On the Problem of Swearing Allegiance to the King of England
To Whom Do Members of the National Assembly of Quebec Owe Allegiance?
At a press briefing on October 11, Parti Québécois leader and Camille-Laurin MNA Paul St-Pierre Plamondon announced that he has sent a letter to the Secretary General of the Quebec National Assembly informing him of his intention to swear an oath of office to the people of Quebec but not to the King of England. The transcript of the press conference and the letter to the Secretary General are reproduced below. The swearing-in of PQ members will take place on October 21.
The PQ leader gave several reasons for his refusal to take the oath to the king. He said, among other things, that one cannot serve two masters and that "the interest of the Quebec people is not that of the crown of a foreign country." He refers to the British colonial domination which he says is responsible for the hanging of the Patriots, the deportation of the Acadians and the Indian Act which is still in force. He believes that it would be a conflict of interest for him to swear an oath to the British monarchy.
The
leader of the PQ also said that in law, the only law that requires an
oath to the king or queen is the Constitution Act, 1867. Indeed, the
Act respecting the National Assembly provides only for the oath to the
people of Quebec. But on its website, the National Assembly says that
the MNA must
take both oaths. Plamondon asks the National Assembly not to take
action against him out of respect for the fact that he was elected by
the people and that he will take an oath to the people of Quebec and
out of respect for freedom of conscience. He says he is prepared to
face charges from Ottawa,
the Governor General or the Lieutenant Governor if charges are laid.
The other two PQ MNAs, Pascal Bérubé in Matane-Matapédia and Joël Arseneau in Îles-de-la-Madeleine, will also refuse to take the oath of office.
The media have asked constitutional experts about what might happen when Plamondon and his colleagues return to the National Assembly on November 15. Some have pointed out that the National Assembly does not provide for a penalty for a member who refuses to take the oath to the king. This would be a first.
According to some, there could be a modified oath. For example, instead of saying "Charles III," it could say "the Head of State." But according to the Parti Marxiste-Léniniste du Québec (PMLQ), it is obvious that this would amount to the same thing and that it would be just as unacceptable. It is a proposal that hides precisely what the current head of the Canadian state represents, namely a constitutional order that places decision-making power beyond the reach of the people. Moreover, according to the information given, the Secretary of the National Assembly would have to agree with the change and there would have to be an agreement between the parties. It is clear, then, that these proposals limit the problem to the framework of the Canadian Constitution, which has the objective of placing decision-making power beyond the reach of the people.
The procedures that require elected officials to swear an oath to a system that places the decision-making power above the people and above elected officials are designed in a manner that keeps this precise fact hidden. The decision will therefore rest with the Secretary General of the National Assembly. This is Siegfried Peters, who was elected to this position by the National Assembly on October 22, 2019. He is a lawyer by training and has worked at the National Assembly since 2002. His background leaves no doubt that he is an expert in constitutional matters and interpretation of procedures under the constitution.
The Quebec National Assembly website states this about Mr. Peters:
"He first served as a parliamentary procedure advisor and subsequently had the opportunity to work in various assignments under the Secretary General, including in the leadership of legal affairs. He was the Parliamentary Affairs Coordinator from 2011 to June 2017. Since June 2017, he served as the Director of Legal and Legislative Affairs and Parliamentary Procedure.
"Passionate about training and the transmission of knowledge, he has notably participated in the creation of university-level courses on parliamentary law and procedure and comparative parliamentarianism. He also participated in the writing of the second and third editions of the specialized work explaining the functioning of the National Assembly entitled La procédure parlementaire du Québec (Quebec's Parliamentary Procedure).
"As Secretary General, he will henceforth act as the first advisor to the President of the Assembly on parliamentary procedure, i.e. all the rules governing the conduct of parliamentary business."
The PMLQ calls on Quebeckers to call on all the elected members of the National Assembly to refuse to swear an oath to King Charles III, to the "Head of State," to the Canadian Constitution or to anything other than the people of Quebec and the voters who have mandated them. It is a matter of national dignity and of acting in a manner befitting a modern society.
(Quotations translated from the original French by TML. Graphics: PMLQ, TML.)
This article was published in
Volume 52 Number 29 - October 14, 2022
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmld2022/Articles/D520291.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca