

Currently released so far... 12900 / 251,287
Browse latest releases
2010/12/01
2010/12/02
2010/12/03
2010/12/04
2010/12/05
2010/12/06
2010/12/07
2010/12/08
2010/12/09
2010/12/10
2010/12/11
2010/12/12
2010/12/13
2010/12/14
2010/12/15
2010/12/16
2010/12/17
2010/12/18
2010/12/19
2010/12/20
2010/12/21
2010/12/22
2010/12/23
2010/12/24
2010/12/25
2010/12/26
2010/12/27
2010/12/28
2010/12/29
2010/12/30
2011/01/01
2011/01/02
2011/01/04
2011/01/05
2011/01/07
2011/01/09
2011/01/10
2011/01/11
2011/01/12
2011/01/13
2011/01/14
2011/01/15
2011/01/16
2011/01/17
2011/01/18
2011/01/19
2011/01/20
2011/01/21
2011/01/22
2011/01/23
2011/01/24
2011/01/25
2011/01/26
2011/01/27
2011/01/28
2011/01/29
2011/01/30
2011/01/31
2011/02/01
2011/02/02
2011/02/03
2011/02/04
2011/02/05
2011/02/06
2011/02/07
2011/02/08
2011/02/09
2011/02/10
2011/02/11
2011/02/12
2011/02/13
2011/02/14
2011/02/15
2011/02/16
2011/02/17
2011/02/18
2011/02/19
2011/02/20
2011/02/21
2011/02/22
2011/02/23
2011/02/24
2011/02/25
2011/02/26
2011/02/27
2011/02/28
2011/03/01
2011/03/02
2011/03/03
2011/03/04
2011/03/05
2011/03/06
2011/03/07
2011/03/08
2011/03/09
2011/03/10
2011/03/11
2011/03/13
2011/03/14
2011/03/15
2011/03/16
2011/03/17
2011/03/18
2011/03/19
2011/03/20
2011/03/21
2011/03/22
2011/03/23
2011/03/24
2011/03/25
2011/03/26
2011/03/27
2011/03/28
2011/03/29
2011/03/30
2011/03/31
2011/04/01
2011/04/02
2011/04/03
2011/04/04
2011/04/05
2011/04/06
2011/04/07
2011/04/08
2011/04/09
2011/04/10
2011/04/11
2011/04/12
2011/04/13
2011/04/14
2011/04/15
2011/04/16
2011/04/17
2011/04/18
2011/04/19
2011/04/20
2011/04/21
2011/04/22
2011/04/23
2011/04/24
2011/04/25
2011/04/26
2011/04/27
2011/04/28
2011/04/29
2011/04/30
2011/05/01
2011/05/02
2011/05/03
2011/05/04
2011/05/05
2011/05/06
2011/05/07
2011/05/08
2011/05/09
2011/05/10
2011/05/11
2011/05/12
2011/05/13
2011/05/14
2011/05/15
2011/05/16
2011/05/17
2011/05/18
2011/05/19
2011/05/20
2011/05/21
2011/05/22
2011/05/23
2011/05/24
Browse by creation date
Browse by origin
Embassy Athens
Embassy Asuncion
Embassy Astana
Embassy Asmara
Embassy Ashgabat
Embassy Apia
Embassy Ankara
Embassy Amman
Embassy Algiers
Embassy Addis Ababa
Embassy Accra
Embassy Abuja
Embassy Abu Dhabi
Embassy Abidjan
Consulate Auckland
Consulate Amsterdam
Consulate Adana
American Institute Taiwan, Taipei
Embassy Bujumbura
Embassy Buenos Aires
Embassy Budapest
Embassy Bucharest
Embassy Brussels
Embassy Bridgetown
Embassy Bratislava
Embassy Brasilia
Embassy Bogota
Embassy Bishkek
Embassy Bern
Embassy Berlin
Embassy Belmopan
Embassy Belgrade
Embassy Beirut
Embassy Beijing
Embassy Banjul
Embassy Bangkok
Embassy Bandar Seri Begawan
Embassy Bamako
Embassy Baku
Embassy Baghdad
Consulate Barcelona
Embassy Copenhagen
Embassy Conakry
Embassy Colombo
Embassy Chisinau
Embassy Caracas
Embassy Canberra
Embassy Cairo
Consulate Curacao
Consulate Ciudad Juarez
Consulate Chennai
Consulate Casablanca
Consulate Cape Town
Consulate Calgary
Embassy Dushanbe
Embassy Dublin
Embassy Doha
Embassy Djibouti
Embassy Dili
Embassy Dhaka
Embassy Dar Es Salaam
Embassy Damascus
Embassy Dakar
Consulate Dubai
Embassy Helsinki
Embassy Harare
Embassy Hanoi
Consulate Ho Chi Minh City
Consulate Hermosillo
Consulate Hamilton
Consulate Hamburg
Consulate Halifax
Embassy Kyiv
Embassy Kuwait
Embassy Kuala Lumpur
Embassy Kinshasa
Embassy Kingston
Embassy Kigali
Embassy Khartoum
Embassy Kathmandu
Embassy Kampala
Embassy Kabul
Consulate Kolkata
Consulate Karachi
Embassy Luxembourg
Embassy Luanda
Embassy London
Embassy Ljubljana
Embassy Lisbon
Embassy Lima
Embassy Lilongwe
Embassy La Paz
Consulate Lahore
Consulate Lagos
Mission USOSCE
Mission USNATO
Mission UNESCO
Embassy Muscat
Embassy Moscow
Embassy Montevideo
Embassy Monrovia
Embassy Minsk
Embassy Mexico
Embassy Mbabane
Embassy Maputo
Embassy Manila
Embassy Manama
Embassy Managua
Embassy Malabo
Embassy Madrid
Consulate Munich
Consulate Mumbai
Consulate Montreal
Consulate Monterrey
Consulate Milan
Consulate Melbourne
Embassy Nicosia
Embassy Niamey
Embassy New Delhi
Embassy Ndjamena
Embassy Nassau
Embassy Nairobi
Consulate Naples
Consulate Naha
Embassy Pristina
Embassy Pretoria
Embassy Prague
Embassy Port Of Spain
Embassy Port Louis
Embassy Port Au Prince
Embassy Phnom Penh
Embassy Paris
Embassy Paramaribo
Embassy Panama
Consulate Peshawar
REO Basrah
Embassy Rome
Embassy Riyadh
Embassy Riga
Embassy Reykjavik
Embassy Rangoon
Embassy Rabat
Consulate Rio De Janeiro
Consulate Recife
Secretary of State
Embassy Suva
Embassy Stockholm
Embassy Sofia
Embassy Skopje
Embassy Singapore
Embassy Seoul
Embassy Sarajevo
Embassy Santo Domingo
Embassy Santiago
Embassy Sanaa
Embassy San Salvador
Embassy San Jose
Consulate Strasbourg
Consulate St Petersburg
Consulate Shenyang
Consulate Shanghai
Consulate Sapporo
Consulate Sao Paulo
Embassy Tunis
Embassy Tripoli
Embassy Tokyo
Embassy The Hague
Embassy Tel Aviv
Embassy Tehran
Embassy Tegucigalpa
Embassy Tbilisi
Embassy Tashkent
Embassy Tallinn
Consulate Toronto
Consulate Tijuana
USUN New York
USEU Brussels
US Office Almaty
US Mission Geneva
US Interests Section Havana
US Delegation, Secretary
UNVIE
Embassy Ulaanbaatar
Embassy Vilnius
Embassy Vienna
Embassy Vatican
Embassy Valletta
Consulate Vladivostok
Consulate Vancouver
Browse by tag
AE
ASEC
AS
AR
AMGT
AFIN
AORC
AU
AG
AF
APER
ABLD
ADCO
ABUD
AM
AID
AJ
AEMR
AMED
AL
ASUP
AN
AIT
ACOA
ANET
ASIG
AA
AGMT
AINF
AFFAIRS
ADANA
AY
AADP
ARF
ACS
AGR
AMCHAMS
AECL
AUC
APEC
APECO
AFGHANISTAN
ACAO
ASEAN
ADM
AGAO
AND
ADPM
ATRN
ALOW
AROC
APCS
AORG
AO
AODE
ACABQ
AX
AMEX
AZ
ARM
AQ
ATFN
AMBASSADOR
ACBAQ
AFSI
AFSN
AC
ASEX
AER
AVERY
AGRICULTURE
ASCH
AFU
AMG
ATPDEA
ASECKFRDCVISKIRFPHUMSMIGEG
AORL
BR
BO
BA
BM
BL
BH
BK
BEXP
BILAT
BTIO
BF
BU
BD
BY
BE
BG
BB
BBSR
BT
BRUSSELS
BP
BX
BC
BIDEN
BMGT
BWC
BN
BTIU
CA
CS
CO
CD
CR
CPAS
CDG
CI
CDC
CBW
CU
CVIS
CE
CONS
CH
CMGT
CASC
CY
CW
CG
CJAN
CIDA
CODEL
CWC
CIA
CBSA
CEUDA
CFED
CLINTON
CAC
CL
CACS
CIC
CHR
CAPC
CM
CT
CTR
COM
CROS
CN
COPUOS
CV
CF
CARSON
CONDOLEEZZA
CICTE
CYPRUS
COUNTER
COUNTRY
CBE
CKGR
CVR
COUNTERTERRORISM
CITEL
CLEARANCE
COE
CARICOM
CB
CSW
CITT
CACM
CDB
CJUS
CTM
CAN
CLMT
CBC
CNARC
CIS
EFIN
ECON
ETRD
EAID
EC
EU
EUN
EINV
EG
ETTC
EIND
ELAB
EAGR
ECIN
EINT
ENRG
EFIS
ELTN
EAIR
EPET
EZ
ET
ENERG
ECPS
EWWT
EI
ETRN
EINVECONSENVCSJA
EEPET
EUNCH
ER
ES
EN
EMIN
ESENV
ENNP
ENGR
ETRDEINVECINPGOVCS
ENVI
ECINECONCS
ELN
EFTA
ELECTIONS
ENVR
EXTERNAL
ENIV
ESA
EPA
ETRO
ETRDECONWTOCS
EUR
ECUN
EXIM
EK
EUREM
ECONOMY
EUMEM
ERNG
EFINECONCS
EAIDS
ECA
ETRC
EINVEFIN
ETC
EAP
EINN
ECONOMIC
EXBS
ENGY
ECONOMICS
EIAR
EINDETRD
ECONEFIN
EURN
EDU
ETRDEINVTINTCS
ECIP
EFIM
EREL
EINVETC
ECONCS
ETRA
EAIG
EUC
ERD
IQ
IR
IS
IN
IA
IC
IZ
ICRC
ID
IDA
IT
IO
IAEA
ICJ
ICAO
IV
IBRD
IMF
IAHRC
IWC
ILO
ISLAMISTS
IGAD
ILC
ITU
ITF
INRA
INRO
ICTY
INRB
ITALY
IBET
IL
INTELSAT
ISRAELI
IMO
IDP
ICTR
ITRA
IRC
IRAQI
IEFIN
IPR
IIP
INMARSAT
ITPGOV
ITALIAN
INTERNAL
IRS
INTERPOL
IEA
INR
ISRAEL
IZPREL
IRAJ
IF
ITPHUM
IACI
INDO
KPAO
KMDR
KCOR
KNNP
KJUS
KCRM
KDEM
KVPR
KTFN
KPRP
KTIP
KSCA
KSUM
KTEX
KIDE
KIRF
KV
KTIA
KN
KG
KFRD
KWMN
KUNR
KISL
KU
KGHG
KPKO
KOMS
KPAL
KIPR
KMCA
KOMC
KRVC
KSEP
KAWC
KOLY
KWBG
KACT
KFLO
KHIV
KZ
KGIC
KBCT
KDRG
KBTR
KCFE
KE
KHLS
KMPI
KAWK
KPWR
KIRC
KRAD
KFRDCVISCMGTCASCKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KFLU
KPLS
KRIM
KSTH
KDDG
KPRV
KICC
KS
KSAF
KBIO
KREC
KCGC
KCIP
KTDB
KWAC
KPAI
KFRDKIRFCVISCMGTKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KFSC
KSTC
KMFO
KID
KNAR
KMIG
KVRP
KNEI
KGIT
KNSD
KHDP
KSAC
KWMM
KR
KCOM
KAID
KENV
KVIR
KHSA
KO
KCRS
KPOA
KTER
KFIN
KSPR
KTBT
KX
KCMR
KMOC
KCRCM
KBTS
KSEO
KOCI
KNUP
KPAONZ
KNUC
KNNPMNUC
KERG
KSCI
KTLA
KCSY
KTRD
KMRS
KNPP
KJUST
KRCM
KCFC
KCHG
KREL
KFTFN
KLIG
KDEMAF
KGCC
KICA
KHUM
KSEC
KPIN
KESS
KDEV
KPIR
KWWMN
KOM
KWNM
KRFD
KRGY
KIFR
KWMNCS
KPAK
MARR
MOPS
MUCN
MCAP
MNUC
MEPP
MTCRE
MASS
MO
MIL
MX
MAS
MEDIA
MAR
MI
MQADHAFI
MPOS
MTCR
MK
MG
MA
MY
MU
ML
MPS
MW
MD
MARAD
MC
MR
MT
MTRE
MASC
MRCRE
MAPP
MZ
MP
MOPPS
MTS
MLS
MILI
MEPN
MEPI
MEETINGS
MERCOSUR
MCC
MIK
MAPS
MV
MILITARY
MDC
MASSMNUC
NI
NZ
NL
NO
NPT
NATO
NS
NU
NP
NPA
NSFO
NDP
NT
NW
NASA
NSG
NE
NORAD
NAFTA
NG
NATIONAL
NSSP
NV
NSF
NK
NA
NEW
NPG
NR
NGO
NIPP
NZUS
NH
NC
NRR
NAR
NATOPREL
NSC
OIIP
OPRC
OTRA
OEXC
OREP
OSCE
OVIP
OPAD
OBSP
OECD
OFFICIALS
OAS
OPDC
ODIP
OPCW
OES
OFDP
OPIC
OCS
OIC
OHUM
OSCI
OVP
ODC
OIE
OTR
OMIG
OSAC
OFDA
ON
OCII
PREL
PINR
PGOV
PARM
PE
PTER
PHUM
PO
PINS
PREF
PK
PM
POL
PBTS
PNAT
PHSA
PAS
PA
PL
PGIV
PHUMPREL
POGOV
PAK
PEL
PROP
PP
PINL
PBT
PTBS
PG
PINF
PRL
PALESTINIAN
PSEPC
POSTS
PAHO
PHUMPGOV
PGOC
PNR
PREFA
PMIL
POLITICS
POLICY
PROV
PBIO
PREO
PAO
PDOV
PGOF
POV
PCI
PRAM
PSI
POLITICAL
PAIGH
PJUS
PARMS
PROG
PTERE
PRGOV
PORG
PS
PKFK
PSOE
PEPR
PPA
PINT
PMAR
PRELP
PNG
PFOR
PUNE
PGOVLO
PHUMBA
POLINT
PGOVE
PHALANAGE
PARTY
PDEM
PECON
PY
PLN
PHUH
PF
PHUS
PU
PARTIES
PCUL
PGGV
PSA
PGOVSMIGKCRMKWMNPHUMCVISKFRDCA
RU
RS
REGION
REACTION
REPORT
RO
RW
RCMP
RSO
RP
RM
ROOD
RFE
RICE
ROBERT
RSP
RF
RELATIONS
RIGHTS
RIGHTSPOLMIL
RUPREL
SENV
SY
SNAR
SCUL
SP
SF
SW
SOCI
SU
SMIG
SO
SA
SR
SZ
SI
SC
SEVN
SN
STEINBERG
SK
SH
SNARCS
SPCE
SARS
SNARN
SG
SL
SYRIA
SIPRS
SAARC
SNARIZ
SWE
SYR
SEN
SCRS
SAN
ST
SIPDIS
SSA
SPCVIS
SOFA
SENVKGHG
SANC
SHI
SHUM
TU
TSPA
TBIO
TS
TRGY
TINT
TPHY
TN
TW
TH
TZ
TSPL
TP
TBID
TI
TF
TD
TT
TNGD
TL
TC
THPY
TIP
TX
TV
TK
TERRORISM
TO
TRSY
TURKEY
TFIN
TAGS
TR
UK
UNSC
UNGA
UNESCO
UNHRC
UP
UN
USTR
US
UNDC
UY
UNICEF
UNDP
UNMIK
UNAUS
UNCHC
UNCSD
USOAS
UNFCYP
UG
UNIDROIT
UNO
UV
UNHCR
UNEP
USEU
UZ
UNCND
USUN
UNCHR
USNC
USPS
USAID
UE
UNVIE
UAE
UNODC
UNCHS
UNFICYP
UNDESCO
UNC
UNPUOS
Browse by classification
Community resources
courage is contagious
Viewing cable 07MONTREAL132, Mosaic under pressure: Quebec's identity and religious
If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs
Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:
- The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
- The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
- The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.
Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #07MONTREAL132.
Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin |
---|---|---|---|---|
07MONTREAL132 | 2007-03-19 18:43 | 2011-04-28 00:00 | UNCLASSIFIED | Consulate Montreal |
VZCZCXRO9534
RR RUEHGA RUEHHA RUEHQU RUEHVC
DE RUEHMT #0132/01 0781843
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 191843Z MAR 07
FM AMCONSUL MONTREAL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0506
INFO RUCNCAN/ALCAN COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MONTREAL 000132
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
Ref: 06 Montreal 676, 06 Montreal 1202
SECSTATE FOR WHA/CAN, WHA/PD, DS/IP/WHA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM PINS KDEM KWMN SOCI CA
SUBJECT: Mosaic under pressure: Quebec's identity and religious
tolerance debate (Part 1 of 2)
This message is Sensitive but Unclassified
-------
Summary
-------
¶1. (SBU) An undercurrent of social conflict has emerged between
Quebec's identity as a "secular" province and the more overt
expressions of faith, particularly by immigrants whom Quebec has
received in recent years. While "reasonable accommodation"
originated in jurisprudence of labor relations between employers and
employees, it has become the political catch-all term for this
building tension, as Quebec's, particularly Montreal's, increasingly
multicultural society questions to what extent its society should
shape its rules and values to "accommodate" religious or cultural
considerations. The reasonable accommodation debate has built even
more momentum recently. Several high profile incidents have stoked
intense public discourse and political opportunism, especially as
QuebecQs provincial election hits full momentum, with politicians,
academics, media, religious leaders, minority advocates and everyday
Quebeckers all weighing in on what is "reasonable" accommodation of
racial, ethnic and religious minorities in an increasingly diverse
society. Even if the issue recedes slightly after the elections,
Canada's most recent census and ongoing academic, think-thank, and
policy planning assessments indicate that the reasonable
accommodation debate will continue, given immigration trends and
Quebec's reliance on immigrants for economic, cultural and political
influence vis-a-vis the rest of Canada and pro-Quebec federal
policies.
----------------------------------
Behind The Reasonable Accommodation Debate
-----------------------------------
¶2. (SBU) Quebec's identity as a "secular" province, as well as the
emphasis placed on gender equality in public and private life, can
be traced to the "Quiet Revolution," the revolt against the Catholic
Church, which occurred during the 1960s. While traditional Quebec
culture tended to be patriarchal and a majority of Francophone
Quebeckers adhered strongly to Church teachings, the Quiet
Revolution of the 1960s produced a society that cast off Catholic
teachings (and religion in general) and elevated the status of
women. Although, according to Statistics Canada, 83% of Quebeckers
identify themselves as Catholic, only an estimated 20% of those are
practicing (compared to 88% of Quebeckers who attended Church on a
weekly basis in the 1950s). A prominent CBC radio personality and
political analyst commented privately to PAO: to be politically
correct demands that he "intellectually" understand the Quebec
Muslim woman's argument when she says she "chooses" (and is not
intimidated into) wearing the hijab, but he admitted that he and his
Quiet Revolution generation still have an emotional knee-jerk
reaction to anything perceived as challenging gender equality or
Quebec's cultural identity as a fervently secular society.
¶3. (SBU) Quebec also registers a strikingly low birth rate, among
the lowest in North America, (although it made modest gains last
year, which some attribute to new daycare subsidies). A
recently-released census snapshot of Canada's population shows that
Quebec's population grew by 4.3% between 2001 and 2006, a growth
predominantly fueled by immigration. Quebec has not kept up with
the 5.3% average growth rate in the rest of the country, producing a
slight decline in the province's overall share of the Canadian
population. In fact, this low birth rate is one of the main factors
behind the provincial government's proactive policy of attracting
immigrants, especially those from Francophone countries, to bolster
its workforce (reftel A). (Ironically, however, in Quebec, the
historical under-employment of members of ethnic minorities is most
acute in public institutions.) Quebec's reliance on immigration as
a source of population growth concerns some Quebeckers. One ADQ
candidate was dismissed from his party for stating that native
Quebeckers need to "boost their birth rate; otherwise the ethnics
will swamp us." This sentiment is far from universal, but reveals
the increasing tension related with incorporating immigrants into
Montreal's social fabric while it strives to maintain its identity
as a French-speaking minority within Canada.
------------------------------------------
Soccer, Spandex, Spoons and Shari'a: How far is too far?
------------------------------------------
¶4. (SBU) On February 26, 2007, a Muslim referee in the Montreal-area
town of Laval ordered an 11-year old Muslim girl from Ottawa to
remove her hijab or be prohibited from playing in a soccer
tournament. When the girl's team forfeited the match, in protest of
the referee's decision, the issue quickly gained national prominence
as the latest reasonable accommodation case. The Quebec Soccer
Federation sided with the referee, stating that all religious
MONTREAL 00000132 002 OF 003
headgear was prohibited for safety reasons. The International
Football Association Board (IFAB) ruled on March 3rd that Law 4 on
players' equipment covers the issue, in essence letting the Quebec
Soccer Federation's ban prohibiting the hijab because of safety
reasons - including the possibility of accidental strangulation --
stand. Many questioned the ban's rationale, charging it was less
about safety and more about politics regarding reasonable
accommodation. Ironically, Montreal and other cities across Canada
are to host FIFA's Under-20 World Cup Tournament this summer, and
Canada is vying for the Women's Soccer World Cup in 2011.
¶5. (SBU) This incident was only one in a series of situations that
have brought the long-simmering issue of reasonable accommodation to
a boil. Several Montreal schools and social institutions have
grappled for some time with the need to provide prayer space for
Muslims and allow for other tangible expressions of faith, such as
the wearing of Sikh ceremonial daggers or the hijab. Other events
have included: complaints from a Hasidic Jewish synagogue about
young men catching glimpses of latex-clad women working out prompted
a downtown YMCA to frost its windows (at the expense of the
synagogue) in November 2006; an incident at a Montreal-area school
in which a Filipino-Canadian boy was chastised by his teacher for
his eating habits (the boy's family claimed that his Filipino
tradition of spoon and fork eating caused the teacher to accuse him
of eating "like a pig") became front-page news in the Philippines
and even provoked a small gathering of spoon-and-fork-wielding
demonstrators at the Canadian Embassy in Manila in April 2006; and
in 2005, the Quebec Human Rights Commission ruled that private
schools did not have the authority to expel a young woman for
wearing her hijab and also rejected the use of Islamic tribunals for
the settlement of family disputes.
¶6. (SBU) The Montreal police has prided itself on (and often been
praised for) its positive engagement with various cultural
communities. However, the city's police force fell into the debate
at the end of 2006 when an internal Montreal police magazine
suggested female officers step aside to let male colleagues deal
with male Hasidic Jews. The publication's advice drew criticism by
those who viewed the suggestions as setting an institutional policy
in direct conflict with the traditionally-held Quebec value of
gender equality. At the same time, some members of the Hasidic
community dismissed the advice as unnecessary, noting that there had
not been any complaints from their community with regard to
interactions with female officers. A Montreal police contact said
that the suggestions formed part of a series of brochures to help
police officers deal with members of various cultural communities,
and noted that there had been no complaints by female officers.
-----------------------------------------
Herouxville: Propagating Negative Stereotypes, Xenophobia?
-----------------------------------------
¶7. (SBU) The remote town of Herouxville (population 1,275 according
to the most recent census; its citizens include one black family
among a population that is otherwise exclusively white and Roman
Catholic.), 100 miles north of Montreal, became the center of the
controversy when its city council adopted a controversial code of
conduct for immigrants, apparently aimed at Muslim immigrants, in
January 2007. A hodgepodge of social norms and values, the code of
conduct prohibits head coverings (but not applicable to Catholic
nuns attire), the stoning of women, and female circumcision. As
international, Canadian and Quebec media descended upon the small
town, Herouxville presented a political and societal challenge to
Quebec's multicultural model of diversity and tolerance, which
Herouxville's council claimed has reached its limits. On February
11, a delegation of Muslim women, wearing head scarves, visited
Herouxville to educate town council members and residents about the
Islamic faith and to appeal for changes to the town's "code of life"
which the women argued unfairly targeted religious minorities. The
town toned down portions of the code, removing references to burning
women with acid and stoning women to death, but claimed the code of
conduct was misinterpreted by media.
¶8. (SBU) The Herouxville controversy is still causing ripples of
reactions. For example, a young Lebanese Montrealer's poem for an
Arabic-language newspaper that praised Muslim women for wearing the
veil and criticized Quebecoise women for drinking and promiscuity
provoked another round of reflection. Likewise, bloggers' comments
show how raw and emotionally-charged the issue is, especially to
those who view it as part of a larger trend of religious concessions
to Muslim immigrants in what should be a secular state: "I think
that anyone who comes from another country, for whatever reason, and
wants to benefit from all our freedoms and social benefits, should
act like one of us" reads one. "This is ANOTHER attempt by some
religious fringe trying to impose their religious habits on the
general population. Either fit in or get out!!!"
MONTREAL 00000132 003 OF 003
-------
Comment
-------
¶9. (SBU) Some analysts and commentators have described the recent
firestorm about reasonable accommodation as a purely media-created
phenomenon resulting more from news competition than real citizen
concern, or as a fickle, easily manipulated election issue that has
no real impact on the lives of Quebec 7.6 million residents. Others
have stated that Quebec is simply catching up to other parts of the
Western world on the issue, citing similar multicultural societies
growing pains and debates in France and the Netherlands.
Regardless, drawing on historical identity and religious
sensitivities, Herouxville and youth soccer were the incendiary
events that have guaranteed reasonable accommodation's place in
Quebec's provincial election rhetoric (see septel).
¶10. (SBU) The debate about reasonable accommodation reveals deeper
concerns in Quebec about the integration of immigrants into society,
and also illustrates the vast differences in how immigration and
multiculturalism are perceived by Quebec's urban and rural
inhabitants. Even in Montreal, Quebeckers have begun to question
whether the "mosaic" model of multiculturalism, so prized as a
component of Quebec and Canadian society, might have unforeseen
consequences for social cohesion and whether the accommodation of
diversity in Quebec society should, at some point, be subject to
limits. One Montreal human rights law expert summed up the current
situation, in which small, relatively innocuous symbols have taken
on provocative meanings, as stemming from Quebeckers' tendency
towards "not caring what color you are, or what religion you
practice, so long as you act exactly as we do." The insatiable
popular appetite, as reflected in hyperactive media coverage,
academic discussion and popular culture, coupled with QuebecQs
religious history, immigration trends and public policy assessments
indicate reasonable accommodation will continue to touch nerves and
be a major component of Quebec's social, political and cultural
discourse on its identity.
MARSHALL