|
"THE PRINCIPLES BEHIND
THE CALGARY DECLARATION"
NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS AT
THE
UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY
CALGARY, ALBERTA
OCTOBER 15, 1997
Clichés aside, Canada really is one of the greatest countries in the world. We
know that the United Nations has rated us as having the highest quality of life
for several years running, and that surveys by the OECD predict that Canada will
enjoy among the fastest growth of the industrialized countries in the next few
years. Our achievements, economic, social, and cultural, are envied by millions
from around the globe.
Canada is a success first and foremost because of
our people, and our ability to come together as citizens with all of our
different cultural, linguistic, and ethnic backgrounds to achieve common goals.
This ability that Canadians have to come together, the spirit we saw in the
spontaneous reaction of Canadians to the Saguenay and Manitoba floods, is based
on a shared sense of beliefs and values that transcend language, ethnicity, or
geography.
It is these common values of Canadians that are
at the heart of the Calgary Declaration. This is why I am optimistic about the
prospects for success of the process launched by nine premiers and the
territorial leaders at Calgary. Perhaps for the first time in the unhappy
constitutional history of the past thirty years, political leaders have decided
to put the common values of Canadians on the table, rather than subordinating
them to a series of more pragmatic political bargaining chips.
Premier Klein should be commended for the
important role he has played in opening this discussion about unity and acting
as host for the Calgary meeting, as should the other Alberta leaders who have
made a real contribution to this debate recently: provincial Liberal leader
Grant Mitchell, NDP leader Pam Barrett, Reform leader Preston Manning, and my
own cabinet colleague Ann McLellan. Alberta has shown that it is possible in the
interests of national unity to put aside party politics and recognize the
greater good of Canada. In Mr. Manning's apt phrase, Alberta's political leaders
have chosen to act as "big Westerners", not "little
Westerners."
Let me quote the words of Premier Klein, from a
speech he gave last spring:
"I believe in a Canada where all provinces
have equal status, but a Canada that allows Quebec to protect those things that
make it such a unique part of our national character. I don't think those two
principles cancel each other out. The Canada I am describing might be familiar
to many, because most of us grew up there: a tolerant and diverse nation where
we are equal as Canadians, no matter where we live, but where the word
'equality' is not used as a blanket to smother diversity."
I don't think I could have given a clearer
description of my own beliefs about this country than this statement.
Furthermore, these words capture precisely the spirit that underlies the Calgary
declaration.
Let us examine how this declaration, reached in
Calgary through the efforts of Premier Klein and his colleagues, attempts to
reconcile the deeply held Canadian ideals of equality and diversity.
The principle of the equality of all Canadians,
as citizens and human beings, is a fundamental one to our idea of democracy. We
may not have achieved equality as fully as we would like to in practice, but it
is certainly an ideal we share in all parts of Canada. The principle of equality
is recognized explicitly in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,
especially in Section 15, which guarantees all Canadians the right to equality
before and under the law. So the recognition of the equality of citizens as a
basic Canadian value in the Calgary Declaration is simply an extension of this
widely held principle.
The equality of status of the provinces is
another principle that all Canadians can embrace. I am not aware of two or three
different legal statuses for provinces in Canada. There is only one status of
province in Canada: either you are a province, with all the constitutional
rights that entails, or you are not. All provinces have the same legal powers,
and all of them have the same relationship with their citizens and with the
federal government, outlined under sections 92 and 93 of the Constitution Act of
1867.
While certainly a federal system must be
flexible, a federation that gave vastly greater powers to one of its units than
the others would be inherently unstable. So it is natural that if one or more
provinces acquire certain powers not foreseen in 1867, that those powers should
be offered to all the other provinces as well. This is why the Calgary
Declaration specifies that if one province gains powers under a future
constitutional amendment, those powers should be equally available to all the
other provinces as well.
Since the Calgary Declaration has embraced the
principles of equality of citizens and provinces, this has led to some debate as
to who proposed the recognition of equality first, or who cares most deeply
about these principles. In our political debates in this country, all parties
try to claim the mantle of equality. But equality is not a Reform principle or a
Liberal principle, a Tory or NDP principle, a Western principle or an Eastern
principle. Equality is a principle of all Canadians, as it is truly a universal
principle. It is not a partisan slogan, but a human ideal that we are all
striving towards.
But, as Premier Klein also said, we cannot use
the word "equality" to smother diversity. Equality does not mean
uniformity or homogeneity. That is why the other key principle of the Calgary
Declaration is diversity.
Who can deny that Canada is a diverse country? It
is obvious that Alberta is different from Nova Scotia. It is obvious that the
aboriginal peoples, the French and British settlers, and the immigrants from
around the world have given us a rich and diverse cultural fabric.
As Canadians, we have learned to live with
diversity. We accept that each province, each cultural community in Canada has
its own way of being Canadian. And in a world where countries are being torn
apart by cultural differences, this ability to live with diversity is a great
Canadian strength and an example to the world.
By and large, Canadians are proud of our record
of diversity and tolerance. However, there is the one aspect of Canada's
diversity that almost all Canadians recognize and celebrate as fundamental to
Canadian identity, but which has caused great trouble when it comes to
enshrining it in our Constitution. That is, of course, the recognition of the
unique character of Quebec society.
Quebec is the only province, the only federal
jurisdiction in an English-speaking North America, that has a French-speaking
majority and an English-speaking minority. Quebec's language, culture, and civil
law are definitely unique elements of Quebec and Canada.
These are obvious sociological facts, which
nobody denies. But there is a hesitation to put a recognition of the Quebec fact
into the Constitution of Canada, as some people fear that by recognizing the
unique elements of one province it could undermine the principles of equality of
citizens and provinces that we are committed to respect.
That is why I think that the Calgary Declaration
has been able to appeal to people across Canada: because it makes it clear that
a recognition of Quebec's unique character is placed within the Canadian context
of equality in diversity. Quebec is obviously unique, and its legislature has a
special role and responsibility to protect that uniqueness. But this
responsibility can be exercised in a manner fully compatible with minority and
individual rights and the equality of provinces.
The principles of the Calgary Declaration, the
principles enunciated by Premier Klein, are an excellent expression of Canadian
values. I encourage every citizen of Alberta and of Canada, to participate in
the consultations now underway on the declaration, whether by going to town
halls, sending letters to your MLAs, or answering a questionnaire on the
Internet.
I think that through broad public consultations,
we can refine these principles, perhaps improve upon them in some ways, and
eventually come up with resolutions to be passed in the legislatures across the
country, along with a parallel resolution in the Parliament of Canada.
These resolutions, if passed, will be a strong
signal to Quebecers that Canadians outside Quebec accept and embrace the same
basic values, including a recognition of the unique Quebec reality. And it will
also be a strong signal to all governments about the kinds of basic values that
Canadians share.
But it is also important to realize what these
resolutions are not. They are not constitutional amendments. It is a statement
of principles about the kind of Canada we want, not a legal clause to be used by
the Supreme Court of Canada, or a new division of powers.
The current government of Quebec is separatist,
and they have indicated that they have no interest in discussing constitutional
amendments. Therefore, it makes little sense today to start the amending process
to include a recognition of Quebec's uniqueness in the Constitution.
But it is possible that a new Quebec government,
a federalist one, will someday be interested in discussing putting such an
amendment in the Constitution. And when that time comes, the Calgary Declaration
could provide an excellent set of principles that we might use to draft an
amendment that recognizes the equality of citizens and provinces, and that
recognizes Canada's great diversity including Quebec's unique character.
If we do reopen constitutional discussions, once
again you as citizens will have a say. Alberta has legislation, as does British
Columbia, and as several other provinces are considering, that require
constitutional amendments to be approved by the people in a referendum.
Furthermore, the federal government has committed itself to using its veto to
prevent any constitutional amendment that does not have the approval of five
regions of Canada: British Columbia, the Prairies, Ontario, Quebec, and the
Atlantic. And within the Prairie region, Alberta has over 50% of the population,
so Alberta would have to approve for the Prairie region as a whole to approve.
Therefore, under the current law no
constitutional amendment can be approved that does not have the approval of the
people of Alberta in a referendum, even if legislatures have already passed
resolutions in principle in favour of the Calgary Declaration. Albertans should
not be deceived by those who would say that the federal government or the
premiers are trying to sneak something into the Constitution against your will.
No major constitutional amendment can happen without the people of your province
having a direct say in a referendum.
The meeting of nine premiers and the territorial
leaders in Calgary was the first step on a journey that I hope will put Canadian
unity on a firmer foundation, a foundation of common values which all Canadians
realize that they can and do share. So far, thanks to forward looking political
leaders like many of your own in Alberta, and the generous response of thousands
of Albertan and Canadian citizens, I think this journey is well underway.
Check against delivery.
|
