It is not accidental that the great majority of nations are republics. It has been the result of humanity’s long groping in the dark, tribulations and sacrifices.
The first and greatest benefit for Canada being a republic without the monarchy is that it will deliver a forceful disincentive to the separatist movement in Quebec because, after the disposal of the monarchy, everyone across the land will take the oath of allegiance to Canada itself. We will pledge allegiance to one another and that, per se, will awaken a great sense of commitment, responsibility and belonging in all of us.
Let us for the duration of time that it takes to read this column set aside the fact of the Aboriginals’ existence on this continent from time immemorial and state another fact that the French came here before the English and later on lost the colonial war to England. England then unilaterally declared sovereignty over the entire land and dumped the monarchy on it.
Wars are not any different from sports in the sense that sometimes you win and sometimes you lose, and to take the oath of allegiance to the English monarch simply does not bring out the best in our French Canadians. It only perpetuates the feelings of a past loss.
France is a major world power, and several generations ago, with its revolution of 1789, it abolished the monarchy and the parasitism that went with it; ended the ancient regime (old system), and became the source of inspiration for the rest of the world.
Now, what does it mean to a “free French citizen” to come all the way to Canada for a new life only to be labelled as “the subject” of the English monarch?
Why should anyone else decide for our French Canadians how they should feel about taking the oath of allegiance to the English monarch?
As humanity’s experience has shown, monarchy has never been a marketable system. Monarchies have been crumbling one after the other and, very fortunately, it is impossible to convince a republic to convert its system to a monarchy.
What are we waiting for here in Canada? Are we waiting for the English to arouse from their coma to dispose of the monarchy before we decide to become a republic? The monarchy has always worked for Canadian politicians.
One prime minister after the other has sought the highest office only for the sake of becoming the prime minister, and the rest was to deal with the day-to-day routines of the office and, at the end, to collect a fat retirement pay check.
I salute Australia for moving in the direction of a republican system. Its former prime minister, Julia Gillard, had the courage to make it her political platform during her campaign to end the monarchy in Australia. When the Queen visited Australia, Gillard had the courage of her convictions and delivered the message by standing tall and graceful and refusing to curtsy. What a great and unforgettable moment it was for a nation moving toward a republican system. Unfortunately, a coterie of misguided and sexist politicians did everything they could to bring her down, but they cannot stop Australia from moving forward.
English Canada is satisfied to think that the separatist movement will go away on its own while the monarchy is firmly in place, but the facts indicate that it is alive and well and only simmers down from time to time. Since Rene Levesque, the founder of the separatist party, Parti Quebecois, and the first Quebec Premier from that party, resigned from politics in late 1985 (premier from Nov. 25, 1976, to Oct. 3, 1985) to this date we have had five more Parti Quebecois premiers in Quebec and there will be more in the years to come.
This leads us to the fair conclusion that it now only takes a great and charismatic French Canadian leader to rise to power and sweep them off their feet and give at least the majority of the voters, if not all of them — enough get-up-and-go to say yes to “sovereignty.” The dire consequences are that the cost to all of us will be astronomically high and unbearable and still worse is the fact that, after the breakup, the rest of Canada will become a bird’s nest on the ground for the United States.
Time is marching on and Canadians must act decisively. We must stop once and for all falsely and complacently pointing fingers at our French Canadians. Instead, we must train our eyes and our united efforts towards removing the actual cause, which is the monarchy and its divisive effect on our lives in Canada.
Jeffrey Cunningham is self-employed and lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.
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