QUEBEC – The Quebec legislature has adopted a historic, controversial emergency law aimed at restoring order in the province.
After months of social tension and street protests, and following a legislative debate that lasted a full night, morning and afternoon, the national assembly voted 68-48 in favour of the legislation.
The new law is based on three main pillars: it pauses the current school year at institutions affected by strikes; imposes steep fines for anyone who tries blocking access to a school; and limits where, how, and for how long people can protest in Quebec.
The law is designed to apply for only a year, and then expire. But that hasn’t assuaged the chorus of critics who have emerged since it was tabled last night.
Parti Quebecois Leader Pauline Marois promised that scrapping the legislation would be her very first gesture if elected as premier, in an election expected over the next year.
She also promised to limit tuition hikes to the rate of inflation for as long as Quebec has less university students than the national average.
One thing she did not do is encourage more rowdy protest. She asked students to be careful – and to channel their energy toward the ballot box, not the street.
“The darkest moment always comes before the light,” Marois said in the moments before the vote.
“Don’t fall into the trap. It will be time to change the government soon.”
But the government replied that the PQ has already demonstrated in recent months that it would be swayed by mob rule, not by sound policy.
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“The street would govern the government,” said Public Safety Minister Robert Dutil.
He then accused Marois of fomenting student anger in recent months. “You can’t complain about the heat of the fire when you’ve been the one stoking it.”
The legislation provides for fines of between $1,000 and $5,000 for any individual who prevents someone from entering an educational institution. Penalties climb to between $7,000 and $35,000 for a student leader and to between $25,000 and $125,000 for unions or student federations.
Bill 78 also lays out strict regulations governing demonstrations, including having to give eight hours’ notice for details such as the itinerary, the duration and the time at which they are being held.
Under the legislation, police can order the protest moved to a different spot.
Even offering encouragement for someone to protest at a school – either tacitly or otherwise – is subject to punishment.
Amid a torrent of criticism, a portion of the bill was amended today to increase the number of people allowed to participate in an organized gathering, from 10 to 25.
Education Minister Michelle Courchesne, less than a week in her new position, raised more than a few eyebrows by mentioning that tweets from the social network website Twitter could also be considered as encouragement to protest.
When asked to clarify, she said she would leave it up the police’s discretion to deem what was within the limits of the law. It remains unknown whether “re-tweeting” a potentially illegal message could also land others in hot water.
In a statement made Friday morning, the Quebec Bar Association expressed serious concerns about the bill, calling it excessive.
While there were other complaints from within the legal community, the sentiment was not unanimous and some reacted more favourably to the bill.
But the most audible reaction was negative – ranging from ridicule to downright fury.
Predictably, a coalition of unions and student assocations vented their anger Friday, describing Quebec as a “totalitarian state”: “This law is guided by the aggressiveness, anger and revenge of the Liberal Party,” said the president of the FTQ, Michel Arsenault.
Less predictably, the legislation was also being mocked and attacked by those less associated with the cause of striking students.
The chamber of commerce in Gatineau, Que., released a tongue-in-cheek description of its logistical plans for an upcoming event that featured an “assembly of more than 10 people.”
It concluded with a joke, asking police to inform them how many officers would be present so that they could prepare the appropriate number of hors d’oeuvres.
A populist TV host better known for ranting against student protests was suddenly supportive, to a certain extent: “I’m stuck in an insane asylum, and the guards are as crazy as the patients. Help!!!” tweeted Richard Martineau, a host on the LCN network.
The law pauses the current academic session for striking students – less than one-third of Quebec post-secondary students. At the affected institutions, the current session resumes in August, and the fall one begins in October.
The current dispute began, in earnest, with the budget tabled by the Charest Liberals more than a year ago.
It was in that budget that the government first announced plans to hike tuition fees by more than 75 per cent over several years.
While the increase will still leave Quebec with some of the lowest rates in the country, the issue has flared into a clash of ideologies.
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