Statement made on 11 February 2009 by Senator Maria Chaput
Hon. Maria Chaput:
Honourable senators, in 1969 Parliament unanimously adopted the Official Languages Act, which established the principle of the equal status of English and French within the Canadian government. Shortly thereafter, a French-language daily newspaper reported that the fact that all political parties supported the legislation meant that the vast majority of Canadians were in favour of the initiative.
Now, 40 years later, more and more Canadians are learning to speak French, and the vast majority of Canadians are in favour of bilingualism.
According to a 2006 survey, 72 per cent of Canadians support bilingualism. The survey also showed that 77 per cent of Canadians are willing to allocate more resources to schools for linguistic minorities in an effort to achieve fairness in providing quality education.
The 40th anniversary of the Official Languages Act gives us an unparalleled opportunity to take stock of what we have accomplished in terms of official languages and of what remains to be done, and to work toward achieving the tremendous goal of making Canada a proudly bilingual country.
As the Supreme Court of Canada stated, and I quote:
The importance of language rights is grounded in the essential role that language plays in human existence, development and dignity. . . Language bridges the gap between isolation and community, allowing humans to delineate the rights and duties they hold in respect of one another, and thus to live in society.
There are many people who can attest that the Official Languages Act provides vital protection for official language minority communities. This act, whose quasi-constitutional status is recognized by Canada's courts, contributes enormously to the vitality of official language minority communities, including my Franco-Manitoban community.
I hope that the celebrations around the passage of the Official Languages Act 40 years ago will serve as a springboard for a discussion on the current status of the official languages in Canadian society. The topics we need to discuss include the positive measures federal institutions should take to honour the government's commitment under the act to promote the equality of the official languages.