From August
30 to September 2, the Manitoba Legislature hosted the 26th Regional
Assembly of the America of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie
(APF) as well as the Conference of Branch Chairs. The delegation from the
Canadian Branch of the APF was made up of the Hon. Andrée Champagne,
PC, Senator, Chair of the Canadian Branch and Chair of the Conference of Branch
Chairs; Ms. Shelly Glover, MP; and Mr. Bernard Généreux,
MP. The delegation was accompanied by Mr. François Michaud, Branch
Secretary.
In addition
to the Canadian Branch, the Alberta, British Columbia, Louisiana, Prince Edward
Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan branches
also participated in the working sessions. Mr. Arsène Yé, the Chargé
de mission for Africa, observed. The Hon. Greg Selinger,
Manitoba Premier and Minister responsible for Francophone Affairs; the
Hon. Jennifer Howard, Minister of Labour and Immigration; and a
number of representatives of the Franco-Manitoban community joined the
delegates for the opening and closing dinners of the Assembly.
Conference
of Branch Chairs
The
Conference of Branch Chairs, Chaired by the Hon. Andrée Champagne, heard
a report from the Chargé de mission for the Americas about the
activities in the America Region from July 2009 to July 2010. The Conference
also heard about the state of finances for the APF America Region for the
2009-10 fiscal year and budget estimates for 2010-11. The Conference reviewed
the 26th Ordinary Session of the APF (Dakar, July 2009) and accepted the
Quebec Branch’s invitation to host the winter 2011 meeting in Quebec City. It
also studied the draft schedule of regional activities for 2010-11.
Regional
Assembly of the Americas
Ms. Sharon
Blady, Chair of the Manitoba Branch, hosted the opening reception on August
30, after which Mr. Jean-Marc Lalonde, the Chargé de mission
for the Americas and an Ontario MLA, officially opened the Assembly for
business.
The
Hon. Andrée Champagne presented the final follow-up report on
the reflection of linguistic duality at the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter
Games. A number of people spoke about the report, including from the British
Columbia Branch. They congratulated British Colombian Francophones for their
role in the Games. Ms. Shelly Glover also spoke, emphasizing the
huge success of integrating French into the Games.
At the
second working session, Louisiana Senator Eric LaFleur presented a
report on the importance of elected officials defending French in minority
situations. The Hon. Andrée Champagne noted that older unilingual
Francophones in Louisiana have limited access to health care in French. She
referred to the saying “the more languages you speak, the more lives you live.”
Ms. Sharon
Blady then invited Mr. Louis Allain, CEO of the Conseil de
développement économique des municipalités bilingues du Manitoba (CDEM),
to present a report on economic development in Francophone and bilingual communities.
Ms. Shelly Glover asked him to describe CDEM’s role in Francophone
immigration, which is one of CDEM’s top priorities.
The fourth
working session focused on a presentation by Mr. Michel Samson,
Chair of the Nova Scotia Branch, about the Bonjour Program and the
French-Language Services Act.
Mr. Jean-Marc
Lalonde, Chargé de mission for the Americas and Chair of the Ontario
Branch, then gave a presentation on his project for a Francophone Youth
Parliament for the America Region.
The sixth
working session was led by the Deputy Chair of the Quebec Section, Mr. Henri-François
Gautrin, who presented a progress report on cooperative movement as an
economic development tool in the Francophone regions of the Americas.
Parliamentarians
then passed resolutions relating to the business of the 26th Regional
Assembly of the Americas: the role of French in the 2010 Winter Olympic and
Paralympic Games, the protection of Francophone minority communities and the
Francophone Youth Parliament for the America Region.
The Regional
Assembly closed with a presentation from Canada’s Minister of Citizenship,
Immigration and Multiculturalism, the Hon. Jason Kenney. He spoke
about Francophone immigration and federal-provincial cooperation in Canada.
Discussion followed.
The Hon. Andrée Champagne not only chaired the work of
the Conference of Branch Chairs, but also, with support from Ms. Glover
and Mr. Généreux, defended the interests of the Canadian Branch,
maintained regional ties and promoted the values of the members of the Canadian
Branch within La Francophonie. The Canadian Branch of the APF’s strategic
objectives for this mission were met.
Respectfully
submitted,
Shelly Glover, M.P.
Vice-Chair of the Canadian Branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF)