Giuseppe Sciortino
Encyclopedia
Giuseppe Sciortino is a lawyer and political activist in the Canadian
province of Quebec
. He has run for both the National Assembly of Quebec
and the Canadian House of Commons
.
, Italy
, and moved to Canada as an adolescent. He speaks fluent French
and has described himself as a francophone
.
In the 1980s, Sciortino represented Salvadorean
journalist Victor Regalado, one of the first persons in Canada to be detained on a security certificate
. Government ministers Robert Kaplan
and Lloyd Axworthy
ordered Regalado's arrest and deportation in 1982, charging that his continued presence in Canada was "detrimental to the national interest." The evidence against Regalado was kept secret, although the government suggested that he had entered the country "to carry out certain activities which are prohibited under Canadian law" and was working for the overthrow of "a government" (which media sources noted was presumably a reference to the right-wing government of El Salvador). Regalado denied being involved in any illegal activity, but indicated that he had been a member of the Communist Party of El Salvador
and would face persecution if deported.
Shortly after Regalado's arrest, Sciortino issued subpoenas ordering Kaplan and Axworthy to testify at an immigration appeal board hearing on the matter. The ministers refused to appear, and the immigration board did not compel them to attend.
Regalado was later released from incarceration, but his deportation order was upheld by the Federal Court of Canada
and the Federal Court of Appeal. In January 1987, the Supreme Court of Canada
declined to hear a further appeal of his case. Sciortino indicated that he hoped a "political solution" would be found permitting Regalado to remain in Canada and indicated that his client was still trying to find out why he had been deemed a "security risk" in the first place.
In March 1987, Sciortino helped convince the federal New Democratic Party
to pass a motion supporting Regalado. He later brought the case before the United Nations Human Rights Committee, arguing that the government's use secret evidence was a violation of Regalado's civil and political rights. Regalado was ultimately allowed to stay in Canada, although the initial charges against him were never made public.
Other cases
Sciortino represented the Centrale des Syndicats Democratiques in 1999 during a dispute between independent Quebec truckers and the provincial government. He represented the Concordia University
student union in 2002 to oppose a moratorium on public events related to the Middle East
conflict, and in 2005 he represented unionized workers at a Wal-Mart
in Saguenay
. He has also represented the Alliance des Professeurs de Montreal and advised the Montreal branch of the American Federation of Musicians
.
Sciortino ran for the New Democratic Party of Quebec (NDP) in the 1985 provincial election
in the predominantly Italian division of Viau. During the campaign, he was designated as the Quebec NDP's spokesperson for the province's cultural communities. The New Democratic Party did not have a strong presence in Quebec during this period, and Sciortino finished third.
In 1987, Sciortino strongly criticized the Canadian government's decision to prevent eighty-five Chile
an refugees stranded in Argentina
from gaining access to Canada. When interviewed on the matter, he said that the Chileans wanted to come to Canada to escape the "terrifying dictatorship" of Augusto Pinochet
.
Sciortino defeated two challengers to win the federal New Democratic Party
's nomination for Rosemont in the buildup to the 1988 federal election
. Considered as one of the party's strongest candidates in Quebec, Sciortino openly sympathized with Quebec nationalism
and expressed his support for the province's Charter of the French Language
. Late in the campaign, he took part in a press conference called by NDP candidate Jean-Paul Harney to support using the notwithstanding clause
of the Canadian Constitution to protect Quebec's francophone culture and restrict the use of other languages. This press conference was not endorsed by the NDP leadership, and many believe that it cost the party support among Quebec's anglophone
s. Sciortino finished a fairly strong third on election day, amid a rise in NDP support among Montreal's francophone voters.
Parti Québécois
Sciortino later left the NDP and affiliated with the Quebec sovereigntist Parti Québécois
(PQ), serving on its national executive. The PQ has traditionally had only limited support among Quebec's cultural communities, and Sciortino was one of its most prominent members from the Italian community. In 1992, he wrote a public letter defending PQ against charges that it was based around a narrow ethnic nationalism
. The following year, he called for a "new linguistic agreement" that would protect the spirit of Quebec's Charter of the French Language while also recognizing the concerns of other linguistic communities.
In the buildup to the 1994 provincial election
, Sciortino sought the PQ nomination for the east-end Montreal seat of Mercier
. His candidacy was widely regarded as an important development for the PQ in building a support base among non-francophone voters. Sciortino initially won the nomination in a close contest over Robert Perreault, but the result was annulled due to voting irregularities. Despite receiving an endorsement from party leader Jacques Parizeau
, Sciortino was defeated by Perreault at a second meeting. The nomination contest was very divisive; Sciortino has said that Perreault's supporters smeared him as a communist and attacked him on the basis of his ethnic background.
The PQ won a majority government
in the 1994 provincial election
, and Sciortino initially remained a member of the party's executive. He supported the sovereigntist option in the 1995 Quebec referendum and, after its narrow defeat, acknowledged that the PQ's outreach efforts to minority communities had not been successful. He resigned from the PQ executive in April 1996 and largely withdrew from party activities after this time.
On the night of the 1995 referendum, PQ premier
Jacques Parizeau delivered a speech that blamed the sovereigntist defeat on "money and the ethnic vote." Sciortino later described this as a "wretched phrase ... pointless, and objectively false" and "not what one would expect from a statesman, from a democrat, as many, myself included, consider or considered Jacques Parizeau to be."
Italian community activism
In October 1996, Sciortino joined with other federalist and sovereigntist Italian Quebecers to issue a manifesto that recognized the right of all Quebecers to determine their future, called for reform in the Quebec Italian community's political culture, and encouraged the PQ to fully accept Quebec as a pluralistic society. Four years later, he led a movement to have the Papineau-Leblanc Bridge
between Montreal and Laval
named after the late Canadian Senator Pietro Rizzuto
. Sciortino indicated that he did not agree politically with Rizzuto, who was a Liberal
, but nonetheless believed that his contributions to Quebec should be recognized. The name change ultimately did not take place, due it part to opposition from others in the PQ.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. He has run for both the National Assembly of Quebec
National Assembly of Quebec
The National Assembly of Quebec is the legislative body of the Province of Quebec. The Lieutenant Governor and the National Assembly compose the Parliament of Quebec, which operates in a fashion similar to those of other British-style parliamentary systems.The National Assembly was formerly the...
and the Canadian House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
.
Early life
Sciortino has born in SicilySicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and moved to Canada as an adolescent. He speaks fluent French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and has described himself as a francophone
Francophone
The adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
.
Lawyer
Victor Regalado caseIn the 1980s, Sciortino represented Salvadorean
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
journalist Victor Regalado, one of the first persons in Canada to be detained on a security certificate
Security certificate
In Canadian law, a security certificate is a mechanism by which the Government of Canada can detain and deport foreign nationals and all other non-citizens living in Canada...
. Government ministers Robert Kaplan
Robert Kaplan
Robert Kaplan may refer to:* Robert D. Kaplan, travel writer, essayist, and international correspondent for The Atlantic* Robert S. Kaplan, business theorist and professor of accounting at Harvard Business School...
and Lloyd Axworthy
Lloyd Axworthy
Lloyd Norman Axworthy, PC, OC, OM is a prominent Canadian politician, statesman and University President from Manitoba. He is best known for having served as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien...
ordered Regalado's arrest and deportation in 1982, charging that his continued presence in Canada was "detrimental to the national interest." The evidence against Regalado was kept secret, although the government suggested that he had entered the country "to carry out certain activities which are prohibited under Canadian law" and was working for the overthrow of "a government" (which media sources noted was presumably a reference to the right-wing government of El Salvador). Regalado denied being involved in any illegal activity, but indicated that he had been a member of the Communist Party of El Salvador
Communist Party of El Salvador
The Communist Party of El Salvador was the official Communist political party in El Salvador. The Communist Party was founded by Miguel Mármol in the 1930s....
and would face persecution if deported.
Shortly after Regalado's arrest, Sciortino issued subpoenas ordering Kaplan and Axworthy to testify at an immigration appeal board hearing on the matter. The ministers refused to appear, and the immigration board did not compel them to attend.
Regalado was later released from incarceration, but his deportation order was upheld by the Federal Court of Canada
Federal Court of Canada
The Federal Court of Canada was a national court of Canada that heard some types of disputes arising under the central government's legislative jurisdiction...
and the Federal Court of Appeal. In January 1987, the Supreme Court of Canada
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
declined to hear a further appeal of his case. Sciortino indicated that he hoped a "political solution" would be found permitting Regalado to remain in Canada and indicated that his client was still trying to find out why he had been deemed a "security risk" in the first place.
In March 1987, Sciortino helped convince the federal New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
to pass a motion supporting Regalado. He later brought the case before the United Nations Human Rights Committee, arguing that the government's use secret evidence was a violation of Regalado's civil and political rights. Regalado was ultimately allowed to stay in Canada, although the initial charges against him were never made public.
Other cases
Sciortino represented the Centrale des Syndicats Democratiques in 1999 during a dispute between independent Quebec truckers and the provincial government. He represented the Concordia University
Concordia University
Concordia University is a comprehensive Canadian public university located in Montreal, Quebec, one of the two universities in the city where English is the primary language of instruction...
student union in 2002 to oppose a moratorium on public events related to the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
conflict, and in 2005 he represented unionized workers at a Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
in Saguenay
Saguenay, Quebec
Saguenay is a city in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada, on the Saguenay River, about north of Quebec City....
. He has also represented the Alliance des Professeurs de Montreal and advised the Montreal branch of the American Federation of Musicians
American Federation of Musicians
The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada is a labor union of professional musicians in the United States and Canada...
.
Political activist
New Democratic PartySciortino ran for the New Democratic Party of Quebec (NDP) in the 1985 provincial election
Quebec general election, 1985
The Quebec general election of 1985 was held on December 2, 1985, to elect members of the National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada. The Quebec Liberal Party, led by former premier Robert Bourassa, defeated the incumbent Parti Québécois, led by premier Pierre-Marc Johnson.This election...
in the predominantly Italian division of Viau. During the campaign, he was designated as the Quebec NDP's spokesperson for the province's cultural communities. The New Democratic Party did not have a strong presence in Quebec during this period, and Sciortino finished third.
In 1987, Sciortino strongly criticized the Canadian government's decision to prevent eighty-five Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an refugees stranded in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
from gaining access to Canada. When interviewed on the matter, he said that the Chileans wanted to come to Canada to escape the "terrifying dictatorship" of Augusto Pinochet
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
.
Sciortino defeated two challengers to win the federal New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
's nomination for Rosemont in the buildup to the 1988 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1988
The Canadian federal election of 1988 was held November 21, 1988, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 34th Parliament of Canada. It was an election largely fought on a single issue: the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement ....
. Considered as one of the party's strongest candidates in Quebec, Sciortino openly sympathized with Quebec nationalism
Quebec nationalism
Quebec nationalism is a nationalist movement in the Canadian province of Quebec .-1534–1774:Canada was first a french colony. Jacques Cartier claimed it for France in 1534, and permanent French settlement began in 1608. It was part of New France, which constituted all French colonies in North America...
and expressed his support for the province's Charter of the French Language
Charter of the French Language
The Charter of the French Language , also known as Bill 101 and Loi 101, is a law in the province of Quebec in Canada defining French, the language of the majority of the population, as the only official language of Quebec, and framing fundamental language rights for everyone in the province...
. Late in the campaign, he took part in a press conference called by NDP candidate Jean-Paul Harney to support using the notwithstanding clause
Section Thirty-three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Thirty-three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is part of the Constitution of Canada. It is commonly known as the notwithstanding clause , or as the override power, and it allows Parliament or provincial legislatures to override certain portions of the Charter...
of the Canadian Constitution to protect Quebec's francophone culture and restrict the use of other languages. This press conference was not endorsed by the NDP leadership, and many believe that it cost the party support among Quebec's anglophone
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
s. Sciortino finished a fairly strong third on election day, amid a rise in NDP support among Montreal's francophone voters.
Parti Québécois
Sciortino later left the NDP and affiliated with the Quebec sovereigntist Parti Québécois
Parti Québécois
The Parti Québécois is a centre-left political party that advocates national sovereignty for the province of Quebec and secession from Canada. The Party traditionally has support from the labour movement. Unlike many other social-democratic parties, its ties with the labour movement are informal...
(PQ), serving on its national executive. The PQ has traditionally had only limited support among Quebec's cultural communities, and Sciortino was one of its most prominent members from the Italian community. In 1992, he wrote a public letter defending PQ against charges that it was based around a narrow ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism is a form of nationalism wherein the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity. Whatever specific ethnicity is involved, ethnic nationalism always includes some element of descent from previous generations and the implied claim of ethnic essentialism, i.e...
. The following year, he called for a "new linguistic agreement" that would protect the spirit of Quebec's Charter of the French Language while also recognizing the concerns of other linguistic communities.
In the buildup to the 1994 provincial election
Quebec general election, 1994
The Quebec general election of 1994 was held on September 12, 1994, to elect members of the National Assembly of Quebec, Canada. The Parti Québécois, led by Jacques Parizeau, defeated the incumbent Quebec Liberal Party, led by Daniel Johnson, Jr.....
, Sciortino sought the PQ nomination for the east-end Montreal seat of Mercier
Mercier (provincial electoral district)
Mercier is a provincial electoral district in Quebec, Canada that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. The district is located in Montreal. It is bounded to the north and east by the Canadian Pacific Railway, to the south by Rue Rachel and to the west by Avenue de l'Esplanade. The...
. His candidacy was widely regarded as an important development for the PQ in building a support base among non-francophone voters. Sciortino initially won the nomination in a close contest over Robert Perreault, but the result was annulled due to voting irregularities. Despite receiving an endorsement from party leader Jacques Parizeau
Jacques Parizeau
Jacques Parizeau, is an economist and noted Quebec sovereignist who was the 26th Premier of the Canadian province of Quebec from September 26, 1994 to January 29, 1996.-Early life and career:...
, Sciortino was defeated by Perreault at a second meeting. The nomination contest was very divisive; Sciortino has said that Perreault's supporters smeared him as a communist and attacked him on the basis of his ethnic background.
The PQ won a majority government
Majority government
A majority government is when the governing party has an absolute majority of seats in the legislature or parliament in a parliamentary system. This is as opposed to a minority government, where even the largest party wins only a plurality of seats and thus must constantly bargain for support from...
in the 1994 provincial election
Quebec general election, 1994
The Quebec general election of 1994 was held on September 12, 1994, to elect members of the National Assembly of Quebec, Canada. The Parti Québécois, led by Jacques Parizeau, defeated the incumbent Quebec Liberal Party, led by Daniel Johnson, Jr.....
, and Sciortino initially remained a member of the party's executive. He supported the sovereigntist option in the 1995 Quebec referendum and, after its narrow defeat, acknowledged that the PQ's outreach efforts to minority communities had not been successful. He resigned from the PQ executive in April 1996 and largely withdrew from party activities after this time.
On the night of the 1995 referendum, PQ premier
Premier of Quebec
The Premier of Quebec is the first minister of the Canadian province of Quebec. The Premier is the province's head of government and his title is Premier and President of the Executive Council....
Jacques Parizeau delivered a speech that blamed the sovereigntist defeat on "money and the ethnic vote." Sciortino later described this as a "wretched phrase ... pointless, and objectively false" and "not what one would expect from a statesman, from a democrat, as many, myself included, consider or considered Jacques Parizeau to be."
Italian community activism
In October 1996, Sciortino joined with other federalist and sovereigntist Italian Quebecers to issue a manifesto that recognized the right of all Quebecers to determine their future, called for reform in the Quebec Italian community's political culture, and encouraged the PQ to fully accept Quebec as a pluralistic society. Four years later, he led a movement to have the Papineau-Leblanc Bridge
Papineau-Leblanc Bridge
The Papineau-Leblanc Bridge was one of the first cable-stayed spans, and was for many years the longest of this type, in the world. It is part of Quebec Autoroute 19 and is one of the connections between Laval and Montreal, Quebec, Canada, spanning Rivière des Prairies. It was fabricated from...
between Montreal and Laval
Laval, Quebec
Laval is a Canadian city and a region in southwestern Quebec. It is the largest suburb of Montreal, the third largest municipality in the province of Quebec, and the 14th largest city in Canada with a population of 368,709 in 2006...
named after the late Canadian Senator Pietro Rizzuto
Pietro Rizzuto
Pietro Rizzuto was a Canadian politician.Born in Cattolica Eraclea, Italy, he came to Canada at the age of 20. In 1963, he founded Inter State Paving Inc., a construction company....
. Sciortino indicated that he did not agree politically with Rizzuto, who was a Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
, but nonetheless believed that his contributions to Quebec should be recognized. The name change ultimately did not take place, due it part to opposition from others in the PQ.