Bulletin n. 3/2006
December 2006
CONTENTS
  • Section A) The theory and practise of the federal states and multi-level systems of government
  • Section B) Global governance and international organizations
  • Section C) Regional integration processes
  • Section D) Federalism as a political idea
    • Simeon R., Turgeon L.
    Federalism, nationalism and regionalism in Canada
    in Revista d'Estudis Autonomics i Federals , n. 3 ,  2006 ,  11 - 42
    • This article analyses the capacity of Canadian federalism to articulate and accommodate the dual and regionalist character defining Canada through a range of arguments and opinions both for and against that have been generated both within the Canadian Federation and abroad. From the standpoint of the Quebec sovereignists, federalism is highly restrictive of the Quebec nation's freedom to express itself, by itself, within the Canadian context as well as within international ambits; for Quebec nationalists, the term Quebec "nation" implies-indeed, requires-a "Quebec state". But, from the standpoint of the Quebec federalists (a good number of whom understand Quebec as a sociological and political nation), the future of Quebec lies with its membership of the Canadian Federation, however much this has to recognise Quebec as a "differential society" within Canada, and however much it has to ensure that Quebec will develop and promote its interests as a nation. For yet others, the decentralist character of Canadian federalism, and the extensive provisions for asymmetry built into the system, mean that Quebec is already perhaps the most powerful sub-national government in the world, such that it already has the powers necessary to fulfil its national destiny, within the federation. Opinion outside Quebec ranges from those who accept this view, and embrace asymmetry, to those who argue that Quebec is simply one of ten existing provinces, each of which is distinct, and which should all be treated as equals in accordance with the constitutional and political framework.
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