| Robert Bourassa | |
 A portrait of Robert Bourassa, taken during his second term as premier of Quebec (1985–1994). |
|
|
22nd Premier of Quebec
|
|
|---|---|
| In office May 12, 1970 – November 25, 1976 |
|
| Preceded by | Jean-Jacques Bertrand |
| Succeeded by | René Lévesque |
| In office December 12, 1985 – January 11, 1994 |
|
| Preceded by | Pierre-Marc Johnson |
| Succeeded by | Daniel Johnson, Jr. |
|
|
|
| Born | July 14, 1933 Montreal, Quebec |
| Died | October 2, 1996 (aged 63) Montreal, Quebec |
| Political party | Quebec Liberal Party |
| Profession | fiscal adviser, teacher, lawyer |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Robert Bourassa (July 14, 1933 – October 2, 1996) was a politician in Quebec, Canada. The Premier of Quebec (in French Premier ministre du Québec, sometimes literally translated as Prime Minister of Quebec) is the First minister for the Jean-Jacques Bertrand ( June 20, 1916 - February 22, 1973) was the Premier of Quebec, Canada, from Pierre-Marc Johnson GOQ is a Quebec Lawyer, Physician and politician Daniel Johnson Jr (born December 24, 1944) is a former Quebec Politician. Events 1223 - Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father Philip II of France. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Montreal, or Montréal in French ( pronounced in French, in English) is the largest city in the Canadian province of Quebec Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) The Quebec Liberal Party, (or PLQ) is a liberal Political party in the Canadian province of Quebec. In Education, a teacher is one who helps Students or pupils often in a School, as well as in a Family, religious or A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law as an attorney, Counsel or Solicitor; a person Events 1223 - Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father Philip II of France. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page He served as Liberal Premier of Quebec in two different mandates, first from May 12, 1970, to November 25, 1976, and then from December 12, 1985, to January 11, 1994. The Quebec Liberal Party, (or PLQ) is a liberal Political party in the Canadian province of Quebec. The Premier of Quebec (in French Premier ministre du Québec, sometimes literally translated as Prime Minister of Quebec) is the First minister for the Events 1191 - Richard I of England marries Berengaria of Navarre. Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1034 - Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots dies Donnchad, the Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 627 - Battle of Nineveh: A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeats Emperor Khosrau II 's Persian Year 1985 ( MCMLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays 1985 Gregorian calendar) Events 1055 - Theodora is crowned Empress of the Byzantine Empire. Year 1994 ( MCMXCIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar)
Contents |
Early years and education
Bourassa was born in Montreal in a working class family to Aubert Bourassa, a port authority worker, and Adrienne Courville. Montreal, or Montréal in French ( pronounced in French, in English) is the largest city in the Canadian province of Quebec [1] Robert Bourassa graduated from the Université de Montréal law school in 1956 and was admitted to the Barreau du Québec the following year. The Bar of Quebec is the provincial Bar association for Lawyers in Quebec, Canada. On August 23, 1958, he married Andrée Simard. Later, he studied at the University of Oxford and also obtained a degree in political economy at Harvard University in 1960. The University of Oxford (informally "Oxford University" or simply "Oxford" located in the city of Oxford, Oxfordshire, England is the Political economy originally was the term for studying production buying and selling and their relations with law custom and government On his return to Québec, he was employed at the federal Department of National Revenue as a fiscal adviser. He also worked as a professor of public finance at Université de Montréal and Université Laval.
Political life
First term
Bourassa was first elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec (MLA) for the riding of Mercier in 1966, then went on to lead the Quebec Liberal Party on January 17, 1970. The Legislative Assembly of Quebec (French Assemblée législative du Québec) was the name of the lower house of Quebec 's Legislature until 1968 Members of Legislative Assembly (Montreal-Mercier Adolphe L'Archevêque, Conservative Party (1923-1927 Anatole Plante, Liberal He positioned himself as a young, competent, administrator. He chose "100 000 jobs" as his slogan, which emphasized that jobs creation would be his priority. Bourassa felt the extensive hydro-electric resources of Quebec were the most effective means of completing the modernization of Quebec and sustaining job creation. He successfully led his party into government in the 1970 election, defeating the conservative Union Nationale government[2] and becoming the youngest premier in Quebec history. The Quebec general election of 1970 was held on April 29, 1970 to elect members of the National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada Origin The party started as a loose coalition of legislators the Action libérale nationale (a group dissidents from the Liberal Party of Quebec) and the
One of Bourassa's first crises as premier was the October Crisis of 1970, in which his labour minister, Pierre Laporte, was kidnapped and murdered. The October Crisis was a series of dramatic events triggered by two terrorist Kidnappings of government officials by members of the Pierre Laporte ( 25 February, 1921 &ndash 17 October, 1970) was a Canadian politician who was the Vice-Premier and Bourassa requested that Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau invoke the War Measures Act to resolve the situation. The War Measures Act (enacted in August 1914 replaced by the Emergencies Act in 1988 was a Canadian Statute that allowed the government to assume sweeping The decision, although controversial, helped the police and government forces avert further abductions. After Laporte's kidnapping, it is said that Bourassa barricaded himself and his cabinet behind heavy layers of security.
Bourassa and Trudeau often clashed over issues of federal-provincial relations and Quebec nationalism, with Trudeau opposing what he saw as concessions to sovereignism. Quebec nationalism is a contemporary nationalist movement in Canada similar to what is found in other multi-ethnic and multi-lingual regions of the world The Quebec sovereignty movement ( Mouvement souverainiste du Québec) is a political movement aimed at either attaining independent statehood ( Sovereignty) or some
During his time in power, Bourassa implemented policies aimed at protecting the status of the French language in Quebec. In 1974, he introduced Bill 22. However, this legislation was soon superseded by the Charter of the French Language also known as Bill 101, introduced by the Parti Québécois government that replaced him in 1976. The Charter of the French Language ( La charte de la langue française, in French) also known as Bill 101 and Loi 101, By making French the official language of Quebec, Quebec was no longer institutionally bilingual (English and French). Many businesses and professionals were unable to operate under such requirements. Bill 22 angered Anglophones while not going far enough for many Francophones; Bourassa was vilified by both groups and lost the 1976 election in a landslide.
Bourassa initiated the James Bay hydroelectric project in 1971 that led to the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement of 1975 with the Cree and Inuit inhabitants of the region. The James Bay Project (in French projet de la Baie-James) refers to the construction of a series of hydroelectric power stations on the La Grande River The James Bay And Northern Quebec Agreement was an Aboriginal land claim settlement approved in 1975 by the Cree and Inuit of northern Not to be confused with the Creek. Cree is an Exonym applied to various people indigenous to North America namely the Nehiyaw Nehithaw Nehilaw Inuit (plural the singular Inuk, means "man" or "person" is a general term for a group of culturally similar Indigenous peoples inhabiting The Bourassa government also played a major role in rescuing the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal from the huge cost overruns and construction delays. The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, were an International Multi-sport event held in Montreal, Quebec Bourassa's government became embroiled in corruption scandals that led to his 1976 defeat.
Bourassa lost the 1976 provincial election to René Lévesque, leader of the separatist Parti Québécois. The Quebec general election of 1976 was held on November 15, 1976 to elect members to National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, The Quebec sovereignty movement ( Mouvement souverainiste du Québec) is a political movement aimed at either attaining independent statehood ( Sovereignty) or some The Parti Québécois ' is a Sovereignist Political party that advocates national sovereignty for the Canadian province of Quebec and Bourassa resigned as Liberal Party leader, and accepted teaching positions in Europe and the United States. He remained in political exile until he returned to politics as Liberal leader on October 15, 1983. He was elected in the former Montérégie riding of Bertrand (now Marguerite-D'Youville) and regained the office of premier in the 1985 election. Montérégie is an administrative region in the southwestern corner of Quebec. Members of the National Assembly Bertrand (Monteregie riding Denis Lazure, Parti Québécois (1981-1984 Robert Bourassa, Liberal The Quebec general election of 1985 was held on December 2, 1985, to elect members of the National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada However, Bourassa lost his seat to the Parti Québécois candidate Jean-Guy Parent. In 1986, he was elected in a by-election in the Liberal stronghold of Saint-Laurent after the MNA, Germain Leduc, left his seat vacant. A by-election or bye-election (called special election in the United States) is an Election held to fill a political office that has become vacant Members of the National Assembly Léo Pearson, Liberal (1966-1973 Claude Forget, Liberal (1973-1981 Germain Leduc
Second term
In his second term, Bourassa invoked the notwithstanding clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to override a Supreme Court of Canada ruling that declared parts of the Charter of the French Language unconstitutional, causing some English-speaking ministers in his government to resign. Section Thirty-three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is part of the Constitution of Canada. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (also known as The Charter of Rights and Freedoms or simply the Charter) is a Bill of rights entrenched in the The Supreme Court of Canada ( French: Cour suprême du Canada) is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeal in the Canadian A few years later, however, he introduced modifications to the language charter. These compromises reduced the controversy over language that had been a dominant feature of Quebec politics over the previous decades.
Bourassa also pushed for Quebec to be acknowledged in the Canadian constitution as a "distinct society", promising Quebecers that their grievances could be resolved within Canada with a new constitutional deal. Early in his first time in office, he participated in an early attempt at constitutional reform, the Victoria Charter of 1971, which quickly unravelled when Bourassa backed away from the proposed deal after it was strongly criticized by Quebec opinion leaders for not protecting Quebec's traditional veto power on constitutional amendments. The Victoria Charter was a set of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada in 1971. In his second time in office, he worked closely with federal Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and received many concessions from the federal government, culminating in the Meech Lake Accord in 1987 and the Charlottetown Accord in 1992. Martin Brian Mulroney PC CC GOQ (predominantly known as Brian Mulroney) (born March 20, 1939) was the eighteenth The Meech Lake Accord was a set of failed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and the provincial The Charlottetown Accord was a package of constitutional amendments proposed by the Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. The Meech Lake Accord failed in June 1990 when two provinces, Manitoba and Newfoundland, refused to ratify the agreement their premiers had signed. The Charlottetown Accord was defeated in a nationwide plebesite in 1992, reviving the Quebec separatist movement.
Final years
Bourassa retired from politics in 1994. He was replaced as Liberal leader and premier by Daniel Johnson, Jr., who lost an election to the separatist Parti Québécois after only nine months. Daniel Johnson Jr (born December 24, 1944) is a former Quebec Politician.
In 1996, Bourassa died in Montreal of malignant melanoma[3] at the age of 63, and was interred at the Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery in Montreal. Melanoma is a Malignant Tumor of Melanocytes which are found predominantly in skin but also in the Bowel and the Eye (see Founded in 1854 Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges is a 343-acre (1
Quotations
- No matter what anyone says and no matter what anyone does, Quebec is, today and forever, a distinct society, free and capable of assuming its destiny and development. Distinct society (in French la société distincte) is a political expression especially used during a Constitutional debate in Canada, in the second half (listen) (watch excerpts of original speech) (watch English dubbing) Speech given on June 22, 1990, at the National Assembly, in the wake of the Meech Lake Accord's demise. The Meech Lake Accord was a set of failed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and the provincial
Posthumous homage
- A statue and a memorial of Bourassa was unveiled in front of the National Assembly on October 19, 2006. [1]
- The City of Quebec renamed Highway Du Vallon, a major road in Quebec City, after Bourassa in late 2006.
Parc Avenue controversy
- On October 18, 2006 Montreal Mayor Gérald Tremblay announced that Montreal's Parc Avenue would be named after Bourassa. Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Gérald Tremblay (born September 20, 1942 in Ottawa) is a Canadian Politician currently serving his second term as [2]
- On November 28 the Montreal city council voted in favour (40-22) of renaming Parc Avenue after Bourassa. For the town in Argentina, see 28 de Noviembre. Events [3]
- If, as had been expected, Quebec's Toponymy Commission had approved the name change, all of Parc Avenue and its continuation, Bleury, would have been renamed Avenue Robert Bourassa. Toponymy refers to the scientific study of place-names ( toponyms) their origins meanings use and Typology. This would have caused the newly named street to intersect René-Lévesque Boulevard, named after a long time political rival to Bourassa. René Lévesque Boulevard ( boulevard René-Lévesque in French) is one of the main streets in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. That boulevard, in turn, had been renamed from Dorchester Boulevard in 1987, in a decision that was also not without controversy. [4]
- This decision by the City of Montreal without any consultation with the people of the city caused an immediate controversy[5], though many of those opposed to the change considered it a fait accompli[6]. Here are some examples of French words and phrases used by English speakers.
- The proposal spawned substantial grass-roots opposition, both because of the lack of prior citizen input and because Parc is itself a meaningful street name, associated with the city's Mount Royal park. Mount Royal ( Mont Royal) ( is a Hill on the Island of Montreal, immediately north of downtown Montreal, Quebec [7]
- In addition to protests and active opposition by a committee of Montreal residents and businesses opposed to the name change, an online petition garnered more than 18,000 virtual signatures against this renaming. The petition is now closed
- On February 5, 2007, Montreal mayor Gerald Tremblay withdrew his proposal to rename Parc Avenue. Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Gérald Tremblay (born September 20, 1942 in Ottawa) is a Canadian Politician currently serving his second term as [4]
See also
- Robert Bourassa's speech on the end of the Meech Lake Accord
- Politics of Quebec
- List of Quebec Premiers
- Quebec general elections
- Timeline of Quebec history
- Prime Minister nicknaming in Quebec
- Boubou Macoutes
References
- ^ (French) Robert BOURASSA. The Meech Lake Accord was a set of failed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and the provincial Political system British-type parliamentarism based on the Westminster system was introduced in the Province of Lower Canada in 1791 Wikipedia_talkFeatured_lists#Proposed_change_to_all_featured_lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->This is a list of the premiers This article provides a summary of results for the General elections to the Canadian province of Quebec ' s Unicameral legislative This article presents a detailed timeline of Quebec history. Events taking place outside Quebec, for example in English Canada, the United States, A custom of Quebecers is to give Nicknames to their Politicians (and some personalities quite especially their Premiers. Les Boubou Macoutes was the popular Nickname of special inspectors who visited the homes and investigated suspected "welfare cheats" in the Canadian Assemblée Nationale (French). Retrieved on 2006-08-31. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1056 - Byzantine Empress Theodora becomes ill dying suddenly a few days later without children to succeed the Throne
- ^ Downey, Donn. Former premier fought for Quebec, A14. The Globe & Mail, October 3, 1996. The Globe and Mail is a Canadian English language nationally distributed Newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities
- ^ Came, Barry; Brenda Branswell (1996-10-14). Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) Events 1066 - Norman Conquest: Battle of Hastings - In England on Senlac Hill seven miles from Hastings, the forces Bourassa, Robert (Obituary). The Canadian Encyclopedia (article reprinted from Maclean's Magazine). The Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. Maclean's is a Canadian weekly News magazine, reporting on Canadian issues such as politics pop culture and current events Historica Foundation. Retrieved on 2007-09-14. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 81 - Domitian becomes Emperor of the Roman Empire upon the death of his brother Titus.
- ^ Montreal mayor drops plan to rename Parc Avenue. Retrieved on 2007-02-06. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio
External links
- National Assembly biography (in French)
- The Trickster: Robert Bourassa and Quebeckers 1990-1992 JF Lisée book on Bourassa available online on Google Print.
- CBC Digital Archives: Robert Bourassa: Political Survivor
- Robert Bourassa, by Daniel Latouche
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic