The QCGN objects to several sections of C-13, saying its references to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language are misguided and harmful.
The Charter of the French Language “now operates notwithstanding the protections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and subordinates the rights protections contained in Quebec’s Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms,” the QCGN said.Article content “That should be a concern to all Canadians. C-13 also gives license to governments and the courts to interpret language rights asymmetrically — that is, more narrowly for the minority language community in Quebec.”
Though Quebec anglophones are not worried about preserving their language, they face “many of the same challenges faced by francophones outside of Quebec with respect to obtaining government services in their language,” the organization said. She said anglophones are feeling “a lot of anxiety” because Bill 96 “has created a lot of uncertainty.” But Bill 101 and C-13 “are two different pieces of legislation and one does not mean the same as the other.”Article content
Asked about the possible legal ramifications, Petitpas Taylor said federal Justice Department lawyers have told her that referring to the Charter of the French Language in C-13 carries “minimum risks. Lawyers will never say ‘no risks’ but they’ll say ‘minimum risks.’”