MONTREAL - A large rally led by the leaders of Quebec's sovereignty movement marked the 30th anniversary of the province's language law on Sunday.
Hundreds of participants converged on downtown Montreal to celebrate the Charter of the French Language, passed by the Quebec legislature on Aug. 26, 1977.
Former premier Bernard Landry, Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe and Parti Quebecois Leader Pauline Marois were among those attending.
Landry paid tribute to the charter's architect, Camille Laurin.
He said Bill 101's greatest impact was felt outside Quebec, where it inspired several countries to take legislative measures to protect their language at home.
Landry also spoke of new immigrants in the province.
"It is our duty to integrate them and tell them the truth, that Quebec is not multicultural,'' said Landry, who served as PQ premier from March 2001 to April 2003.
"The culture of Viviane Barbot (a Montreal Bloc MP of Haitian origin) and myself are the same. Her ancestors did not come from Ile d'Orleans, but she contributes to the enrichment of Quebec's culture. When we choose to live in Denmark, we know we must be Danish. When our flag flies in front of the United Nations building, when we choose to come to Quebec, we know it will be to become a Quebecer.''
The Charter, which is commonly known as Bill 101, was brought in by the PQ government of the day to promote and defend the use of French in Quebec.
It made French the province's official language.
The rally was organized by the Mouvement Montreal Francais.
PQ national assembly representative Pierre Curzi also paid homage to the French language at the gathering.
"Speaking French makes things exist,'' Curzi said. "It makes the physical country exist, and the sentimental country, the country of history. Speaking French reminds us who we are. The power to possess a language is the power to give birth to a country.''
Curzi, who represents the riding of Borduas, also spoke of integration for newcomers to Quebec.
"The beauty of language is that it can be learned,'' he said. "Someone who comes to your place, who comes to see you, can learn your language. And once he has control (of the language), he becomes a part of you.''
Elsewhere, Liberal Party Leader Stephane Dion told The Canadian Press that "Bill 101 was a great Canadian law.''
But Dion, who attended a community picnic in Montreal on Sunday, also said the rights of the province's anglophone minority must be respected.
