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"The Forum of Federations"

Notes for an address by the
President of the Privy Council and
Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
the Honourable Stéphane Dion

at the 1999 Atlantic Canada Diplomatic Forum

St. John's, Newfoundland

November 6, 1999

 

On October 6, 7 and 8, Mont-Tremblant (Quebec), was the site of the most important conference ever held on federalism. It brought together 500 participants from 27 countries, including 20 federations: elected representatives public sector managers, academics, private sector leaders, representatives of non-governmental organizations and young people.

Today, as I have the privilege of speaking to you here in St. John's, at this Diplomatic Forum, I can see a number of people who contributed to that international success by fostering the interest and participation of their political leaders. Many of us would be able to attest the remarkable quality of the discussions at the conference in Mont-Tremblant.

For my part, I will never forget the contribution of writer and Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka of Nigeria, who spoke with great eloquence and emotion of the dangers of excessive centralization. I also recall the conviction with which Mexican President Zedillo spoke of federalism's potential for the world of tomorrow. And of course, President Clinton's comments left no one indifferent, but I'll come back to that later.

The success of the conference allows us to contemplate with confidence the future of the newly created Forum of Federations. The objective is to provide us with a streamlined and efficient non-governmental international organization through which countries that have adopted this form of government could learn more from one another.

The reason we need such a forum is first of all because federalism is an important phenomenon in the world, and also because federations do not know enough about one another.

1. The importance of federalism in the world

Federalism is a subject of tremendous importance. There are currently 24 federations populated by about two billion people, or 40% of the world's population; they encompass about 480 federated entities. There are also countries that, while not federations, are adopting certain elements of this system. If a conference on federalism had been organized, say 20 years ago, many of the countries that were represented at Mont-Tremblant wouldn't have even contemplated participating in it.

Of course, the federal system is not the only one that ensures good government. While some federations are grappling with serious difficulties, many unitary countries are succeeding very well, from the triple viewpoint of democracy, human rights and collective wealth. But the fact remains that federalism has become widespread throughout the world because it has been able to address a variety of needs. Indeed, federalism has often emerged from the difficulties of other systems.

In general, federalism has appeared as a response to a need for decentralization. In Canada, for example, our federation was born in 1867 in part because of the unsatisfactory experience of having a single unitary government for Ontario and Quebec. For somewhat the same reasons, Belgium was transformed over the past three decades from one of the most centralized unitary systems to one of the most decentralized federations. But inversely, there are cases where federalism has been established to strengthen the system at its centre. For example, the current federal systems in the United States and Switzerland stemmed from the weakness of the confederal systems that preceded them.

In recent years, we have witnessed the disintegration of a number of federations. But at the same time, new federations have been born, and some countries have adopted elements of federalism. Overall, we can expect that the federal system will expand even more. Why? Because it often comes in the wake of democratization. The advance and enhancement of democracy favour the expression of varied needs of populations within states, be they material or social in nature or needs linked to identity-based aspirations.

Federalism is one way to address these needs that has proven itself in a large number of contexts. It gives a democratic country the opportunity to pursue objectives that are common to its different regions through the free expression of their particular experiences and practices. A country can thus forge its unity by making the most of its rich diversity, rather than by trying to impose a uniformity that is ill adapted to its reality.

Democratization has had the effect of not only expanding federalism throughout the world, but also of consolidating the federal reality within each country that adopts this system. Pluralist elections, independence of the judicial branch, constitutionalism, all these traits of democratization have the effect of leading federations to be genuine federations, not just on paper but also in reality. In a democratic system, the federal government has to deal with governments of different political stripes, elected in different parts of the country, all of which are determined to have their constitutional autonomy respected.

Often, the fact that a democratic country is a federation profoundly marks its social organization. You know this very well, as diplomats whose mission includes explaining Canada to your governments. Undoubtebly, it is not always easy for you to make them grasp the full measure of the dynamics particular to Canadian federalism. Canada is a decentralized federation, in which there are few policies that the federal government can implement on its own without the close cooperation of the provincial and territorial governments.

Last year, your diplomatic forum was held in Banff, Alberta, in the Western region of Canada. This year, you are in St. John's, Newfoundland, in the Atlantic region. I'm sure that you will soon discover, if you have not already done so, the similarities between these two regions, but also some marked differences, including the way in which federalism is practised. In this region, we have here a federalism of proximity which well serves the four Atlantic provinces and brings out their potential.

On one occasion, at a conference on Canadian federalism, Belgian professor Francis Delpérée exclaimed: "But how many are you, you Canadians, after all?" Unfortunately for him, there is no single answer to that question. It depends on the issues and the circumstances. Sometimes Canada will be:

1: A single country, a single Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, a single voice in the world, a single national will.

2: But two what? Two official languages, to be sure. Two founding peoples, if not three, for the Aboriginal peoples also contributed to the building of the country. Two also refers to the relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada.

5: Five regions. The Act respecting constitutional amendments recognizes five regions: Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, the Atlantic and the Prairies. But sometimes we count four, when British Columbia is included in the Western region, such as at the annual conference of the Western premiers and territorial leaders. And then we have Canada's North, which constitutes a region in itself in many ways. And the Honourable Brian Tobin, Premier of Newfoundland, our host province, could explain that his province is a region as well, with a history and culture different from that of the three Maritime provinces!

10: Ten provinces that are equal in status but, in practice, asymmetrical in many ways.

13: Ten provinces and three territories with the recent creation of Nunavut.

14: When the Prime Minister of Canada meets with the ten provincial premiers and three territorial leaders.

Multiple: with its multicultural population from every corner of the globe.

I could go even further with this description of Canada's complexity, but I want to highlight the following aspect in particular: Canada could not reconcile all these definitions of itself if it were not a decentralized federation.

There are many other countries in the world that cannot be understood without comprehending their specific federal system. Federalism is a complex solution to complex realities. This solution is becoming increasingly widespread throughout the world, and is marking it profoundly.

2. Why a Forum of Federations?

Helping federations to learn from one another means not only promoting good governance throughout the world, but also fostering the expansion of democracy, strengthening civil society, and enhancing harmony between populations of different languages and cultures, especially in developing countries.

The Government of Canada is convinced of that. This is why, in keeping with its tradition of supporting democratic development and good governance, it helped to establish a non- governmental committee in August 1998 with a view to creating a Forum of Federations. That committee consulted with experts on and practitioners of federalism in 18 countries, and prepared the conference in Mont Tremblant.

The interest that the conference sparked among its participants, combined with the quality of the discussions, have created a momentum to pursue this experience. The Government of Canada has announced that it will contribute $3.5 million in each of the next three years to enable the Forum to become a permanent international organization, under the direction of an independent board composed of 13 members chosen from members of government and other practitioners and experts from the different federations. The Honourable Bob Rae, former premier of Ontario, will continue to play a key role in implementing the objectives of the Forum.

The purpose of the Forum will be to help enhance the practice of federalism in three ways.

1. Establishing an information and resource centre which will:

i. make research work accessible to practitioners, such as elected representatives and senior officials;
ii facilitate the establishment of networks among practitioners and researchers;
iii manage a documentation centre.

2 . Promoting the exchange of best practices in order to help practitioners in established and emerging federations on policies and programs.

3 . Helping young people, as future practitioners, to develop professional expertise in this field, through internships.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and the Canadian International Development Agency will be closely associated with the activities of the Forum.

The success of this initiative hinges on international participation by practitioners of federalism from all levels of government of the different federations. That international interest is already very real: Switzerland wants to host the next conference. Delegates from Brazil and Nigeria, as well as the German international aid agency, have expressed their interest in working with the Forum to carry out projects on federalism.

The Forum has already established an interactive website at www.ciff.on.ca, which will serve as an important tool in disseminating the results of its findings. It is also working with the UNESCO International Social Sciences Journal to publish a special issue devoted entirely to the recent international conference. A video of the conference highlights will be available shortly.

The Forum will want to have an international staff and hopes to be able to open regional offices to ensure its work remains relevant to all federations. I expect that representatives from the Forum will be approaching you shortly to discuss this further. I know they both need and want your help.

As the Forum begins planning its future activities, I encourage you to contact the Forum Secretariat to express your ideas for initiatives that will help strengthen the practice of federalism and to communicate the aims of the Forum to your governments.

I am sure that even countries that are not federations will follow with interest and benefit from the work of the Forum.

Conclusion

I cannot conclude without drawing a link between the Forum of Federations and Canadian unity. This link is forged in the following way: Canada will learn a great deal through a better understanding of other federations, enabling it to become an even better country, and the better Canada becomes, the more Canadians will want to stay together.

But I believe that a link is forged more in the opposite direction: the Forum of Federations does not serve the cause of Canadian unity so much as the latter serves the cause of federalism in the world. Canada, which has every asset for success, must demonstrate that cooperation and mutual aid between different populations within a decentralized federation is not only desirable, but also possible.

A number of countries currently experiencing ethnic tensions are contemplating adopting a federal system or some elements of federalism. The Indonesian government has made a statement to that end. But there is a fear that federalism, rather than calming tensions, will be only the precursor to break-up. It is up to federations like Canada to set a good example, an example of national unity that brings together different populations who cooperate in an atmosphere of trust, within a single state.

In substance, that's just what President Clinton said in Mont-Tremblant. Never before has a United States President said in such clear terms why the Americans greatly appreciate their relationship with a strong and united Canada. It's not just because Canada is a stable economic partner. It is also and especially because Canada, in President Clinton's own words, "has shown the world how people of different cultures and languages can live in peace, prosperity and mutual respect." And we Quebecers, we Newfoundlanders, we Canadians have a moral duty to continue to show that to the world.

I believe that we Quebecers are becoming increasingly aware that unity among all Canadians has a universal significance, a greatness that inspires the world. Beyond the disagreements that occasionally arise as to the exact form the evolution of Canadian federalism ought to take, we have a better perception of the principle of sharing that is the very foundation of our country.

Indeed, federalism is more than a method of government, it truly is a principle of sharing, a principle that was so eloquently expressed in Mont-Tremblant by the former Belgian Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene: [TRANSLATION] "Federalism always presupposes loyal cooperation and real solidarity between autonomous units, which makes it possible to avoid the quest for and emphasis on an individual identity being sublimated to the point of leading to nationalism, sectarianism or racism."

Federations, because they share the same ideal of peace and harmony, have an interest in better understanding and learning from one another. They have an interest in participating in the establishment of the Forum of Federations.

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