Secessionist movements of Canada

Secessionist movements of Canada

Movements seeking independence from Canada

Quebec

Quebec Sovereignism seeks indpendence from Canada for the province of Quebec. This movement often seeks svoereignty for Quebec within an economic association with the rest of Canada, e.g., an economic union. This movement has spawned a variety of organizations, most notably the Parti Québécois, a social democratic political party at the provincial level of government in Quebec that has governed the province for various periods since 1976, and the Bloc Québécois, which currently controls 56 of Quebec's 75 seats in the Canadian House of Commons, and which promotes Quebec sovereignty and Quebec's interests at the federal level of government.

The Front de Liberation du Quebec was a terrorist organization in the 1960s and early 1970s that used violence to promote independence for Quebec.

See also:

Western Canada

The Métis, under the leadership of Louis Riel staged the Red River Rebellion in Manitoba against Canada in 1870, and the North-West Rebellion in Saskatchewan in 1885.

Since the 1980s, numerous political parties have sought independence from Canada for the four western provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. These movements at times assumed that Canada's northern territories -- Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut -- would also be a part of a new Western Canadian nation. These parties have achieved only modest success. These parties include the Western Canada Concept and the Western Independence Party.

The Alberta Independence Party promoted independence for the province of Alberta either on its own, or in union with the other western provinces.

The Unionest Party (sic) was a short-lived provincial political party in Saskatchewan in 1980 that promoted the union of the western provinces with the United States of America.

Nova Scotia

Shortly after the Confederation of three British colonies (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and the Province of Canada) to form the Dominion of Canada, opponents of Confederation in Nova Scotia began promoting the withdrawal of that province from the new confederation. The Anti-Confederation Party won 18 of the 19 Nova Scotia seats in the new Canadian House of Commons in the 1867 general election, and 36 of the 38 seats in the Nova Scotia legislature, but did not succeed in achieving independence for Nova Scotia.

Manitoba

In January-February 1868, a small group of settlers declared a Republic of Caledonia, later the Republic of Manitoba, at Portage-la-Prairie in Hudson's Bay Company land that was to be incorporated into Canada. These settlers aimed to use this declaration to obtain favourable terms (for themselves) for the entry of the area into Confederation. The declaration was not recognized by Canadian or British authorities, and the republic soon collapsed.

Movements seeking provincial status for a region within Canada

The Parti Acadien was a provincial political party in New Brunswick in the 1970s that sought the creation of a separate province in northern New Brunswick, where the majority of the population are French-speaking Acadians. the party had modest electoral success, but later folded.

The Labrador Party was an political party in the Labrador portion of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador in the 1980s. the party aimed to promote the interests of Labrador, and may have considered provincial status if an accommodation within the province were not possible. It has recently been revived.

The Cape Breton Labour Party was a personal political vehicle for Paul McEwan, a long-time politician at the provincial level in Nova Scotia, and veteran of several political parties. The CBLP aimed to have Cape Breton Island separate from Nova Scotia to form a new province within Canada. McEwan won re-elction under this party banner, but no other party member was successful. Eventually, the CBLP folded when McEwan joined the Liberal Party of Nova Scotia.

The Northern Ontario Heritage Party was a political movement in Northern Ontario in the 1970s that aimed to address the chronic problems of underdevelopment and unemployment in the region by separating from Ontario. the party never achieved electoral success.

The Province of Toronto Party was a short-lived poltical party taht never nominated a candidate at the federal or provincial levels. A web-site was established to serve as a forum for those in favour of provincial status, but it later chnaged its focus to getting better treatment for Toronto within Ontario. Former Toronto mayor Mel Lastman had proposed a Province of Metro when he was mayor of the City of North York prior to the amalgamation of that city with Toronto and four other municipalities.

National Capital Region: at various times, provincial status or special federal status has been proposed for the region of Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec so that the national capital would not be part of any province.

North-western Ontario: During the government of Ontario Premier Mike Harris, a group of councillors of municipalities in North-western Ontario, who believed that the provincial government was ignoring the plight of their region, discussed separating from Ontario and joining the neighbouring province of Manitoba.

North-eastern British Columbia: Some residents of the part of North-eastern British Columbia that lies to the east of the Rocky Mountains proposed joining the neighbouring province of Alberta during a period when the social democratic New Democratic Party of British Columbia was in power.

Vancouver Island was originally a separate British colony before being attached to the colony of British Columbia. Some island residents believe that the island would be better off as its own province.

Other movements

Republic of Madawaska

The Republic of Madawaska occupies the northwest corner of New Brunswick, and lies partially in Quebec and the American state of Maine. The origins of the republic lie in the 1783 Treaty of Versailles, which established the border between the United States of America and the British North American colonies. The Madawaska region remained in dispute between Britain and the US until 1842.

In 1817, an American settler, John Baker, arrived in the region. Baker petitioned the state of Maine for inclusion in the state in 1825. In 1827, Baker and his wife, Sophie Rice, announced their intention to declare the Republic of Madawaska on August 10th of that year. On that day, the British magistrate confiscated Baker's American flag. Baker was arrested by the British on September 25 for conspiracy and sedition. This set off a diplomatic incident, which led to arbitration by the King of the Netherlands. His decision in 1831 was rejected by Maine. The U.S. and Great Britain signed the Ashburton-Webster Treaty on August 9, 1842, finally settling the boundary question.

According to a pamphlet entitled "The Republic of Madawaska" and published at Edmundston, "The myth of the 'Republic of Madawaska' (because it is not a true Republic in a political sense) draws its origins from an answer given to a French official on a tour of inspection during the troubled times by an old Madawaska colonist. Thinking the official a little too inquisitive he said 'I am a citizen of the Republic of Madawaska' with all the force of an old Roman saying 'I am a citizen of Rome,' and the pride of a Londoner declaring 'I am a British subject'."

The Republic now exists for only tourism and marketing purposes. A flag of the republic was created in 1938, bearing an American eagle and an arc of six red stars on a white field. This flag flies at the city hall of Edmunston, New Brunswick and at Madawaska festivals.

Source: Republic of Madawaska

Republic of Rathnelly

The Rathnelly neighbourhood in Toronto made headlines in 1967, while celebrating Canada's 100th birthday. During the celebrations, Rathnelly residents playfully declared themselves as a republic independent of Canada. To mark their independence, the "Republic of Rathnelly" elected a queen, organized a parade, and issued Republic of Rathnelly passports to everyone in the neighbourhood. The new nation conscripted all 8-14-year-old citizens to form a militia, known as the Rathnelly Irregulars, and armed them with 1,000 helium balloons (the Rathnelly "air farce"). The "Republic of Rathnelly" continues to hold annual street parties.

Kingdom of the Saguenay

The Saguenay region is on both shores of the Saguenay river in Quebec. When the first European discoverers (Jacques Cartier, and others) sailed up the St. Lawrence River, they came upon a very important fjord-like river flowing into the St. Lawrence, and called it the Saguenay river. It was believed that it would be an important route of penetration into the continent. The expression "Royaume du Saguenay " or "Saguenay kingdom" came from the decree of the King of France that the area drained by the Saguenay would remain his personal domain, and that new settlement would not be authorized.

An apocryphal explanation for the origin of the name is that the name "Kingdom of Saguenay" takes its origin in a legend from the beginning of the French colonization in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. This explanation states that, according to the Algonkian Indians, there was a Kingdom of white blond men rich of gold and furs in the north in a place they called Saguenay. French explorers looked for this kingdom in vain. Some people believe that Algonkian oral tradition referred to an ancient Viking settlement.

While the people of the region tend to be more strongly in favour of Quebec Sovereignism that those in other parts of the province, there is no such thing as a Saguenean nationalism.