Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon at the party's convention in Saint-Hyacinthe, Que., on Friday.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press
The Leader of the Parti Québécois says a third referendum campaign is effectively under way, with Prime Minister Mark Carney as the standard-bearer for the “no” forces.
Paul St-Pierre Plamondon said Sunday that a “battle of ideas” has begun after Mr. Carney delivered a call for unity in Quebec City last week, during which the Prime Minister referred to the surrender of Quebec to the British more than 250 years ago as the beginning of a partnership. He said Mr. Carney’s speech amounted to the launch of a federalist campaign.
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“A new political cycle has begun,” the PQ Leader told supporters gathered at a party convention in Saint-Hyacinthe, a small city east of Montreal. “A new chapter in our history is unfolding before you.”
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon used the convention to galvanize support for an independence campaign ahead of a provincial election that will likely be fought over the prospect of a third referendum.
He exhorted the 1,400 party members in attendance not to give into fear, including of an expansionist United States, as they plan to fight for sovereignty.
The PQ Leader has promised to hold a referendum by 2030 if his party forms government in the next election, scheduled for October.
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Mr. Carney was the main target of sovereigntist leaders at the convention. During a fiery speech on Saturday, Yves-François Blanchet, leader of the federal Bloc Québécois, demanded an apology from the Prime Minister for his speech last week. During the address, Mr. Carney invoked the Battle of the Plains of Abraham as the moment when Canada began to choose “building together over pulling apart.”
The 1759 battle saw British forces defeat French troops, leading to the surrender of Quebec.
“I never thought I’d have to say this, but no, the Plains of Abraham are not the birthplace of a united Canada,” Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon said Sunday, to a standing ovation.
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The PQ has been leading in the polls for more than two years, while both the governing Coalition Avenir Québec and the opposition Liberals are in the midst of leadership races.
Over the weekend, ministers Bernard Drainville and Christine Fréchette launched campaigns to replace Premier François Legault, who announced his resignation earlier this month. During her announcement Sunday, Ms. Fréchette said this is “the worst time in 50 years to hold a referendum.”
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon faced a crowd of ardent supporters on Sunday who were quick to leap to their feet, Quebec flags in hand. They frequently broke into chants of “Un Québec, un pays” (“One Quebec, one country”).
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At the entrance of the convention hall, a blue flag bearing a single fleur-de-lis fluttered in the breeze from a nearby fan, part of an exhibit by artist Simon Beaudry imagining the republic that could have emerged had Quebec voted to separate during the previous referendum in 1995. The flag is meant to represent unity among the different peoples of Quebec, Mr. Beaudry said in an interview.
Still, the fervour in the room could not entirely overshadow the enormity of the challenge ahead. Polls consistently show support for sovereignty among Quebeckers hovering between 30 per cent and 35 per cent.
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon urged party members to set aside any doubt about independence.
“Let us not be afraid, because fear has never been a good counsellor,” he told the crowd in an earlier appearance Friday evening.
He acknowledged what he called “an increasingly complex and not always reassuring geopolitical situation,” arguing that it heightens the need for Quebec to be “at the table” as a sovereign nation.
But Lynda Gauthier, a long-time sovereigntist who recently joined the party, said it’s “a little dizzying” to contemplate a referendum on independence at this moment. Mr. Beaudry, the artist, said it would be “a bit naive to think that everything will just be fine,” considering U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats of annexation. Still, he said Quebec should become a country as soon as possible.
Despite the obstacles ahead, there was a sense in the convention hall that a referendum that once seemed hypothetical could soon become a reality. Camille Goyette-Gingras, the president of non-partisan sovereigntist group OUI Québec, told the crowd they must focus their efforts on convincing undecided voters. “These people hold the key to victory in their hands,” she said.
Long-time party member Sylvain Castonguay said this is a crucial moment in Quebec’s history, after the failure of independence campaigns in 1980 and 1995.
“This is our last chance,” he said. “If we say ‘no’ again, that will be the end.”
With a report from The Canadian Press