Legal dispute over Quebec's language policy
Encyclopedia
The legal dispute over Quebec's language policy began soon after the enactment of the Charter of the French Language
by the National Assembly of Quebec
in 1977.
The Charter, enacted under the Parti Québécois
government of René Lévesque
, expanded upon Quebec's previous language legislation, the Official Language Act
, enacted in 1974 under the Liberal Party of Quebec government of Robert Bourassa
.
Both statutes were drafted in an attempt to follow the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry on the Situation of the French Language and Linguistic Rights in Quebec
(the Gendron Commission).
Unlike the Official Language Act of 1974 (not to be confused with the federal Official Languages Act), the Charter of the French Language was a legal framework defining the linguistic rights of Quebecers, and a language management policy giving the state of Quebec the power to intervene in many sectors of public life to promote French as the common language of all citizens. Its enactment by the National Assembly sparked a legal battle that still goes on today.
). This act contained only one section (section 133) dealing with language. It read:
"Either the English or the French Language may be used by any Person in the Debates of the Houses of the Parliament of Canada and of the Houses of the Legislature of Quebec; and both those Languages shall be used in the respective Records and Journals of those Houses; and either of those Languages may be used by any Person or in any Pleading or Process in or issuing from any Court of Canada established under this Act, and in or from all or any of the Courts of Quebec."
"The Acts of the Parliament of Canada and of the Legislature of Quebec shall be printed and published in both those Languages."
, Roland Durand and Yoine Goldstein
first challenged the constitutionality of the Charter of the French Language under section 133.
In 1979, the Supreme Court of Canada
declared Chapter III of the Charter of the French Language unconstitutional
, citing it contrary to section 133 of the British North America Act of 1867. The highest court in Canada judged that the enacting and passing of laws had to be done in both French and English in the parliaments of Quebec and Canada.
Sections 7 to 13 of the Charter of the French Language had made French the only language of legislation and only provided for a translation of laws in English at the end of the legislative process.
The Quebec government responded by re-enacting the charter (and all other acts enacted since 1977) in French and English. Sections 7 to 13 of the Charter were however left untouched.
In 1981, another Supreme Court decision (Quebec (Attorney General) v. Blaikie (No. 2)) declared that section 133 also applied to government regulation
s.
of the Canadian Constitution occurred as the British Parliament passed the Canada Act 1982
. This act enacted the Constitution Act, 1982
for Canada (including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
) whose section 23
introduced the notion of "minority language education rights". This novelty opened another door to a constitutional dispute of Quebec's Charter of the French Language.
Alliance Quebec
, an Anglophone rights lobby group was founded in May 1982. It is through this civil association that various anglophone lawyers challenged the constitutionality of Quebec's territorial language policy.
Section 73 of the Charter of the French language had recognized the right to English language instruction to Quebec residents alone. Canadian citizens from outside Quebec had to send their children to French primary and secondary schools like all other Quebecers.
On July 26, 1984, the Supreme Court invalidated part of Section 73. Judged retroactively unconstitutional, the section had to be modified so that it no longer clashes with the Canadian charter's definition of a linguistic minority. The current Section 73 of the Charter of the French language reads:
In 2005, a Supreme Court ruling upheld Section 73 of the Charter of the French language and its corresponding subsections (1 through 5). See Maclean's 5 April 2005, an article by John Geddes entitled "Tweaking the Language Laws". It maintains that the court upheld S.73 yet provided for flexibility in matters dealing with English-speaking Canadians and immigrants from other countries.
ruled that a section of the province's language legislation is unlawful. The judgment stated that Bill 104, an amendment to the Charter passed in 2002 that stopped children of francophone
and newcomers from using the English educational system, was contrary to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The amendment was passed to thwart entry to English schools by pupils who had gone to at least one year of an unsubsidized private institution. It had been passed unanimously (by all parties) in the provincial legislature.
The Appeal Court verdict disallowed a segment of Bill 104, suggesting that students can be present English public establishments if they have been at an English private academy for a minimum of one year or have been permitted a special dispensation. The Quebec government immediately announced it would appeal the decision to the Supreme Court of Canada
, which it did.
A judgment was given that delays use of that conclusion until the Supreme Court of Canada judges on a provincial administration request.
The challenge to Bill 104 will continue but with funding from the English school boards affected, as the federal Court Challenges Program
established for such minority language rights was cut by the Conservative minority government. There is a precedent for having the government pay the fees of the challenging side, or appointing an amicus curiae
.
A representative of the Quebec Association of Independent Schools proclaimed its goal to strike the delay, and Brent Tyler
, the advocate for the 26 families in the case, declared he would pull together an appeal.
The Quebec English School Board Association (QESBA) suspected the volume of probable English system learners who might be affected by this result to be 500 annually, the majority of whom would enroll in Montreal
schools. It said such a loss to the French school enrollment of almost 1 million would be unimportant. It asked that the decision be respected until it can be referred to the Supreme Court.
About half of all enrollment decline in the EMSB since 2002 has resulted from Bill 104, a low fertility rate and urban sprawl
being other reasons, said a spokesman.
A union of trusts zealous to watch over French is supporting the Quebec government in its venture to overturn the Quebec Appeal Court ruling. Former CSN leader Gérald Larose
, chairman of the Conseil de la souveraineté, vilified this "undermining" of the so-called Bill 101 by an "English judge". (Larose was also the Parti Québécois
–appointed president of a commission on the future of the French language and has agitated for some time that Quebec be granted unshared supremacy over language legislation, despite the Canadian constitution which divides such power between the national and provincial governments.) Jean Dorion
, president of the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Montréal, lamented that Appeals Court judges are appointed by the national government and asserted that they should not have the power to overrule Quebec's language laws. Other commentators remonstrated that Justice Hilton had previously served as legal counsel for Alliance Quebec
, an anglophone rights group. Le Devoir
reported, however, that the Quebec department of justice did not ask Hilton to recuse himself from the case. Through a spokesperson, the Ministry of Justice said that such a recusal was not necessary and that the government trusts the Court of Appeal to be fair.
Parti québécois leader Pauline Marois
suggested the ruling could be "catastrophic" and described it as unsatisfactory. Over the 30-year life of Bill 101 "about 4,000 children have used this to get into the English network," she said, as opposed to the French network.
The Supreme Court remarked that the Quebec government could legitimately require French to have "greater visibility" or "marked predominance" on exterior commercial signs, however it could not enforce the exclusive use of French.
With the Act to amend the Charter of the French language, S.Q. 1988, c. 54 (also known as Bill 178), the National Assembly (under a Quebec Liberal government) made use of the notwithstanding clause
of the Canadian constitution and ammended the Charter by allowing English provided it the letters are no larger than half the size of the French.
and Huntingdon, Quebec
. In 1993, they brought their case before the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations.
They challenged sections 1, 6 and 10 of Bill No. 178 enacted by the Government of Quebec on 22 December 1988. They alleged to be victims of violations of articles 2, 19, 26 and 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
by the Federal Government of Canada and by the Province of Quebec, due to the Act's prohibitions on the use English in advertising or in the name of their firms.
After hearing both parties, the Committee gave its opinion on what it believed to be the three major issues:
There were 5 concurring and dissenting opinions, signed by eight Committee members.
. The court found that commercial websites of businesses that operate from Quebec and sell to Quebec need to conform to the provisions of the Charter regarding the rights of Quebecers to receive services in French. In A.G. of Quebec (Procureur Général) c. Stanley John Reid et Frances Muriel Reid (JE 2002-1266), the defendant raised the argument that the content of Internet is of exclusive federal jurisdiction pursuant to the Constitution Act, 1867
, and thus its regulation is ultra vires
of the Quebec Government. The court confirmed the applicability of the Charter on advertising over the Internet.
As suggested by the Supreme Court ruling, the current law specifies that commercial outdoor signs can be multilingual so long as French is markedly predominant. The current provisions regarding exterior commercial signs were confirmed as constitutional by the Quebec Court of Appeal in R. c. Entreprises W.F.H.[2001] R.J.Q. 2557 (C.A.) (also known as "The Lyon & the Walrus Case"). Today, many businesses choose to put up French-only signs, and at times, even change their registered trademarks to adapt to the Quebec market. Nevertheless, English–French bilingualism quickly returned on exterior signs after 1993, especially on the island of Montreal.
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...
by 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...
in 1977.
The Charter, enacted under the 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...
government of René Lévesque
René Lévesque
René Lévesque was a reporter, a minister of the government of Quebec, , the founder of the Parti Québécois political party and the 23rd Premier of Quebec...
, expanded upon Quebec's previous language legislation, the Official Language Act
Official Languages Act (Canada)
The Official Languages Act is a Canadian law that came into force on September 9, 1969, which gives English and French equal status in the government of Canada. This makes them "official" languages, having preferred status in law over all other languages...
, enacted in 1974 under the Liberal Party of Quebec government of Robert Bourassa
Robert Bourassa
Jean-Robert Bourassa, was a politician in Quebec, Canada. He served as the 22nd Premier of Quebec in two different mandates, first from May 12, 1970, to November 25, 1976, and then from December 12, 1985, to January 11, 1994, serving a total of just under 15 years as Provincial Premier.-Early...
.
Both statutes were drafted in an attempt to follow the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry on the Situation of the French Language and Linguistic Rights in Quebec
Commission of Inquiry on the Situation of the French Language and Linguistic Rights in Quebec
The Commission of Inquiry on the Situation of the French Language and Linguistic Rights in Quebec was established under the Union Nationale government of Jean-Jacques Bertrand on December 9, 1968.- Background :...
(the Gendron Commission).
Unlike the Official Language Act of 1974 (not to be confused with the federal Official Languages Act), the Charter of the French Language was a legal framework defining the linguistic rights of Quebecers, and a language management policy giving the state of Quebec the power to intervene in many sectors of public life to promote French as the common language of all citizens. Its enactment by the National Assembly sparked a legal battle that still goes on today.
Before 1982
In 1867, the British Parliament passed the British North America Act which became the supreme law of the Dominion of Canada (although it was modified several times, it is still part of the Constitution of CanadaConstitution of Canada
The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada; the country's constitution is an amalgamation of codified acts and uncodified traditions and conventions. It outlines Canada's system of government, as well as the civil rights of all Canadian citizens and those in Canada...
). This act contained only one section (section 133) dealing with language. It read:
"Either the English or the French Language may be used by any Person in the Debates of the Houses of the Parliament of Canada and of the Houses of the Legislature of Quebec; and both those Languages shall be used in the respective Records and Journals of those Houses; and either of those Languages may be used by any Person or in any Pleading or Process in or issuing from any Court of Canada established under this Act, and in or from all or any of the Courts of Quebec."
"The Acts of the Parliament of Canada and of the Legislature of Quebec shall be printed and published in both those Languages."
Language of legislation and justice
Three Quebec Lawyers, Peter BlaikiePeter Blaikie
Peter Macfarlane Blaikie is a prominent Canadian lawyer and a fluently bilingual statesman from Quebec.-Genealogy:Blaikie was born in Shawinigan, Mauricie on May 10, 1937. He was the son of Kenneth Guy "Bill" Blaikie and Mary Petrie Black....
, Roland Durand and Yoine Goldstein
Yoine Goldstein
Yoine J. Goldstein is a Canadian Jewish lawyer, academic, and former Senator.Born in Montreal, Quebec, his education includes a Bachelor of Arts from McGill University in 1955, a Bachelor of Civil Law from McGill University in 1958, and a Doctor of Laws from the Université de Lyon in 1960. He...
first challenged the constitutionality of the Charter of the French Language under section 133.
In 1979, 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...
declared Chapter III of the Charter of the French Language unconstitutional
Constitution of Canada
The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada; the country's constitution is an amalgamation of codified acts and uncodified traditions and conventions. It outlines Canada's system of government, as well as the civil rights of all Canadian citizens and those in Canada...
, citing it contrary to section 133 of the British North America Act of 1867. The highest court in Canada judged that the enacting and passing of laws had to be done in both French and English in the parliaments of Quebec and Canada.
Sections 7 to 13 of the Charter of the French Language had made French the only language of legislation and only provided for a translation of laws in English at the end of the legislative process.
The Quebec government responded by re-enacting the charter (and all other acts enacted since 1977) in French and English. Sections 7 to 13 of the Charter were however left untouched.
In 1981, another Supreme Court decision (Quebec (Attorney General) v. Blaikie (No. 2)) declared that section 133 also applied to government regulation
Regulation
Regulation is administrative legislation that constitutes or constrains rights and allocates responsibilities. It can be distinguished from primary legislation on the one hand and judge-made law on the other...
s.
After 1982
The patriationPatriation
Patriation is a non-legal term used in Canada to describe a process of constitutional change also known as "homecoming" of the constitution. Up until 1982, Canada was governed by a constitution that was a British law and could be changed only by an Act of the British Parliament...
of the Canadian Constitution occurred as the British Parliament passed the Canada Act 1982
Canada Act 1982
The Canada Act 1982 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that was passed at the request of the Canadian federal government to "patriate" Canada's constitution, ending the necessity for the country to request certain types of amendment to the Constitution of Canada to be made by the...
. This act enacted the Constitution Act, 1982
Constitution Act, 1982
The Constitution Act, 1982 is a part of the Constitution of Canada. The Act was introduced as part of Canada's process of "patriating" the constitution, introducing several amendments to the British North America Act, 1867, and changing the latter's name in Canada to the Constitution Act, 1867...
for Canada (including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982...
) whose section 23
Section Twenty-three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Twenty-three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is the section of the Charter that constitutionally guarantees minority language educational rights to French-speaking communities outside Quebec, and, to a lesser extent, English-speaking minorities in Quebec...
introduced the notion of "minority language education rights". This novelty opened another door to a constitutional dispute of Quebec's Charter of the French Language.
Alliance Quebec
Alliance Quebec
Alliance Quebec was a group formed in 1982 to lobby on behalf of English-speaking Quebecers in the province of Quebec, Canada. It began as an umbrella group of many English-speaking organizations and institutions in the province, with approximately 15,000 members. At its height in the mid-1980s,...
, an Anglophone rights lobby group was founded in May 1982. It is through this civil association that various anglophone lawyers challenged the constitutionality of Quebec's territorial language policy.
Quebec (A.G.) v. Quebec Protestant School Boards
In 1984, the Supreme Court invalidated Chapter VIII of the Quebec Charter of the French Language on the basis of its incompatibility with section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Section 23 of the Canadian Charter reads:
(1) Citizens of Canada
(a) whose first language learned and still understood is that of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province in which they reside, or
(b) who have received their primary school instruction in Canada in English or French and reside in a province where the language in which they received that instruction is the language of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province,
have the right to have their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in that language in that province.
Section 73 of the Charter of the French language had recognized the right to English language instruction to Quebec residents alone. Canadian citizens from outside Quebec had to send their children to French primary and secondary schools like all other Quebecers.
On July 26, 1984, the Supreme Court invalidated part of Section 73. Judged retroactively unconstitutional, the section had to be modified so that it no longer clashes with the Canadian charter's definition of a linguistic minority. The current Section 73 of the Charter of the French language reads:
The following children, at the request of one of their parents, may receive instruction in English:
1) a child whose father or mother is a Canadian citizen and received elementary instruction in English in Canada, provided that that instruction constitutes the major part of the elementary instruction he or she received in Canada;
2) a child whose father or mother is a Canadian citizen and who has received or is receiving elementary or secondary instruction in English in Canada, and the brothers and sisters of that child, provided that that instruction constitutes the major part of the elementary or secondary instruction received by the child in Canada;
3) a child whose father and mother are not Canadian citizens, but whose father or mother received elementary instruction in English in Québec, provided that that instruction constitutes the major part of the elementary instruction he or she received in Québec;
4) a child who, in their last year in school in Québec before 26 August 1977, was receiving instruction in English in a public kindergarten class or in an elementary or secondary school, and the brothers and sisters of that child;
5) a child whose father or mother was residing in Québec on 26 August 1977 and had received elementary instruction in English outside Québec, provided that that instruction constitutes the major part of the elementary instruction he or she received outside Québec.
In 2005, a Supreme Court ruling upheld Section 73 of the Charter of the French language and its corresponding subsections (1 through 5). See Maclean's 5 April 2005, an article by John Geddes entitled "Tweaking the Language Laws". It maintains that the court upheld S.73 yet provided for flexibility in matters dealing with English-speaking Canadians and immigrants from other countries.
Bill 104
In August 2007, the Quebec Court of AppealQuebec Court of Appeal
The Court of Appeal for Quebec is the highest judicial court in Quebec, Canada....
ruled that a section of the province's language legislation is unlawful. The judgment stated that Bill 104, an amendment to the Charter passed in 2002 that stopped children of 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....
and newcomers from using the English educational system, was contrary to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The amendment was passed to thwart entry to English schools by pupils who had gone to at least one year of an unsubsidized private institution. It had been passed unanimously (by all parties) in the provincial legislature.
The Appeal Court verdict disallowed a segment of Bill 104, suggesting that students can be present English public establishments if they have been at an English private academy for a minimum of one year or have been permitted a special dispensation. The Quebec government immediately announced it would appeal the decision to 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...
, which it did.
A judgment was given that delays use of that conclusion until the Supreme Court of Canada judges on a provincial administration request.
The challenge to Bill 104 will continue but with funding from the English school boards affected, as the federal Court Challenges Program
Court Challenges Program of Canada
The Court Challenges Program of Canada is a non-profit organization whose stated purpose is "to provide financial assistance for important court cases that advance language and equality rights guaranteed under Canada's Constitution"....
established for such minority language rights was cut by the Conservative minority government. There is a precedent for having the government pay the fees of the challenging side, or appointing an amicus curiae
Amicus curiae
An amicus curiae is someone, not a party to a case, who volunteers to offer information to assist a court in deciding a matter before it...
.
A representative of the Quebec Association of Independent Schools proclaimed its goal to strike the delay, and Brent Tyler
Brent Tyler
Brent Tyler is a lawyer in Quebec, Canada, known for his frequent court challenges to "Bill 101", Quebec's Charter of the French Language temporarily disbarred in November 2011 for not completing the continuing education requirements....
, the advocate for the 26 families in the case, declared he would pull together an appeal.
The Quebec English School Board Association (QESBA) suspected the volume of probable English system learners who might be affected by this result to be 500 annually, the majority of whom would enroll in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
schools. It said such a loss to the French school enrollment of almost 1 million would be unimportant. It asked that the decision be respected until it can be referred to the Supreme Court.
About half of all enrollment decline in the EMSB since 2002 has resulted from Bill 104, a low fertility rate and urban sprawl
Urban sprawl
Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a multifaceted concept, which includes the spreading outwards of a city and its suburbs to its outskirts to low-density and auto-dependent development on rural land, high segregation of uses Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a...
being other reasons, said a spokesman.
A union of trusts zealous to watch over French is supporting the Quebec government in its venture to overturn the Quebec Appeal Court ruling. Former CSN leader Gérald Larose
Gérald Larose
Gérald Larose is a Quebec activist, professor, and former President of the Confédération des syndicats nationaux labour union...
, chairman of the Conseil de la souveraineté, vilified this "undermining" of the so-called Bill 101 by an "English judge". (Larose was also the 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...
–appointed president of a commission on the future of the French language and has agitated for some time that Quebec be granted unshared supremacy over language legislation, despite the Canadian constitution which divides such power between the national and provincial governments.) Jean Dorion
Jean Dorion
Jean Dorion is a Canadian politician, sociologist and a Quebec nationalist leader. He is the current President of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society of Montreal , a post he held also from 1989 to 1994. He is additionally the treasurer of the affiliated Mouvement national des Québécoises et des...
, president of the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Montréal, lamented that Appeals Court judges are appointed by the national government and asserted that they should not have the power to overrule Quebec's language laws. Other commentators remonstrated that Justice Hilton had previously served as legal counsel for Alliance Quebec
Alliance Quebec
Alliance Quebec was a group formed in 1982 to lobby on behalf of English-speaking Quebecers in the province of Quebec, Canada. It began as an umbrella group of many English-speaking organizations and institutions in the province, with approximately 15,000 members. At its height in the mid-1980s,...
, an anglophone rights group. Le Devoir
Le Devoir
Le Devoir is a French-language newspaper published in Montreal and distributed in Quebec and the rest of Canada. It was founded by journalist, politician, and nationalist Henri Bourassa in 1910....
reported, however, that the Quebec department of justice did not ask Hilton to recuse himself from the case. Through a spokesperson, the Ministry of Justice said that such a recusal was not necessary and that the government trusts the Court of Appeal to be fair.
Parti québécois leader Pauline Marois
Pauline Marois
Pauline Marois is the current leader of the Parti Québécois in the province of Quebec, since June 27, 2007 and current Leader of the Official Opposition of the National Assembly of Quebec, representing the riding of Charlevoix...
suggested the ruling could be "catastrophic" and described it as unsatisfactory. Over the 30-year life of Bill 101 "about 4,000 children have used this to get into the English network," she said, as opposed to the French network.
Ford v. Quebec (Attorney General)
In 1988, the Supreme Court ruled that the sections of the Charter of the French Language enforcing the exclusive use of French on outdoor commercial signs were unconstitutional.The Supreme Court remarked that the Quebec government could legitimately require French to have "greater visibility" or "marked predominance" on exterior commercial signs, however it could not enforce the exclusive use of French.
With the Act to amend the Charter of the French language, S.Q. 1988, c. 54 (also known as Bill 178), the National Assembly (under a Quebec Liberal government) made use of 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 and ammended the Charter by allowing English provided it the letters are no larger than half the size of the French.
Ballantyne, Davidson, McIntyre v. Canada
The use of the notwithstanding clause lead to formal complaints by three Quebecers: John Ballantyne, Elizabeth Davidson, and Gordon McIntyre, who own businesses in Sutton, QuebecSutton, Quebec
Sutton is a town situated in southwestern Quebec. It is part of the Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality in the administrative region of the Montérégie. The population as of the Canada 2006 Census was 3,805...
and Huntingdon, Quebec
Huntingdon, Quebec
Huntingdon is a small town in Huntingdon County in the Haut-Saint-Laurent Regional County Municipality and the Montérégie region of the province of Quebec, Canada. The population as of the Canada 2006 Census was 2,587...
. In 1993, they brought their case before the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations.
They challenged sections 1, 6 and 10 of Bill No. 178 enacted by the Government of Quebec on 22 December 1988. They alleged to be victims of violations of articles 2, 19, 26 and 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is a multilateral treaty adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 16, 1966, and in force from March 23, 1976...
by the Federal Government of Canada and by the Province of Quebec, due to the Act's prohibitions on the use English in advertising or in the name of their firms.
After hearing both parties, the Committee gave its opinion on what it believed to be the three major issues:
- (a) whether Sec.58 of the Charter of the French Language, as amended by Bill 178, Sec.1, violates any right that the authors might have by virtue of article 27;
- (b) whether Sec.58 of the Charter of the French Language, as amended by Bill 178, Sec.1, violates the authors' right to freedom of expression;
- (c) whether the same provision is compatible with the authors' right to equality before the law.
- 1. The Committee observed that "provisions of article 27 refers to minorities in States", which English-speaking people in Canada are not. It stated that the "authors therefore have no claim under article 27 of the Covenant".
- 2. The Committee disagreed with the Government of Quebec which asserted "that commercial activities such as outdoor advertising do not fall within the ambit of article 19." The Committee stated "Article 19, paragraph 2, must be interpreted as encompassing every form of subjective ideas and opinions capable of transmission to others, which are compatible with article 20 of the Covenant, of news and information, of commercial expression and advertising, of works of art, etc.; it should not be confined to means of political, cultural or artistic expression." The Committee believed that "it [was] not necessary, in order to protect the vulnerable position in Canada of the francophone group, to prohibit commercial advertising in English." It suggested that "This protection may be achieved in other ways that do not preclude the freedom of expression, in a language of their choice, of those engaged in such fields as trade. For example, the law could have required that advertising be in both French and English." It concluded that "A State may choose one or more official languages, but it may not exclude, outside the spheres of public life, the freedom to express oneself in a language of one's choice. The Committee accordingly concludes that there has been a violation of article 19, paragraph 2."
- 3. Regarding the right to equality, the Committee found that "the authors have not been discriminated against on the ground of their language, and concludes that there has been no violation of article 26 of the Covenant."
There were 5 concurring and dissenting opinions, signed by eight Committee members.
Internet
The Court of Quebec rendered a number of decisions regarding the applicability of the Charter to advertising over the InternetInternet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. The court found that commercial websites of businesses that operate from Quebec and sell to Quebec need to conform to the provisions of the Charter regarding the rights of Quebecers to receive services in French. In A.G. of Quebec (Procureur Général) c. Stanley John Reid et Frances Muriel Reid (JE 2002-1266), the defendant raised the argument that the content of Internet is of exclusive federal jurisdiction pursuant to the Constitution Act, 1867
Constitution Act, 1867
The Constitution Act, 1867 , is a major part of Canada's Constitution. The Act created a federal dominion and defines much of the operation of the Government of Canada, including its federal structure, the House of Commons, the Senate, the justice system, and the taxation system...
, and thus its regulation is ultra vires
Ultra vires
Ultra vires is a Latin phrase meaning literally "beyond the powers", although its standard legal translation and substitute is "beyond power". If an act requires legal authority and it is done with such authority, it is...
of the Quebec Government. The court confirmed the applicability of the Charter on advertising over the Internet.
Compliance
With the Act to amend the Charter of the French language, S.Q. 1993, c. 40 (also known as Bill 86), the National Assembly (under a Quebec Liberal government) amended the Charter of the French Language to make it comply with the Supreme Court rulings. The amending law introduced the "Canada Clause" which replaced the "Quebec Clause". That is, the recognized right to English language education was extended to all Canadian citizens. It also introduced the current regulations on the "marked predominance" of French on outdoor commercial signs in conformity with the Supreme Court suggestion.As suggested by the Supreme Court ruling, the current law specifies that commercial outdoor signs can be multilingual so long as French is markedly predominant. The current provisions regarding exterior commercial signs were confirmed as constitutional by the Quebec Court of Appeal in R. c. Entreprises W.F.H.
External links
- CBS News 60 Minutes reports on Quebec language laws (this link is broken)