Leaked accommodation commission report sparks fury in Quebec

AMontreal English-language newspaperhassparked fierce debateoverwhat itsays are leaked portions of areportfromQuebec'scommission on the reasonable accommodation of immigrants.

According to articles in the Montreal Gazette published over the weekend, chapters of the final report of theConsultation Commission on Accommodation Practices Related to Cultural Differences recommendQuebec francophonesopen their minds, get informed andlearn more English.

"In this day and age of migratory mixing, of the Internet and globalization, it is to be greatly hoped that the largest number possible of Quebecers master English in addition to French," the Gazette quoted the report's chaptersas saying.

The commission, headed by sociologist and historian Grard Bouchard and philosopher Charles Taylor, spent last fall travelling the province seeking the public's views on how to accommodate Quebec's religious and cultural minorities.

The two academics have heard from more than 3,000 people since the public hearings began in September.

The commission viewed the "discontent of a large part of the population" over demands by Muslims, Jews and other religious minoritiesas "the result of partial information and false perceptions," the Gazette quotedBouchard and Taylor as writing.

Thetwo academicsalso suggest that Quebecers shouldn't be looking to the past anymore to define themselves, the newspaper said. TheGazette promised to put thefinal draft of thereport on its websiteon Tuesday, three days ahead of its scheduled release.

TheGazette's storieswere published ahead of Monday's Patriots Day celebrations in Quebec, where some 200 people braved the cold and rain to remember the men and women who once fought for a French nation in North America.

Jean Dorion of the Socit Saint-Jean-Baptiste saidhe doesn't like the commission's message. "That is Quebec-bashing once again,"the Quebec nationalist group's presidenttold CBC News on Monday.

Newspaper misstates commission'spositions: adviser

Jacques Beauchemin, head of the sociologydepartment at theUniversit du Qubec Montral, who served as one of 15 experts on the commission's advisory committee, slammed thereports of the commission's findings, saying such conclusions fail to take themajoritystatus ofQuebec francophonesinto account.

"The report doesn't confront the natural tension that exists inevitably between the minority and majority in Quebec," hetold CBC News.

In an interview with the CBC's French-language sister network Radio-Canada, Prof. Daniel Weinstock, a member of the advisory committee to the Bouchard-Taylor commission, said theGazette had misread the report.

Weinstock, an expert in political philosophy and head of the Universit de Montral's Centre for Research in Ethics, said he hasn't seen the final version,but theMontreal daily's interpretation isn't founded.

He said it's wrong to say the report blames Quebec's francophone majority for the province's problems with cultural accommodation.

He also said that the Gazette had overemphasized aspects of the report that appeared marginal to him, like a recommendation that Quebecers need to be more open and learn more English.

Weinstock said the commission will now have the tough task of setting things straight even as it presents its final draft.

A question of semantics

In its Monday edition, the Gazette said the commission's report also recommends vocabulary changes in the way Quebec society talks about itself. The co-commissioners want, for example, to see the end of the expression "Qubcois de souche" ("dyed-in-the-wool Quebecers"), which they suggest replacing with the term "Quebecers of French-Canadian origin," according to the Gazette.

The phrases "visible minority" and "cultural communities" should also be phased out, the Gazette quotes the report as saying. Bouchard and Taylor want to abandon the term "accommodations" as well,which they propose replacing with "adjustments" or "harmonization," the newspaper says.

Premier Jean Charest, in France on Monday to celebrate events marking the 400th anniversary of Quebec City, refused to comment on the report until it is shown to his cabinet on Wednesday.