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Civil Rights in Public Education www.CRIPEweb.org |
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Research Note #8
Quebec’s change to
Linguistic Schools
The following text is made up
of excerpts from the 1997 “Report of the
Special Joint Committee to amend Section 93 of the Constitution Act, 1867,
concerning the Quebec School System”
The
modernization of the Quebec school system has been a topic of study and
discussion since the early 1960s. The major aspect of that modernization has
been the reorganization of the Quebec school system (historically
organized along denominational lines in accordance with the obligations set
out in section 93) into language-based structures.
The introductory
clause to section 93 of the Constitution Act, 1867, gives the provinces
legislative jurisdiction over education. Paragraphs (1) to (4), which deal
only with denominational rights and privileges, impose certain obligations
on the provinces in respect of the public school system. Specifically, with
respect to Quebec, section 93(1) entrenches the rights of Roman Catholic and
Protestant groups to acquire and maintain denominational school structures
in the cities of Montreal and Quebec, and section 93(2) gives the members
of those two faiths, outside of Montreal and Quebec City, the right to
dissentient schools when those persons are in a minority.
Sections 93(3)
and (4) establish a right to appeal to the Governor General in Council, in
the event that legislation enacted by a province does not comply with
sections 93(1) and (2), and specify that the federal Parliament has the
power to legislate in the event that a province fails to enact the
legislation required for compliance with section 93.
CONCERNS
A number of
witnesses stressed the importance of preserving denominational education in
Quebec. After exempting the province of Quebec from the application of
sections 93(1) to (4), the Quebec Public Education Act., which has a
notwithstanding clause addressing both the Canadian and Quebec Charters, may
allow Roman Catholic and Protestant denominational education to continue.
According to some
witnesses, providing educational guarantees only to Roman Catholics and
Protestants is inconsistent with contemporary values as expressed in the
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Quebec Charter of Human
Rights and Freedoms. Some witnesses opposed the preservation of
denominational guarantees within the new linguistic school boards on the
ground that structures of this nature would be expensive, would fragment the
system and would be divisive.
CONSENSUS
The Committee
decided at the outset that it should not simply rubber-stamp the request.
The Committee has heard from a cross-section of witnesses interested in, or
affected by, the proposed amendment: we heard from individuals and groups,
both supporting and opposing the amendment. The testimony heard showed that
there is near unanimity in favour of establishing linguistic school boards.
Because section
93 relates to the rights of two religious groups, the committee wanted to
know the opinion of those groups concerning the proposed amendment. Given
the evidence we have heard, we have no doubt that there is a consensus in
Quebec which favours the proposed amendment to s. 93.
CONCLUSION
The substance of
the provisions in Quebec's Public Education Act for Roman Catholic and
Protestant denominational education is similar to that of the guarantees
provided by section 93 of the Constitution Act, 1867.
Some, who may be
uneasy about this shift from constitutional to non-constitutional
enactments for Roman Catholic and Protestant denominational education in
Quebec, may find additional security in the fact that the Canadian Charter's
section 33 notwithstanding clause has been invoked to protect parts of the
Public Education Act from Charter scrutiny, provided that the Quebec
National Assembly continues to renew that notwithstanding provision in the
Act.
As we stated
earlier, the Committee was particularly concerned about support for the
proposed amendment within these groups which would be particularly affected
by the change. In other words, we looked for a consensus within two
principal groups: Quebec Protestants, and Quebec Roman Catholics.
Overall, it
appears that, although some witnesses expressed their concerns with
respect to the proposed amendment, there is a consensus in Quebec society
supporting this change.
Recommendation
The Special Joint Committee
recommended that both Houses of Parliament adopt the resolution to amend
section 93 of the Constitution Act, 1867, in the form tabled in the House of
Commons on October 1, 1997, and in the Senate on October 9, 1997.
Dissenters
Senator Dalia Wood and the
Reform Party of Canada.
The House of Commons passed
the amendment by a vote of 204 to 59 on Nov. 18, 1997.
AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF
CANADA, CONSTITUTION ACT, 1867
1. The
Constitution Act, 1867, is amended by adding, immediately after section 93,
the following:
"93A. Paragraphs (1) to (4) of section 93
do not apply to Quebec."
2. This
amendment may be cited as the Constitution Amendment, year of proclamation
(Quebec).
Quebec report recommends
secular public schools;
a model for Ontario?
After the Quebec constitutional
amendment of 1997, a
The Quebec government commissioned a report which was released on March
31, 1999. The "Task Force on the Place of Religion in Schools in
Quebec" proposes a school
system that breaks all ties with religious groups and recommends that the
current denominational status of schools be revoked.
In December of
1997, Quebec and Newfoundland received federal approval to eliminate their
constitutional obligations to provide public funds for denominational
schools, and for Quebec to organize its school system on language rather
than religion.
The Roman Catholic bishops of
Quebec did not oppose the change to linguistic schools because there was an
agreement to maintain the religious education guarantees.
The Task Force,
chaired by Jean-Pierre Proulx of the University of Montreal and a devout
Roman Catholic, was composed of a carefully-selected group that represents
a cross-section of faiths and cultures. Their recommendations were
unanimous.
The complete
report, commonly called the Proulx Report, is about 300 pages long. Its
significance lies in the conclusions and recommendations which are
reprinted below. (Bold highlighting by editor.)
Conclusions
The major events
that have marked the recent history of our school system, namely, the 1997
amendments to the Constitution Act, 1867 and the creation, in 1998, of
Quebec's linguistic school boards, led us naturally to continue the debate
launched by the Estates General on Education in 1996 regarding the place of
religion in schools. Additional incentive to take up this debate
collectively and, we hope, bring it to a close was provided by cultural
and demographic changes, and by the organizational problems involved in
denominational schooling.
The
Task Force is submitting its conclusions in the form of a brief series of
recommendations intended to serve as a basis for public discussion. These
recommendations clearly represent a break with the tradition that has
prevailed in Quebec for more than a
century. They amount to a proposal
that, in the future, our education system be unequivocally based on
respect for the right to equality and respect for freedom of conscience and
religion. In 1975, the National Assembly enthroned the right to
equality and freedom of conscience and religion in the Charter of Human
Rights and Freedoms. Like the National Assembly, we believe that this
right and this freedom, with the other fundamental rights guaranteed in
the Quebec Charter, are the "foundation of justice and peace." We
have come to the conclusion that to provide for the full exercise of these
rights, Quebec must replace its current
denominational school system by a secular school system and consequently
redefine the place of religion in schools.
This redefinition
implies secularization in the broad sense of the term. Within the framework
of schools based on common values shared by all citizens, it allows for the
study of religions from a cultural perspective as well as secular world
views. It acknowledges the spiritual dimension and therefore allows schools
to offer common religious and spiritual support services, if they so
desire. It also allows schools, as part of their role in the community
and taking into account their priorities, to make their facilities
available outside school hours to the various religious groups that wish to
provide religious services at their own expense to members of their faith.
We have taken
great care to ground our recommendations on the most rational arguments
possible. Our purpose in holding the consultations, conducting the
studies and discussions, and submitting the recommendations we have the
honour of presenting in this report was to provide the Minister of
Education, Government, the members of the National Assembly and all of
those who choose to take part in the debate with ample background to fuel
their participation in this debate.
Recommendations:
1. We recommend
that the Government of Quebec and the National Assembly confirm the
primacy of me right to equality and freedom of conscience and religion
guaranteed in the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and the
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and, consequently, that they repeal
or not renew the current notwithstanding clauses in education legislation
which override the application of the Charters.
2. We
recommend that legislation be enacted to establish a secular system of
public schools dispensing preschool, elementary and secondary education.
3. We
recommend that the current denominational statuses held by public schools
be revoked.
4. We
recommend that the Education Act be amended to stipulate that the values
and beliefs of religious groups cannot be used as criteria to set up a
public school for the purposes of a specific project.
5. We
recommend that the basic school regulations for elementary and secondary
education provide for the study of religions from a cultural
perspective in place of Catholic or Protestant religious instruction, and
that the study of religions be compulsory for all students.1
6. We
recommend that programs for the study of religions from a cultural
perspective be developed and implemented in keeping with the guidelines
and framework proposed by the Commission des programmes d'etudes of the
Ministere de 1'Education, and with the relevant provisions of the
Education Act
7. We
recommend that the Ministere de 1'Education encourage flexible measures for
teacher in-service training for the study of religions from a cultural
perspective and allocate the necessary financial resources for such
measures.
8.
We recommend that the Education
Act authorize schools to provide common religious and spiritual support
services for students of all faiths and that these services be publicly
funded.
9. We
recommend that the Government define the general objectives of religious
and spiritual support services in the basic school regulations just as it
defines those of other student services; that the local school governing
boards draw up programs of activities in keeping with these general
objectives; that the school boards set the criteria for hiring religious
support specialists in keeping with these same objectives and without
discrimination.
10. We
recommend that the Education Act stipulate that the local school
governing boards may, outside school hours, provide facilities to religious
groups that wish to dispense religious instruction or offer services at
their own expense to members of their faith attending the school; and
that the Act stipulate that the governing boards must exercise this
power without discrimination, taking into account priorities they may
legitimately set with respect to the use of school premises.
11. We
recommend that the provisions of the Act respecting the Conseil su-perieur
de 1 'education pertaining to the Catholic Committee and the Protestant
Committee be repealed, that the provisions of the Act respecting the
ministere de 1'Education pertaining to the associate deputy ministers for
the Catholic and Protestant faiths also be repealed and, consequently, that
the appropriate changes be made to the organizational structure of the
Ministere de 1'Education.
12. We
recommend that section 41 of the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and
Freedoms be amended to recognize, as stated in article 18(4) of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, "the liberty of
parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to ensure the religious and
moral education of their children in conformity with their own
convictions."
13. We
recommend that any other applicable legislative and regulatory provisions be
amended in keeping with these recommendations.
14. We
recommend that, should these recommendations be adopted, they be
implemented gradually, as follows:
General Provisions
a) Repeal of the
notwithstanding clauses in education legislation which override the
application of the Charter of Rights
b) Amendment of section 41 of
the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.
c) Revocation, by law, of
the current denominational status of public schools.
d) Abolition, by law, of the
Catholic Committee, the Protestant Committee and the associate
deputy minister positions for the Catholic and Protestant faiths.
e) Adoption of any other
applicable legislative, regulatory and administrative provisions,
including terms and conditions of implementation and the
timetable for change.
Footnote
1
As explained in Chapter 9, we .are assuming that moral education will
continue to be part of the elementary and secondary school curriculum and
that the attendant learning objectives will continue to be compulsory for
all students. The model for organizing and dispensing moral education should
be harmonized with that adopted for the study of religions from a cultural
perspective.
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