegiances," the Minister stated.
"The pursuit of that ideal is the key to strengthening our unity."
In concluding, the Minister dismissed the idea
that the existence of a separatist movement in Quebec is evidence of the failure
of Canadian federalism: "Canada is undeniably a country that works, that
offers its citizens one of the best qualities of life in the world. That quality
of life stems a good deal from a tolerance, an openness of spirit, a mutual
trust among different populations."
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For information:
André Lamarre
Special Assistant
(613) 943-1838
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