Paul Tuns:
In October, Quebec Premier François Legault and Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette introduced Bill 1, a proposed constitution for the province which would constitutionally guarantee access to abortion and euthanasia.
The bill, if passed, “enacts the Constitution of Québec, the Act respecting the constitutional autonomy of Québec and the Act respecting the Conseil constitutionnel,” and it would have “primacy over any inconsistent rule of law,” as it “defines the Québec nation and establishes its attributes and collective rights.”
Under the “Founding Principles” of the “state of Quebec,” there in an explicit recognition of abortion: “The State protects women’s freedom to have recourse to a voluntary termination of pregnancy.”
In an explanatory note at the beginning of the bill, the government states, “in case of conflict between the exercise of the right to equality of women and men and the exercise of freedom of religion, the former prevails.”
The proposed constitution also states, “Every person whose condition requires it has the right to receive end-of-life care, subject to the specific requirements established by the Act respecting end-of-life care” – a current law that guarantees access to euthanasia.
Campagne Quebec Vie, the Quebec arm of Campaign Life Coalition, said in press release they “strongly condemn” the “inclusion of such a principle, which enshrines the deliberate elimination of an unborn human being as a defining element of Quebec identity.” QQV said, “We are outraged — but not surprised” because “For too long, Quebec has been officially forgetting its spiritual roots, its tradition of defending life, and the very meaning of human solidarity.”
CQV said it is “worth noting that the draft constitution cautiously refers to the ‘freedom’ to have an abortion, rather than a ‘right’ to abortion” and “this semantic nuance betrays a certain unease.”
Campagne Quebec Vie president Georges Buscemi said, “Here, Quebec is shooting itself in the foot: by rejecting the vital force that gave it birth – its faith, its moral code, its Christian culture – it denies the very sources of its continuity.” He said that the document, which seeks to unify Quebec, is dividing them by pushing abortion, euthanasia, and “aggressive secularism.”
Bill 1 passed first reading on Oct. 10 in a 71-30 vote. Legault told the National Assembly, “The time has come to affirm, in a clear manner, the constitutional existence of the Quebec nation.” He continued. “The constitution will include all of our rules, all of our fundamental values in one unique law. It will become the law of all the laws.”
The proposed constitution embraces various anti-life amendments, including entrenching abortion and euthanasia laws within the province’s constitution. The legislation was passed with 71 votes in favour and 30 against.
The proposed constitution mostly deals with Quebec’s distinctive culture and the state’s obligation to protect it, and Quebec’s relationship with Ottawa, by denying the federal government’s ability to govern Quebec.
If passed, Quebec would join British Columbia as the only provincials with their own constitution.
Quebec never formally signed onto the federal Constitution Act of 1982 when then prime minister Pierre Trudeau repatriated the constitution to Canada.
Legault’s Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) is behind in polls and look to be wiped out electorally in an election scheduled for Oct. 5.
Augustin Hamilton wrote on CQV’s blog, “whether abortion is enshrined in the constitution or not, our fight will remain more or less the same; instead of denouncing a situation where the unborn child is not protected by any law, we will denounce a situation where the murder of unborn children is encouraged by law.”
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