Constitution

There’s been a lot of talk in the province of Quebec about the most recent national fad (by national, I am referring to the Quebecois Nation): autonomy. The ambiguous constitutional position brought forward by Mario Dumont’s ADQ, which Globe and Mail columnist Jeffrey Simpson calls the “have you cake and eat it solution”.

One of the pillars of the autonomy doctrine is the signing of a Quebec constitution, which would entrench the common values of Quebecers, and see the province recognized as the Autonomous State of Quebec.

Dumont’s party is obviously trying to navigate the line between soft federalism and tentative sovereignty, but autonomy clearly crosses it. Let me make things clear: a province which has the right to have its own constitution and to be called the Autonomous State of is not only unworthy of being part of our Federation, but legally unable.

A constitution, by definition, establishes the key governmental framework of a country, as well as embedding a set of rights and responsibilities which apply to all of its citizens. In Canada, those rights and responsibilities are enshrined in our Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Basically, the charter is ground zero of our legal system: Charter trumps all. ANY law, policy, or action–from banning same sex marriage to not letting a Sikh boy wear his Kirpan to school- is illegal if the courts determine that it goes against the Charter.

Now imagine having two ground zeros, and the possibility for Quebec citizens to switch between the two depending on the scenario. Our Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and therefore our whole constitution would become a farce. Its raison d’être would have to be changed to “guaranteeing rights and freedoms to all Canadians and to Quebecois when it suits them”.

Here’s another scenario. The Quebec government is still unable to control spending while other have-not provinces are making inroads. Its equalization payments therefore skyrocket. The same week, Quebec decides to opt out from a federal agriculture plan, its right to do so being guaranteed by its autonomous position inside Canada. Get the picture?

I haven’t gone to Law school, but I’m rational enough to understand that a constitution is worthless unless it is applies to every single citizen. If Quebec signs its own, Canada’s won’t always apply and are current Constitution will be junk.

The solution is simple: tell the ADQ NOW (while sovereignty support is low), that there is no way a province will ever be allowed to posses its own Constitution. Calmly watch Dumont go mad and sovereignty support go up, and once that's all over, focus on something else.